Attack on Salman Rushdie opens up the debate on banning books in a democratic society
In a shocking incident, author Salman Rushdie was stabbed 10 times at an event in New York and was seriously injured. The attacker Hadi Matar follows Shia extremists on social media and is an admirer of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard (IRGC). He has pleaded not guilty. Rushdie’s book ‘The Satanic Verses, published in 1988 was considered by Muslim clerics as disrespectful of Islam and the Prophet Mohammad. The novel led to a fatwa, a religious decree, by Iran's leader Ayatollah Khomeini. The threat forced him into hiding for several years. The author is likely to survive but may lose one eye. He was stabbed 10 times at Chautauqua Institution, where Rushdie was about to speak at the event. The suspect rushed onstage and stabbed him before being wrestled to the ground by staff and other people in the audience. Many world leaders condemned the attack and called it vicious and cowardly.
Back home, the Congress is drawing flak for banning the book. Rajiv Gandhi-led Congress Government was quick to ban the book on the pretext of disturbing law and order. Indeed banning a book or for that matter any work of art is tantamount to negating the very premise of democracy, to give everyone space to speak and express himself without any fear. However, certain reasonable restrictions apply. For instance, no sane society would allow books promoting child pornography or violent actions or drug abuse. Being blasphemous is a little different. It is debatable and should be debated within the boundaries of blasphemy. Satanic Verses is not the only book banned in free India. ‘Rama Retold’ or ‘Ramayana’ , a spoof of the Ramayana by Aubrey Menen, was banned in 1955. ‘The land of Lingam’ 1937 Arthur Miles is still banned for being critical of Hinduism and phallic worship.‘Rangila Rasul’, 1924, which dealt with Prophet Mohammad's relationships is banned to date. ‘The Jewel in the Lotus’, 1968 by Allen Edwardes for being oriental erotica The list is long; it even includes ‘The Da Vinci Code’, banned in Nagaland for its uncharitable comments on Jesus, and ‘An Area of Darkness' by Nobel prize winner VS Naipaul, and even classic DH Lawrence’s Lady Chatterley’s Lovers. The books are frozen thoughts and when they melt in the reader’s mind, they trigger a thought process. Needless to say, it depends upon the maturity of the individual or society if it can handle it. We can judge for ourselves how mature we are. We cannot be selective in banning books. Let there be a debate about it.