Supreme Court Rejects Plea Seeking Ban On Salman Rushdie’s Book

Salman Rushdie

The Supreme Court on Friday declined to entertain a plea seeking a nationwide ban on Salman Rushdie’s controversial novel The Satanic Verses, which has been at the center of global controversy for decades.

The matter came before a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, which dismissed the petition at the admission stage.

Bench Cites Delhi High Court Order

During the hearing, counsel for the petitioners referred to a Delhi High Court order of November 2023. In that ruling, the High Court had closed proceedings on a plea challenging the Rajiv Gandhi government’s 1988 decision to ban the book’s import.

The High Court noted that since authorities had failed to produce the relevant notification, it had to be “presumed that it does not exist.”

Responding to this, the Supreme Court bench observed:

“You are effectively challenging the judgement of the Delhi High Court.”

The bench then dismissed the plea.

Petition Filed In Supreme Court

The petition in the apex court was filed through advocate Chand Qureshi. It alleged that copies of the book had become accessible in India due to the Delhi High Court’s earlier order, and urged the Supreme Court to step in and impose a complete ban.

However, the bench found no merit in the arguments and declined to interfere.

Background

Salman Rushdie’s novel The Satanic Verses, published in 1988, immediately sparked global outrage among sections of the Muslim community, who considered parts of the book blasphemous.

In response to protests and concerns over public order, the Rajiv Gandhi government imposed a ban on the import of the novel in 1988, making India one of the first countries to do so.

The book’s controversial status only grew in subsequent years. It was banned in several other nations, and Rushdie himself faced death threats, including a fatwa issued by Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeini in 1989.

Court’s Refusal

By refusing to entertain the latest plea, the Supreme Court has effectively left the matter where it stood following the Delhi High Court’s ruling.