INTRODUCTION
The Japanese translator of The Satanic Verses, Hitori Igarashi, was assassinated 34 years ago.[1] In 2022, Salman Rushdie, author of Satanic Verses, had to face a vicious knife attack in Britain[2]. For millennia, different ways have been put to use to stop people from reading undesired content, which has been by assassinating the authors or if we talk about the government, banning or censoring books has been an effective tool. The idea of controlling the narrative or stopping citizens from becoming aware that could shake their tyranny has always fascinated governments.
Satanic Verses was banned in India by Rajiv Gandhi’s government in 1988 after riots erupted over its contents.[3] After more than 36 years, satanic verses have returned to bookshops in India. This has nothing to do with freedom of speech, however, but missing paperwork. In November 2024, the Delhi High Court had to lift the ban because the original government order banning the book’s import could not be found.[4]
Book banning keeps certain books away from people. Several methods exist for banning books. These methods include removing some books from public places such as libraries, destroying several books—including burning printed books—or making the authorship or distribution of certain books a punishable offense. While governments frequently prohibit books, powerful religious authorities, influential businesses and certain highly visible people can also effectively block their publication.[5]
This whole incident broaches an interesting question of the legality of book banning in India. In this blog, we will delve into the history, legality, and implications of book banning.
HISTORY OF BOOK BANNING
In ancient China, 460 Confucian scholars were buried alive by Shih Huang Ti to limit the writing of history in his time. In 35 AD, the Roman emperor Caligula discouraged the reading of The Odyssey by Homer. According to him, Greek ideas of freedom expressed in it were dangerous[6]. Harry Potter has portrayals of witchcraft and magic, it was deemed anti-Christian and landed into controversy. Many people in the US demanded it be taken out of public libraries.
Even works by Shakespeare like Richard II which contained a scene in which the king was deposed from his throne, this scene was erased from all copies of the play by Queen Elizabeth I.[7] Many books that are acclaimed as classics today have been controversial in the past and have sometimes been banned.
In India, book banning was alien to us. Britishers introduced it to maintain their supremacy. During the colonial era, all the books and articles that were critical of them or questioned their oppression were banned. The use of sedition and putting writers behind bars was common practice. This was all done to protect the British imperial hegemony. The Gujarati translation of Indian Home Rule or Hind Swaraj authored by MK Gandhi was banned by the colonial British government.[8] The colonial regime also banned ‘Netaji ke Saathi’ based on Subhash Chandra Bose, authored by Imdad Sabri, recently declassified by the National Archives of India.[9]
LEGAL FRAMEWORK GOVERNING BOOK BANNING IN INDIA
In contemporary democratic India, the Constitution ensures fundamental liberties for all individuals. Part III of the Constitution of India deals with Fundamental rights. These rights form the foundation of the Constitution. Citizens have been given the right to approach the Supreme Court directly if they believe their Fundamental Rights have been violated.
India’s Constitution guarantees its citizens freedom of speech and expression, as Article 19(1)(a) outlines. This key article guarantees all citizens the freedom to express their thoughts, opinions and ideas. This includes fundamental freedom of expression through meaningful speech, prolific writing, common printing, diverse visual arts and other comparable means. However, this right can be reasonably limited to protect India’s sovereignty and integrity, state security, friendly foreign relations, public order, decency or morality, court contempt, defamation, incitement to an offense, or parliamentary sovereignty and integrity. With these entirely reasonable restrictions, the court must adjudicate the case, because the important question of reasonableness falls solely within the court’s purview.[10]
Section 98 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) 2023 empowers state governments to declare publications, including books and newspapers, as forfeited if they contain material punishable under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). This includes seditious content or matter inciting enmity or disrupting public harmony under Section 196 of BNS. In this provision, the governments can issue a notification declaring such publication forfeited, which enables the police to seize copies across the country. Magistrates can issue search orders to find these materials. However, courts can set aside the unjust declarations that were made concerning the orders for the confiscation. Although the intention is to promote the withdrawal of hostile material, banning certain content through Section 98 is controversial.[11]
Some authors fear that there is a ‘risk to free speech’ while some argue that such a law is necessary as it maintains public order. Such laws can politicize the service instead of safeguarding it.
Section 196 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023 prohibits acts that could foster animosity or disrupt societal harmony based on religious, racial, linguistic, or communal differences. It criminalizes speech, writing, or actions that incite hatred or violence. Religious settings are subject to harsher penalties for such offences. This provision might affect the already contentious discourse on book banning. This section can also be put in an application to ban books which propagate hate or amplify violence. However, this raises concerns about censorship[12].
Dissent and Novel ideals can be strangled because of the equivocal definition of “promoting enmity”. The fear of prosecution may deter writers from exploring sensitive topics, and there is the potential of the law being misused to silence unpopular viewpoints.
CONCLUSION
The issue of book banning is complex, we have to find a balance to protect social stability without compromising freedom of expression. While Sections 98 and 196 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita aim to curb hate speech and prevent the incitement of violence respectively, there are legitimate concerns that these provisions could be misused to stifle dissent and censor unexplored ideas.
What can be called reasonable restriction? It is the judiciary that decides what can be qualified as reasonable restrictions. An independent judiciary prevents abuse of the law and protects the citizens’ basic right to free speech and expression. The judiciary must uphold the constitutional values. We need to build a society where different viewpoints can be discussed and respected. Book banning should be considered only as a last resort, reserved for situations where the content truly endangers public safety. Striking this balance is necessary to ensure freedom of expression thrives in our democracy.
Author(s) Name: Dipendra Pandey (SVKM’s Pravin Gandhi College of Law, Mumbai University, Mumbai.)
REFERENCES:
[1] STEVEN R. WEISMAN, ‘Japanese Translator of Rushdie Book Found Slain’ The New York Times (New York, 13 July 1991) <https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/99/04/18/specials/rushdie-translator.html> accessed 10 January 2025
[2] ‘Why Didn’t I Fight…?’: Salman Rushdie Relives Brutal Knife Attack in New Memoir’ Hindustan Times (16 April 2024) <https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/why-didnt-i-fight-salman-rushdie-relives-brutal-knife-attack-in-new-memoir-101713236286175.html> accessed 10 January 2025
[3] ‘Bannings and Burnings in History’ (Freedom to Read) <https://www.freedomtoread.ca/resources/bannings-and-burnings-in-history> accessed 10 January 2025
[4] Penelope MacRae, ‘Rushdie’s Satanic Verses returns to Indian bookshops after 36 years’ The Guardian (26 December, 2024) <https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/dec/26/salman-rushdie-satanic-verses-india-bookshops#:~:text=The%20book%20was%20banned%20in,event%20in%20upstate%20New%20York> accessed 10 January 2025
[5] Adam Volle, ‘Book Banning’ (Britannica, 15 November 2024) <https://www.britannica.com/topic/book-banning> accessed 10 January 2025
[6] Bannings and Burnings in History (n 3)
[7] Ibid
[8] Arvind Krishna Mehrotra, A History of Indian Literature in English (C. Hurst & Co. Publishers, 2003)
[9] Dr. Divya Sethi, ‘Banned Literature by Raj: “Netaji ke Saathi” by Imdad Sabri’ (National Archives of India, 30 September 2021)
[10] Constitution of India 1950, art 19(1)(a)
[11] Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023, s 98
[12] Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, s 196
