In October 1988, Salman Rushdie wrote to the then Indian prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi, expressing his disappointment that Indian democracy had become a joke after the government banned the import of his controversial novel, The Satanic Verses.
Fast forward 36 years, and it seems that the author may have the last laugh as the ban is now expected to be lifted since the Indian government has been unable to locate the original order.
Rushdie’s novel, a work of magical realism, sparked global controversy upon its release in September 1988. Inspired by the life of the prophet Muhammad, the book drew criticism from Islamic leaders for its perceived blasphemy, leading to a fatwa issued against Rushdie by the supreme leader of Iran.
The backlash forced Rushdie to live in hiding for many years, culminating in a 2022 assassination attempt in which he was stabbed multiple times, resulting in blindness in one eye.
Following the publication of The Satanic Verses, the Indian government decided to ban the book’s import into the country, fearing backlash from Muslim MPs, a decision that Rushdie deemed “profoundly disturbing.”
However, it has now come to light that the customs order, reportedly issued by the ministry of finance, may not have been officially notified at all.
The issue surfaced in 2019 when an Indian citizen, Sandipan Khan, filed a case stating that he had tried to purchase the novel but was informed it was illegal. Despite his efforts to locate the import ban notification, it could not be found on any government websites.
Khan took the matter to the Delhi high court, challenging the import ban as unconstitutional. The case dragged on as the government sought extensions to find the original order, ultimately admitting on November 5 that the ban order was “untraceable and, therefore could not be produced.”
The judges in the case concluded that the court must presume that no such notification exists, effectively leading to the lifting of the import restrictions on the novel in India.
Salman Rushdie, who was born in India, has always maintained that his novel is not offensive or blasphemous towards Islam but rather a fictional exploration of religious, migration, and identity issues.
In his letter to Gandhi, Rushdie criticized the Indian government for bowing to the demands of what he called “extremists, even fundamentalists” who had not even read the book. He also found humor in the government’s assertion that the ban did not diminish the literary and artistic merit of his work, responding with a sarcastic “Thanks for the good review.”