Jamaat-e-Islami founder Moulana Abul A’la Maududi’s Al Jihad fil Islam and Muslim Brotherhood founder Hasan al-Banna’s Mujahid ki Azan also figure in the list of banned books
NEW DELHI/SRINAGAR — In an unprecedented move, Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Manoj Sinha has ordered the forfeiture and ban of 25 books, alleging that they propagate secessionism, glorify terrorism, and pose a threat to national integrity and public order.
A notification issued by Principal Secretary of the Home Department, Chandraker Bharti, on August 5 invoked Section 98 of the Bhartiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, to declare the books “forfeited,” citing their “false narrative” and role in “misguiding the youth” of Jammu and Kashmir.
Among the banned works are Azadi by writer-activist Arundhati Roy, The Kashmir Dispute 1947–2012 by constitutional expert AG Noorani, and Kashmir at the Crossroads by political scientist Sumantra Bose.
The international books that were banned include Kashmiri-American author Hafsa Kanjwal’s Colonizing Kashmir: State-building Under Indian occupation, Haley Duschinski’s Resisting Occupation in Kashmir, Victoria Schofield’s Kashmir in Conflict and Christopher Snedden’s Independent Kashmir.
Seema Kazi’s Between Democracy & Nation: Gender and Militarisation in Kashmir, Essar Batool’s Do You Remember Kunan Poshpora? and Ather Zia’s Resisting Disappearance: Military Occupation and Women’s Activism in Kashmir have been banned.
The publication of Jamaat-e-Islami founder Maulana Abul A’la Maududi’s Al Jihad fil Islam and Muslim Brotherhood founder Hasan al-Banna’s Mujahid ki Azan also figure in the list of banned books.
Officials said the ban decision was taken after a detailed review of the content, which was found to be “objectionable” and “potentially harmful to public peace and the unity of the nation.”
The notification said investigations and intelligence inputs revealed that these publications played a significant role in radicalising youth by distorting historical facts, vilifying security forces, and promoting violence.
CPI(M) Opposes the Move
The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has vehemently opposed the ban. It described the censorship action as yet another expression of authoritarianism and a brazen attack on the freedom of expression and demanded immediate revocation of the ban.
In a statement, the Polit Bureau said the Lieutenant Governor, acting as a representative of the BJP-led Union government, is aggressively curtailing the fundamental rights guaranteed by the Indian Constitution.
The CPI(M) demands the immediate revocation of the ban on the books. Statehood for Jammu and Kashmir, along with full democratic rights, must be restored without delay. The elected government should be empowered with full administrative authority. Only through such measures can the confidence of the people of Jammu and Kashmir be regained, it said.
