While Penguin Random House India cites legal concerns, including a disputed map and reference-related issues, authir reveals that at least six Indian publishers have since expressed interest in bringing the book to the Indian market.
NEW DELHI — A controversy has erupted over the Indian publication of internationally acclaimed graphic journalist Joe Sacco’s book on the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots after Penguin Random House India withdrew from plans to distribute the work. The decision prompted Sacco to reveal that at least six Indian publishers have since expressed interest in bringing the book to the Indian market.
The book, The Once and Future Riot, is a 135-page graphic non-fiction account of the communal violence that shook western Uttar Pradesh in 2013. Published internationally in 2025, the work examines the riots that left more than 60 people dead and displaced over 40,000 others.
Sacco, one of the world’s foremost graphic journalists, told The Indian Express that several Indian publishers had approached him following Penguin Random House India’s decision.
“Approximately six Indian publishers have contacted me about publishing the book in India,” Sacco said. “So I also have the impression that there are still people in India who want to preserve what happened in India and who are against forces that obstruct political scrutiny.”
The development follows Penguin Random House India’s decision not to proceed with distributing the book in the country. The title had been expected to reach Indian bookstores by August or September this year.
According to Penguin Random House India Chief Executive Officer Gaurav Shrinagesh, the decision followed a legal review of the manuscript.
Speaking to The Indian Express earlier this month, Shrinagesh said concerns had been raised over an incorrect map of India’s borders as well as issues relating to references.
“We are absolutely clear on this: if we know there is an incorrect map and there is going to be no change, then we will not do it,” he said.
Sacco, however, rejected suggestions that there were factual problems with the references used in the book.
“Objections about references never came up,” he said. “My book was thoroughly fact-checked by my editors at Metropolitan Books, my North American publisher, before publication.”
The award-winning journalist further claimed that the publisher’s requested changes extended well beyond the map issue.
According to Sacco, he was asked to alter quotations from people he had interviewed, including remarks made by a public figure.
“Some of these demands were for me to change the quotations of people I interviewed, including a public figure, in order to mute their rhetoric. I do not alter quotations,” he said.
He also alleged that he was asked to make editorial changes affecting the presentation and conclusions of the book.
“I was also asked to move a caption at the bottom of a page and, most importantly, remove my conclusion that Hindu nationalism is dominant on every front,” Sacco said.
Despite the disagreement, Sacco maintained that his work was balanced and fair.
He said that because of the conditions being sought, he informed his literary agents that he would not agree to the requested revisions.
“I told my agents that we would not comply with such certifications and demands, and then I stepped away,” he said.
Sacco also disclosed that the publisher requested consent forms and documentation confirming the likenesses of individuals interviewed for the project.
Responding to that issue, he defended his reporting methods, saying verbal consent is standard journalistic practice.
“Obtaining verbal consent for interviews and photography is standard journalistic practice, and verbal consent was given in all cases,” he said. “Journalists generally do not use consent forms while doing fieldwork, and therefore there are none to show.”
Widely regarded as a pioneer of graphic reportage, Sacco has earned international recognition for his reporting on conflicts in Palestine, Bosnia and other conflict zones. His books have been translated into 14 languages and are widely used in journalism and academic circles.
In The Once and Future Riot, Sacco recounts travelling to Muzaffarnagar roughly a year after the violence.
He writes that although he arrived “a little late,” his aim was to understand how “ideas, myths and fabrications” had come to replace reality in public discussions surrounding the riots.
During his research, Sacco was accompanied by local journalist Piyush, who served as translator and guide, while American writer Devon Bansha also assisted him during the reporting process.
Explaining why he chose the Muzaffarnagar riots as the subject of the project, Sacco said the violence occurred within a relatively limited geographical area, making field reporting manageable.
“The Muzaffarnagar riots took place in a relatively small geographical area that could be covered easily, so the fieldwork was manageable,” he said.
The book is based on interviews with government officials, politicians, village leaders and people directly affected by the violence, many of whom were landless farmers.
Sacco said he was particularly interested in examining the collective narratives through which different communities explained their actions and experiences.
“My work involved listening to what was passed on as a collective story, which was often filled with exaggeration and outright lies, and placing that story alongside something that got closer to the actual facts,” he said.
He added that some groups falsely claimed no violence had occurred in their villages.
“It was my responsibility to find the real victims of that violence,” he said.
The book also examines the role of rumours, crowd behaviour, collective psychology and political interests in communal violence. It explores how different communities can construct sharply contrasting versions of the same events.
Drawing on his reporting from conflicts in Palestine, Bosnia, Gaza and elsewhere, Sacco said the Muzaffarnagar project helped him better understand the relationship between electoral politics and communal tensions in India.
“I began to understand how violence is connected to electoral politics in India, and it seemed to me that the same tendency is showing itself in the United States and Western Europe,” he said. “So the book also has a universal aspect.”
Sacco argued that rumours, caste divisions, class differences, gender issues, historical grievances and political interests often interact during periods of communal unrest.
Expressing concern about current political trends, he said:
“Hindu nationalism is on the rise, and its large Muslim minority may be asking itself how it fits into an India that no longer describes itself as a secular state, although it recognises the religious sphere.”
He added:
“This kind of thing can only increase tensions between communities and benefit politicians who know how to play the strings of victimhood and fear. I worry that violence is being normalised, not only in India but also in other societies that consider themselves democracies.”
For now, Indian readers can obtain copies of The Once and Future Riot through imported editions available on online platforms and from a limited number of booksellers operating outside Penguin Random House India’s distribution network.
Whether any of the six publishers that have reportedly approached Sacco will eventually bring the book to the Indian market remains uncertain. However, the dispute has already reignited debate over publishing, editorial independence, freedom of expression and the continuing public interest in one of the most significant episodes of communal violence in recent Indian history.
