Tuesday, December 01, 2015

Banning Salman Rushdie's Satanic Verses was 'wrong' says Indian minister

Former minister P Chidambaram tells audience he has ‘no hesitation’ in saying ban on Rushdie’s controversial novel was wrong – but 27-year embargo stands 

India’s ban still stands, despite the apology … Salman Rushdie.



‘Might there be a reason for buying my books not related to Khomeini?’ … Salman Rushdie. Photograph: Jeremy Sutton-Hibbert/Getty Images

India’s ban on The Satanic Verses in 1988 was “wrong”, a former minister from Rajiv Gandhi’s government has said, prompting Salman Rushdie to ask how long it will take for the “mistake” to be corrected.

Speaking at the Times literary festival in Delhi on Saturday, former finance minister P Chidambaram told an audience that “I have no hesitation in saying that the ban was wrong”, the Times of India reported. The October 1988 ban from Rajiv Gandhi’s government prevented the book from being imported to India, and is still in place. Chidambaram was minister of state for home when the ban occurred.

“This admission just took 27 years,” tweeted Rushdie in response. “How many more before the ‘mistake’ is corrected?”
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