Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses Sold in India After 36 Years

Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses returns to India after 36 years, sparking fresh discussions on freedom, censorship, and literary expression.

on Jan 22, 2025

Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses Sold in India After 36 Years

Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses is now selling in India for the first time in 36 years. The book is available from New Delhi–based Bahrisons Booksellers after a ruling from the Delhi High Court questioned the legality of the banning decree that had prohibited its sale in the country since 1988. Although its import remains banned, publishing and its local sale seems okay.

Published in 1988, The Satanic Verses sparked widespread protests for its depiction of events inspired by the life of Prophet Muhammad. India’s government banned the book following violent demonstrations, making it one of the first countries to do so. The controversy escalated globally when Iranian leader Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa against Rushdie, forcing the author into hiding.

Violence related to the book included the murder of a Japanese translator and an arson attack in Turkey that killed 37 people. Rushdie himself survived a stabbing attack in New York in 2022, leaving him blind in one eye. He has since published a memoir, Knife: Meditations After An Attempted Murder, reflecting on these experiences.

The book has now been noticed much and is very much in huge demand in the Indian market at Bahrisons Booksellers also. But in opposition to publishing this book few Islamic groups in India have surfaced.

According to Manasi Subramaniam of Penguin Random House India, The book has relevance in history when she quoted a section from the text: "Language is courage: the ability to conceive a thought, to speak it, and by doing so to make it true."

Rushdie, born in India, has lived in the UK and now resides in New York. The renewed access to The Satanic Verses in India highlights ongoing debates over freedom of expression and censorship.