Senior journalist and BJP leader Arun Shourie on Saturday opposed banning of books and films, saying this was against the idea of free Press.
"Any political party or leader who raised their hand against the Press... The hand was burnt and they had to rescind their move," Shourie told
reporters at a function to release his 25th book
We Must Have No Price and Everyone Must Know We Have No Price.
Citing the James Lane case in Maharashtra, Shourie said "a book on Shivaji Maharaj written by Lane became controversial. Bhandarkar Institute in Pune was attacked and many manuscripts were destroyed."
"I and Atal Behari Vajpayee came here to unveil the statue of Shivaji Maharaj at airport. Balasaheb (Sena chief Bal Thackeray) was at the function. Vajpayee said another book is the only answer for the Lane book, not destruction of property," he said.
Shourie was replying to a query on the 'political censorship' in the backdrop of a senior Maharashtra politician's son forcing makers of Marathi movie Zenda to postpone its release, saying it contained scenes that showed his father, a former Chief Minister, in poor light.