When Natwar Singh advised Rajiv Gandhi to ban Salman Rushdie's book: ‘Wasn’t wrong'

Natwar Singh said Rajiv Gandhi sought counsel on what should be done with Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses. As the writer battles for his life after being stabbed by a 24-year-old man on Friday, Natwar Singh said the decision to ban the book was justified.

Former diplomat and minister Natwar Singh on Saturday said when India banned Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses in 1988, he was part of the decision. He had told then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi that the book should be banned as it could cause law and order issues. The decision taken purely for law and order reasons was justified, Natwar Singh said to news agency PTI, as the controversial British-American author has been stabbed in New York at an open event by a 24-year-old man. Read | Indian leaders react to attack on Salman Rushdie: Yet another reminder of…

Natwar Singh said he was distressed over the attack on Salman Rushdie in New York. 

As the attack on the writer in the United States unsettled world leaders, artistes, Natwar Singh said he was very distressed over the attack. "Here is a man 75 years old, not harming anybody and contributing to literature and then some rascal comes and nearly kills him and that too when he was making a speech in New York," he said.

The book was banned in October 1988. At that time, Chidambaram was the home minister who later, however, said his personal decision was not in favour of banning the book.

A day after the attack on the writer which may lead to permanent damage of the writer's one eye, Natwar Singh said he still does not think the decision was wrong as the book led to law and order problems in Kashmir at that time. "Rajiv Gandhi asked me what should be done. I said, 'all my life I have been totally opposed to banning books but when it comes to law and order even a book of a great writer like Rushdie should be banned'," he said.

“I completely think it was justified because it was going to cause serious law and order problems as feelings were running very high, particularly among our Muslim population,” he said.

"I said, ‘the entire Muslim world is going to flare up, we have a large number of Muslims and apart from that, what the book contains at this time, is not acceptable’," he added.

On Friday, the author was stabbed in his neck and abdomen when he was about to give a lecture on the United States as a safe haven for exiled artistes. As he was being introduced, Hadi Matar, the 24-year-old attacker climbed the stage and stabbed the author multiple times. The attacker is a sympathiser of the Iran government, reports claimed though the motive behind the attack has not been confirmed by the police.

(With PTI inputs)