SC ruling on Shivaji book sparks protests

A day after the Supreme Court decision to lift ban on the sale of American author James Laine’s controversial book on King Shivaji, protests took place in several parts of the state, especially in western Maharashtra — erstwhile stronghold of Shivaji’s Maratha empire.

A day after the Supreme Court decision to lift ban on the sale of American author James Laine’s controversial book on King Shivaji, protests took place in several parts of the state, especially in western Maharashtra — erstwhile stronghold of Shivaji’s Maratha empire.

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Amid protests at his hometown in Nanded, Chief Minister Ashok Chavan said his government was exploring legal options to ban the book. Home Minister RR Patil was gheraoed by activists of Maratha Seva Sangh, who demanded his resignation.

Patil later told the media, “We will study the apex court judgement and take advice from legal experts on what can be done to ensure the ban on the sale of the book. We will also see if there can be any amendments to the existing law to ensure this,” Patil said.

Chhatrapati Sambhajiraje, a descendent of Shivaji and scion of Kolhapur throne, described Supreme Court decision as an unfortunate and threatened that he would not allow any publication of Oxford Press to be sold in the market.