To celebrate Banned Books Week (Sept 21-27), we are presenting a list of books banned by South Asian governments. Find the link to Banned Books Week web page below to view USA’s 10 Most Challenged titles of 2013.
‘Banned Books Week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. Held during the last week of September, it highlights the value of free and open access to information. Banned Books Week brings together the entire book community –- librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types –- in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.
‘Banned Books Week was launched in 1982 in response to a sudden surge in the number of challenges to books in schools, bookstores and libraries. More than 11,300 books have been challenged since 1982 according to the American Library Association. There were 307 challenges reported to the Office of Intellectual Freedom in 2013, and many more go unreported.’
http://www.bannedbooksweek.org/about
Most of the following from Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_books_banned_by_governments
Some from:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2218972.stm
The Hindus: An Alternative History (2014)
Wendy Doniger, History.
Penguin Books India ‘agreed to withdraw from sale all copies of a book that takes an unorthodox view of Hinduism, and will destroy them as part of a settlement after a case was filed against the publisher.’
Great Soul: Mahatma Gandhi and His Struggle With India (2011)
Joseph Lelyveld, Biography.
Banned in Gujarat for suggesting that Mahatma Gandhi had a homosexual relationship. Gujarat’s state assembly voted unanimously in favour of the ban in April 2011.
Jinnah: India-Partition-Independence (2009)
Jaswant Singh, Biography.
Temporarily banned in Gujarat, India in August 2009. The ban was overturned by the Gujarat High Court in December 2009.
Islam – A Concept of Political World Invasion (2003)
R. V. Bhasin, Political ideology.
Banned in Maharashtra, India in 2007, after its publishing on grounds that it promotes communal disharmony between Hindus and Muslims.
Shivaji – Hindu King in Islamic India (2003)
James Laine, History.
Banned in Indian state of Maharashtra in 2004 for “promoting social enmity”; ban overturned by Bombay High Court in 2007.
Wild Wind (2002)
Taslima Nasrin, Memoir.
Banned in Bangladesh for containing ‘anti-Islamic remarks’.
The True Furqan (1999)
Al Saffee and Al Mahdee, Religious text.
Import into India prohibited on the grounds of threatening national security.
My Girlhood (1999)
Taslima Nasreen, Memoir.
Banned in Bangladesh for containing ‘anti-Islamic remarks’.
Lajja (1993)
Taslima Nasreen, Novel.
Banned in Bangladesh, and in a few states of India.
Soft Target: How the Indian Intelligence Service Penetrated Canada (1989)
Zuhair Kashmeri & Brian McAndrew, Investigative journalism.
Banned in India.
The Satanic Verses (1988)
Salman Rushdie, Novel.
Banned in the following countries for alleged blasphemy against Islam: Bangladesh, Egypt, India, Iran, Kenya, Kuwait, Liberia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Pakistan, Senegal, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Tanzania and Thailand.
Smash and Grab: Annexation of Sikkim (1984)
Sunanda Datta-Ray, Non-fiction.
Banned in India. Describes the process of the annexation of the Buddhist kingdom of Sikkim by the Indian government of Indira Gandhi in 1975.
Jinnah of Pakistan (1982)
Stanley Wolpert, Biography.
Banned in Pakistan for recounting Jinnah’s taste for wine and pork.
Understanding Islam through Hadis (1982)
Ram Swarup, Critique of political Islam.
Banned in India
An Area of Darkness (1964)
V. S. Naipaul, Travelogue.
Banned in India for its negative portrayal of India and its people.
Unarmed Victory (1963)
Bertrand Russell, History.
Banned in India. Contains unflattering details of the 1962 Sino-Indian War.
Nine Hours To Rama (1962)
Stanley Wolpert, Novel.
Banned in India. It exposes persons responsible for security lapses that led to Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination.
The Heart of India (1958)
Alexander Campbell, Fiction.
Banned by the Indian government in 1959 on grounds of being “repulsive”.
Angaray (1932)
Sajjad Zaheer, Short stories.
Banned in India in 1936 by the British government.
Rangila Rasul (1927)
Pt. Chamupati, Religious.
Banned in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.
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