Books and Magazines News

Authorities in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir have banned 25 books by acclaimed scholars, writers and historians, accusing them of promoting terrorism, secessionism and undermining the sovereignty and integrity of India.

The titles include works by internationally renowned Islamic thinker Syed Abul Ala Maududi, constitutional expert AG Noorani, award-winning author and activist Arundhati Roy, Kashmiri academics Hafsa Kanjwal and Ather Zia, and prominent historians Ayesha Jalal and Sugata Bose.

A government notification issued by the Home Department said the publications were forfeited under Section 98 of the newly implemented Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 -- Indias Code of Criminal Procedure.

Officials allege the books contain false narratives, glorify terrorism, vilify Indian security forces and distort historical facts, claims the authorities say contribute to the radicalisation of Kashmiri youth and incitement to violence.

Among the banned works are:

• Al-Jihad Fil Islam by Maududi
• Azadi and Kashmir: The Case for Freedom by Arundhati Roy
• Colonizing Kashmir by Hafsa Kanjwal
• Resisting Disappearance by Ather Zia
• Kashmir in Conflict by Victoria Schofield
• The Kashmir Dispute 1947--2012 by AG Noorani.

A week before the scheduled launch of the latest book by Professor Frank Furedi, the executive director of the leading conservative think tank MCC (Mathias Corvinus Collegium) Brussels, the bookstore that previously agreed to host the event cancelled the event saying:

After careful consideration, we have found out that the political connotation of the initiative is more strongly marked than we initially understood. Our venue has always maintained a line of neutrality, this choice allows us to ensure an inclusive space that respects all sensibilities.

The event was supposed to take place on Monday, September 30th, in the Piola.libri bookstore, just a few minutes' walk from the European Commission's headquarters and other major EU institutions.

In their press release, MCC explained that the critically acclaimed book, The War Against the Past, explores today's cultural crusade against Western history which is being increasingly dismissed as toxic. From the toppling of statues to the removal of historical terms from everyday vocabulary, Furedi examines the growing effort to cast the past in a negative light.

The MCC has secured an alternative venue for the book launch, which will be announced shortly.

Hungarian authorities have fined a bookseller for selling a British graphic novel without closed wrapping - saying it breached an anti-gay law on LGBT literature for under-18s.

The retailer was fined 12m forints (£27,400), for selling Heartstopper without wrapping it in plastic foil, as required by law. Officials said the book depicts homosexuality and was sold to minors.

In 2021, the government of prime minister Viktor Orban introduced a law banning the display and promotion of homosexuality among under-18s. The censorship laws says that minors cannot be shown pornographic content, or anything that encourages gender change or homosexuality.

The Heartstopper series of books, written and illustrated by the British author Alice Oseman, follow the lives of two British teenagers attending a fictional school who meet and fall in love. It is billed as a book about life, love, and everything that happens in between. It has since been acquired and adapted by the streaming service Netflix, which plans to release a second series in August.