SRINAGAR: After the Jammu and Kashmir government banned 25 books, including the works of legal luminary A G Noorani and author Arundhati Roy, for allegedly peddling separatist narrative, police conducted raids on bookshops in the Valley to identify and seize the banned books.
The raids on bookshops were conducted in Srinagar, Kulgam and some other parts of the Valley.
A police spokesperson said raids were carried out at various bookshops across Srinagar district to search for and seize the banned books, in compliance with a Home Department order and under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
The objective of the operation, he said, was to identify, seize, and forfeit any literature that propagates or systematically disseminates false narratives, promotes secessionist ideologies, or otherwise poses a threat to the sovereignty and Unity of India.
The spokesman said searches were conducted in a peaceful manner, and due legal process was followed.
“Further action, if warranted, will be taken under law, as per the findings of the ongoing investigation,” he said.
“These measures have been undertaken as part of a broader effort to counter subversive and anti-national content that could incite unrest or undermine national integrity,” he said.
Police in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district also conducted searches at multiple bookshops across the south Kashmir district to prevent the circulation of “banned literature”.
“During the searches, all bookshop owners were sternly warned against stocking or distributing prohibited content. They were also sensitized about the legal consequences of violating these directives and instructed to strictly follow the guidelines,” the police spokesman said.
Police has advised people to stay away from “proscribed material” and report any suspicious activity, including the circulation of banned literature, to the nearest police station.
The Government yesterday ordered a ban on 25 books alleging that the works promote "false narratives, glorify terrorism, and incite secessionism."
The banned works include late legal luminary and political commentator AG Noorani's The Kashmir Dispute 1947-2012, prominent author and activist Arundhati Roy's Azadi, political scientist Sumantra Bose's Kashmir at the Crossroads and journalist Anuradha Bhasin’s The Untold Story of Kashmir after Article 370.
Other noted works include Do you Remember Kunan Poshpora by Essar Batool &others, USA and Kashmir by Dr. Shamshad Shan, Freedom Captivity (Negotiations of belonging along Kashmiri Frontier) by Radhika Gupta, Mujahid ki Azaan by Imaam Hasan-Al Bana, Kashmir in Conflict (India, Pakistan and the unending War) by Victoria Schofield, Seema Kazi’s Between Democracy and Nation (Gender and Militarization in Kashmir) and Independent Kashmir by Christopher Snedden.