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In a sweeping move coinciding with the sixth anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370, the Jammu and Kashmir Home Department has issued a notification banning and forfeiting 25 books, claiming they played a role in spreading “false narratives,” promoting “secessionism,” and “glorifying terrorism.” The government invoked Section 98 of the Bhartiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 to enforce the ban, stating that the books have been found to “excite secessionism and endanger the sovereignty and integrity of India.” Section 98 deals with power to declare certain publications forfeited and to issue search-warrants for the same.
The order, issued by Principal Secretary Chandraker Bharti under the authority of Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, said: “Available evidence based on investigations and credible intelligence unflinchingly indicate that a significant driver behind youth participation in violence and terrorism has been the systematic dissemination of false narratives and secessionist literature.”
According to the notification, the literature contributes to radicalization by “distortion of historical facts, glorification of terrorists, vilification of security forces, religious radicalization, promotion of alienation, pathway to violence and terrorism,” while masquerading as academic or political commentary. The books, the order stated, impact the “psyche of youth by promoting culture of grievance, victimhood and terrorist heroism.”
The banned titles span genres including political history, religious treatises, and socio-political analysis, and feature prominent Indian and international authors. The complete list of the 25 banned books includes:
Human Rights Violations in Kashmir – Piotr Balcerowicz & Agnieszka Kuszewska
Kashmiris Fight for Freedom – Mohd Yosuf Saraf
Colonizing Kashmir: State-Building under Indian Occupation – Hafsa Kanjwal
Kashmir Politics and Plebiscite – Dr. Abdul Gockhami Jabbar
Do You Remember Kunan Poshpora? – Essar Batool & others
Mujahid ki Azan – Imam Hasan Al-Bana Shaheed, edited by Maulana Enayatullah Subhani
Al Jihadul fil Islam – Moulana Maududi
Independent Kashmir – Christopher Snedden
Resisting Occupation in Kashmir – Haley Duschinski, Mona Bhat, Ather Zia, Cynthia Mahmood
Between Democracy & Nation: Gender and Militarisation in Kashmir – Seema Kazi
Contested Lands – Sumantra Bose
In Search of a Future: The Story of Kashmir – David Devadas
Kashmir in Conflict: India, Pakistan and the Unending War – Victoria Schofield
The Kashmir Dispute: 1947–2012 – A G Noorani
Kashmir at the Crossroads: Inside a 21st-Century Conflict – Sumantra Bose
A Dismantled State: The Untold Story of Kashmir after Article 370 – Anuradha Bhasin
Resisting Disappearance: Military Occupation and Women’s Activism in Kashmir – Ather Zia
Confronting Terrorism – Edited by Maroof Raza
Freedom in Captivity: Negotiations of Belonging along the Kashmiri Frontier – Radhika Gupta
Kashmir: The Case for Freedom – Tariq Ali, Hilal Bhatt, Angana Chatterji, Pankaj Mishra, Arundhati Roy
Azadi – Arundhati Roy
USA and Kashmir – Dr. Shamshad Shan
Law & Conflict Resolution in Kashmir – Piotr Balcerowicz & Agnieszka Kuszewska
Tarikh-i-Siyasat Kashmir – Dr. Afaq
Kashmir & the Future of South Asia – Edited by Sugata Bose & Ayesha Jalal
These works have been declared “forfeited to the Government,” with all forms of publication, distribution, and possession effectively banned across Jammu and Kashmir. The notification explicitly states that the move is necessary to prevent further youth radicalization and to uphold national integrity.
The order has sparked debate across literary, academic, and political circles, as it involves a wide array of voices ranging from international scholars to acclaimed Indian authors and journalists. As of now, there has been no official response from the affected authors or publishers.