Literature clashes with the law in India

[unhappycamper]

http://atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/SOU-04-210214.html



Literature clashes with the law in India
By Anindya Rai Verman
Feb 21, '14

Even authors of international repute are finding that publishers can no longer protect their right to freedom of expression in India, the world's largest democracy. The blame for this lies in the way publishers are being sandwiched between tough Indian libel laws and claims that books violate certain religious or other "rights".

When zealous interest groups or elements get involved, punitive legal provisions more often than not tilt the scales against authors. Throw in politicians of all hues ready to latch onto "emotive" issues, and one begins to comprehend why the going is getting so tough for writers and their publishers.

This explains the now familiar tussles that have in recent years repeatedly pitted "extreme elements" against writers seeking to uphold the right to freedom of speech and expression.

The most recent outcry in Indian and foreign media was over Penguin India's decision to recall and pulp, at its own expense, copies of the Indian edition of leading American academic Wendy Doniger's 800-page book, The Hindus: An Alternative History, published in 2009.