PoliticsKashmir book ban spreads fear of potential police raids
Authorities target 25 titles citing 'false narrative and secessionism' concerns
India's Jammu and Kashmir region has banned 25 books under a sweeping criminal law, targeting works by leading authors and scholars as part of a broader clampdown on media and dissent in the disputed territory. (Nikkei montage/Source Photos by Reuters and Quratulain Rehbar)
QURATULAIN REHBAR
August 15, 2025 13:32 JST
SRINAGAR, India -- Anuradha Bhasin, a journalist and author, was scrolling through the news when a headline caught her eye: a story about banned books in Kashmir. The report named three well-known authors -- A.G. Noorani, Arundhati Roy and Sumantra Bose. She skimmed past, thinking how strange it was that works of such stature were being banned.