Vox Ummah Team
On 6 August 2025, authorities in Indian-administered Kashmir issued an order to ban and seize 25 books, including works by Kashmiri, Indian, and international authors, claiming they “glorify terrorism” and “incite secessionism” in the region.
Among the banned titles are Azadi by Arundhati Roy, The Kashmir Dispute 1947–2012 by A. G. Noorani, Kashmir in Conflict by Victoria Schofield, and Independent Kashmir by Christopher Snedden—works widely regarded as essential to understanding the region’s history and politics.
The ban coincided with the Chinar Book Festival in Srinagar, organised by the National Book Trust, the National Council for Promotion of Urdu Language, and the district administration, with support from the Ministry of Education.
Issued by Principal Secretary (Home) Chandraker Bharti, the directive declared the books forfeited under Sections 152, 196, and 197 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. It stated that specific literature “propagates false narratives” and could “deeply impact the psyche of youth by promoting a culture of grievance, victimhood, and terrorist heroism.”
For critics, the move reflects a deepening crackdown on dissent since the BJP government revoked its semi-autonomous status on 5 August 2019.
“Nothing is surprising about this ban, which comes at a moment when the level of censorship and surveillance in Kashmir since 2019 has reached absurd heights,” Hafsa Kanjwal, an associate professor of South Asian history at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania, told Al Jazeera. “It is, of course, even more absurd that this ban comes at a time when the Indian army is simultaneously promoting book reading and literature through a state-sponsored Chinar Book Festival,” she added.
Students and academics see the order as part of a broader effort to silence scholarship. “The truth is that these authors and their publishers give space to Kashmiri voices by providing historical and legal context”, said Danish Hassan, a literature student in Srinagar. “The Government of India had to ban them because, from their perspective, such books amount to secessionism. But academically, and in terms of international discourse, they are regarded as critical, scholarly, and sometimes polemical works of political commentary rather than material that incites or glorifies terrorism.”
Within hours after the announcement, police raided dozens of locations across the region and began confiscating the banned titles. “The presence of police forces reminded us of the scenes that were common during gunfights,” a bookseller told Vox Ummah, requesting anonymity. “Earlier, only people were detained, and today even books are not spared,” the bookseller said, adding that some shop owners faced heavy losses while others suffered relatively minor ones.
In February 2025, police carried out similar raids on bookstores. They seized literature related to Jamaat-e-Islami (JEL), an Islamic movement founded in 1941 by Syed Abul A’la Maududi and outlawed in India since 2019. Booksellers say this year’s campaign has gone further, targeting mainstream, globally recognised authors.
The ban has been condemned by Kashmiri pro-freedom leaders and even mainstream political figures.
Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said the order was issued by the Lieutenant Governor’s office, which directly controls the Home Department. “I never banned books and never would,” he remarked.
Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, chairman of the banned Hurriyat Conference, said the ban “exposes the insecurities and limited understanding of those behind such authoritarian actions.” He added: “Banning books by scholars and reputed historians will not erase historical facts or the lived memories of the people of Kashmir.”
The latest seizures have taken place in a context of repression, in Kashmir, where things have been growing tenser each day since 2019. It’s been a time of arrests for activists and bans on religious groups, and limits on what the press can report. The government is also keeping a close eye on everyone with a surveillance system that has grown increasingly extensive.
The move to ban books is seen as part of a broader cultural initiative aimed at shaping people’s perceptions of Kashmir. By doing so, the Indian government will replace critical scholarship with state-approved narratives.
For a Kashmiri journalist, the issue at hand is not solely a political one but leans into the erasure of the Kashmiri people. In conversation with Vox Ummah, they shared an insight: “removing books from shelves is an attempt to control the narrative to prevent people from being exposed to the perspectives of Kashmiris.”
The timing of the order — announced while the state was hosting a literary festival — has drawn particular scorn.
As one student put it: “It’s a cruel irony. On one side, the government is promoting a festival to showcase its commitment to literature. On the other hand, it sends police to confiscate books.”
For many Kashmiris, the contradiction only underscores a larger truth: banning books cannot erase history.
