Modi govt bans book, says it’s a bid to tarnish Sardar image
Express news service :Ahmedabad, Aug 20 2009, 11:58 IST
BJP-ruled Gujarat tonight banned Jaswant Singh’s book Jinnah — India, Partition, Independence, claiming it defamed the image of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. The move came hours after Singh’s expulsion from the party.
Confirming that sale and import of the book had been banned with immediate effect across the state, Gujarat government spokesperson Jay Narayan Vyas said a notification to this effect was being issued.
“Sardar Patel’s contribution in the creation of modern India is
very well known. Any reference to the contrary, showing Sardar in bad light, is not acceptable to Gujarat,” Vyas said, justifying the ban on the book.
A statement issued by the state government said: “Jaswant Singh’s book questions the role of Sardar Patel during the Partition of India as well as his patriotic spirit. This
is an attempt to tarnish the image of Patel.”
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Reader's Comments (23)| Post a Comment
BEHAVE YOUSELF
SKP, ROHINI | 21-Aug-2009Reply | Forward ITS HIGH TIME THAT ALL LEADERS ACROSS THE PARTY LINES, WRITERES , SO CALLED INTELLECTUALS SHOULD MAKE IT A POINT THAT THEY SHOULD NOT PLAY WITH THE SENTIMENTS OF THE AAM ADMI (COMMON PEOPLE) OF THE COUNTRY IN THE NAME OF FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION.Just another step in the weakening of India
MNG | 21-Aug-2009Reply | Forward Whether you agree with the author or not should be our individual right. What God gave him the right to tell us, the free people of India, which books we can read. If we as Indians are to continue our greatest traditions of free thought that have been part of our makeup since the days of Ashoka, Valmiki, etc we must stand up for those qualites that make us great. Actions such as these only cheapen our history and spit on the hard work of many heroes who have given their lives to protect those freedoms. We must truly ask ourselves who is more detrimental to our country - he who shares his thoughts (whether we agree with it or not) or he who denies us our God given right to decide for our selves. Tyranny in the name of patriotism is the biggest sin we as Indians cannot tolerate. The freedom of an Indian to share his views with his countrymen(women) must be protected at all costs if we are to progress as a country and take our rightfull place in the world.Just another step in the weakening of India
MNG | 21-Aug-2009Reply | Forward Whether you agree with the author or not should be our individual right. What God gave him the right to tell us, the free people of India, which books we can read. If we as Indians are to continue our greatest traditions of free thought that have been part of our makeup since the days of Ashoka, Valmiki, etc we must stand up for those qualites that make us great. Actions such as these only cheapen our history and spit on the hard work of many heroes who have given their lives to protect those freedoms. We must truly ask ourselves who is more detrimental to our country - he who shares his thoughts (whether we agree with it or not) or he who denies us our God given right to decide for our selves. Tyranny in the name of patriotism is the biggest sin we as Indians cannot tolerate. The freedom of an Indian to share his views with his countrymen(women) must be protected at all costs if we are to progress as a country and take our rightfull place in the world.
Bigot
Rohit | 21-Aug-2009Reply | Forward Where were you when Salman Rushdie and Tasleema Nasreen were facing wrath of your brothers?
Your response to the issue at hand amazes me
MNG | 21-Aug-2009Reply | Forward Again, what's your point. Stay focused. Are you saying it's correct to the the book because it insulted someone's sense of patriotism, or because the books you mention were banned so should these?What exactly are your values - standing up for you rights or revenge because things did not go your way. Thank you for trying to remind me of where I was without saying anything of value. I'm so tired of these arguments about what did you do and what did I do. Reminds me of children fighting. If you have a point, take a minute or too and make a rational statement or stop wasting valuable bandwidth. Be part of the solution not part of the problem. BTW, do you even know what bigot means?
