Customs plays Censor at book fair

NEW DELHI, February 11: Politics cast its shadow over the 13th World Book Fair here today when at least ten international titles published i...

NEW DELHI, February 11: Politics cast its shadow over the 13th World Book Fair here today when at least ten international titles published in Pakistan were withheld by the Custom authorities who alleged they contained 8220;objectionable material.8221;

The books, all published by the Oxford University Press, Karachi, deal with history, religion and politics. Some of the titles which have been withheld are: Jinnah Papers by Z H Zaidi, the British Raj in India by S M Burke and Salim Al-Din Quraishi, The Terrorist by H T Lambrick, Working with Zia by Gen K M Arif.

The OUP catalogue describes three volumes of Jinnah Papers as: 8220;They unfold the absorbing story not only of his multifarious political activities, but also personal, financial, legal and other aspects of his extraordinary full and active life.8221; The British Raj In India is a 8220;treatise on the Raj which reviews the role played by the three principal parties in transfer of power: the British, the Hindus and the Muslims.8221;

8220;We faced a similar problemlast time we were here. We were invited by the National Book Trust to be part of the fair in 1996 and around 20 per cent of our books were not cleared by the Customs even then. This time, just 50 per cent have been cleared and books with words like Islam, Jinnah and Pakistan have been withheld. Custom officials said they were not suitable,8221; says Ameena Saiyid, Managing Director of OUP in Pakistan.

According to representatives of OUP, the books have been lying at the airport since February 4 and only some books were released on February 10. 8220;Till then we had to make do with the stock left over from last fair,8221; said the stall manager. OUP, which is one of the two participants from Pakistan, also alleged that several Pakistani publishers had decided to stay away from the fair because of clearance problems.

However, another participant from Pakistan, Sheikh Mubarak Ali Publishers, says it has always been treated well by Indian authorities. The reason, perhaps, is prior restraint. Says spokesman Ahmad AliSheikh, who has been visiting the fair since 1992: 8220;Any serious participant would know which are the books that are likely to be banned. I never get any book on Kashmir, Punjab, current affairs, politics or history and yet I have done business worth Rs 50,000 this year.8221;

When contacted, the Commissioner, Air Cargo, Dalvir Singh said, 8220;Only two books, TheBritish Raj in India and Encyclopaedia of Terrorism have been withheld. The first, because it has incorrect facts on Sardar Patel and the second because of its references to Kashmir and Punjab.8221;

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Singh, while denying that any other book had been withheld said that the delay in clearing these books was the 8220;sheer volume8221; which has to be screened and 8220;the report is then sent to the Ministry of Finance and finally to the Ministry of Home Affairs.8221;

OUP8217;s affront at the 8220;discrimination8221; has not gone down too well with the National Book Trust, the nodal body of the fair. 8220;They are doing this just for political leverage. Last time, OUP had displayeda book which actually showed Kashmir as a part of Pakistan and the book had to be removed from the stall. If now they are having problems getting clearance for their books, then it is between them and the Custom authorities. They are lying about empty stalls. We even have a picture of their stall,8221; says S Nadig, chairman of NBT.