'No interim relief': High court issues notice on pleas challenging ban of 25 books in Jammu Kashmir

October 13, 2025 by News Desk

Jammu Kashmir and Ladakh High Court on Monday issued notices to the Union Territory government in a series of petitions challenging the forfeiture of 25 books under Section 98 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS).

The bench, comprising Chief Justice Arun Palli, Justice Rajnesh Oswal, and Justice Shahzad Azeem, declined to grant any interim relief, meaning the government’s order confiscating the books remains in effect for now. The matter is scheduled for further hearing on December 4, 2025.

The petitions challenge the legality and constitutional validity of government order S.O. 203, dated August 5, 2025, issued by the Union Territory’s Home Department.

The order directs the forfeiture of 25 publications alleged to contain content “prejudicial to the security of the State and public order.”

Retired Air Vice-Marshal Kapil Kak, along with academicians and former bureaucrats including Wajahat Habibullah, Dr. Radha Kumar, and Dr. Sumantra Bose, argued that the notification violates statutory safeguards and constitutional rights.

“Section 98 of the BNSS requires the government to provide specific grounds when declaring publications liable for forfeiture. This order contains no reasoning, no references to the alleged objectionable passages, and applies a blanket ban on books spanning nearly a century,” the petitioners said.

The petition describes the order as a “sweeping and mechanical exercise” that criminalises academic inquiry and legitimate discussion on Kashmir. It contends that many of the seized works are scholarly or historical and do not threaten the State’s sovereignty or integrity.

The petitioners have sought the quashing of the notification and a directive restraining authorities from confiscating the books until the court delivers a decision.

Two other petitions, filed by law student Swastik Singh and Srinagar resident Shakir Shabir, raise similar constitutional objections. They argue that the notification exceeds the powers granted under the BNSS and violates Articles 14, 19(1)(a), and 21 of the Constitution.

“The government’s order was issued without independent assessment and lacks supporting material, including any FIRs, to justify claims of seditious content,” the petitions state.

The forfeited books include Independent Kashmir by Christopher Snedden, A.G. Noorani’s The Kashmir Dispute 1947-2012, Kashmir at Cross Roads by Sumantra Bose, Azadi by Arundhati Roy, Confronting Terrorism by Stephen P. Cohen, works by Ather Zia, and publication on Sheikh Abdullah.