J&K Police arrests three publishers over controversial school books

Srinagar: The counter intelligence unit of the Jammu and Kashmir police has arrested three publishers in connection with the ongoing investigation into a controversy over books allegedly containing highly inappropriate content.

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The three publishers arrested include Inderpaul from Oberoi Book Service, and Amardeep Singh and Girish Arora from the Noida-based Dominant Publishers. The arrests are part of a broader investigation into the publication and distribution of books deemed to contain "highly inappropriate content" regarding which an FIR was registered by the counter intelligence unit in Jammu on July 4, under Sections 49 (abetment), 61(2) (criminal conspiracy), 152 (endangering the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India), 196 (promoting enmity, disharmony) and 353 (publishing, or circulating false statements, rumours, or reports) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), besides Section 13 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.


The action was taken after two books found in government libraries and distributed under the Samagra Shiksha scheme contained chapters glorifying separatist leaders. The book titled 'Personalities and Legends of J&K', authored by Hilal Ahmad and Santosh Meena, was published by Jammu-based Oberoi Book Service. The second book, 'Great Personalities of Jammu and Kashmir', is authored by Sushant Giri and published by the Delhi-based Anurag Prakashan.

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The J&K administration has already withdrawn the books and blacklisted both the publishers and the authors.