On Friday (17th January), the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) moved the Calcutta High Court after being denied a stall at the 48th International Kolkata Book Fair.
The Hindu rights organisation applied for a stall with the Publishers & Booksellers Guild in October last year. In their application, VHP mentioned that it had participated in the book fair for several years and wanted a designated stall this time around as well.
“The application was kept pending,” it noted. Despite the VHP’s representation, no response was received from the Publishers & Booksellers Guild.
The Guild is now claiming that the application submitted by the VHP for the stall is ‘not in form’ and was therefore rejected. It also alleged that the Hindu rights organisation did not ‘qualify the conditions’ required for participating in the event.
During the hearing, the lawyer representing the Guild claimed, “The books published by the Parishad are sensitive and controversial. The books can spread disturbance.”
He further stated, “The guild does not want any such disturbances. So it has decided against allotting a stall to VHP at this year’s fair.”
Justice Amrita Sinha inquired, “Is the Guild aware that VHP possesses its publications? The guild had allotted stalls to VHP on previous occasions. What happened suddenly, that the Guild has started to feel that the publications by the VHP are so sensitive and controversial that they may create trouble?”
It must be mentioned that the 48th International Kolkata Book Fair is scheduled to start on 28th January 2025. The writ petition will be listed for consideration on Monday (20th January).
