News Article

Salman Rushdie

Summary

Salman Rushdie, the Muslim author of The Satanic Verses, has backed out from the Jaipur literature festival due to threats from the Muslim community in India. His book, The Satanic Verses, is a controversial one, as it criticizes the Quran. The Muslims claimed that the book was blasphemous. Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa calling for his execution and since then Rushdie has been in hiding. The question that was raised by his supporters is that why is Rushdie being restricted by the Muslim community into India when he has visited many times before and once for the Jaipur literature festival in 2007. Supporters believe that this restriction is not because Rushdie hurt the sentiments of Muslims, but because of the Uttar Pradesh state elections that are due very soon. No political party wants to upset the Muslim community in Uttar Pradesh because U.P is has the largest percentage of Muslim voters (18%) in India. Salman has received threats of assassination if he shows up for the literature festival and therefore has decided to speak at the festival through a video link.

Response

When I first heard about this issue, I though it was incredibly petty, and there have not been big changes to that since then. Rushdie wrote a book explaining his opinion on the Quran. Is that a crime? Since when did expressing ideas and opinions become wrong? There is no valid reason for the Muslims to protest against his visit to India. He is a citizen of India and he has a right to be there. It is not up to the Muslims to decide who is and isn’t allowed into the country. Maybe his book was considered blasphemous in Iran, and it is understandable, but not India. How can they threaten Indian citizens like that? If an innocent citizen’s life is being threatened by someone, that someone is going against the law, and if he is against the law he is against the country. This isn’t at all what it looks like and that is what we call politics. Because of the elections, which Rushdie has nothing to do with, the Muslims are not allowing Rushdie in India. No one wants to jeopardize anything during the elections. This is incredibly selfish. Society is hammering down the nail once again. This behavior of the Muslim community has really destroyed India’s reputation. If one person expresses his thought which is different from the others, he is nailed backed down. That is the disappointing reality of life now.

Vocab

1. Gaudy:

·        “The festival, which just started today in the northwestern state of Rajasthan, is an astonishingly diverse and gaudy affair.”

·        Definition/Origin – Flashy, bright, loud, extravagantly showy. Originated from the Latin word "gaudium", meaning "enjoyment" or "merry-making.”

·        Sentence – Woodstock school students are very wary of gaudy clothing.

2. Frisked:

• “This morning, I saw rooftop snipers, sniffer dogs, and X-ray machines—and visitors were frisked as they entered the grounds.”
• Defination/Origin – To search (a person) for something concealed, especially a weapon, by passing the hands quickly over clothes or through pockets. Originated from Middle English frisk, meaning lively.
• Sentence: Even though local politicians often visit Woodstock school the students are never frisked by the security guards.

3. Blasphemous:

• “Many Muslims regard his book, The Satanic Verses, as blasphemous, and it was banned in India in 1988 for its "blasphemous content hurting the sentiments of Muslims.”
• Definition/Origin – expressing or involving sinful or gross disrespect towards God, a divine being, or something sacred. Originated from Greek word blasphēmos meaning evil-speaking (blapsis evil + phēmē speech)
• Sentence: Not eating Wai – Wai is blasphemous for woodstockers such as me.