Salman Rushdie : Freedom of expression came on ventilator | New York

New Delhi: K Natwar Singh, who was a Union minister in the Rajiv Gandhi government that banned Salman Rushdie's controversial book "The Satanic Verses", strongly defended the decision on Saturday asserting it was taken "purely" for law and order reasons.

With focus back on Rushdie's book in the wake of the attack on him in New York, Singh, who was the minister of state for external affairs when the book was banned in 1988, said he was part of the decision and had told the then prime minister the book could cause serious law and order problems as feelings were running very high. Singh (91) rejected as "rubbish" the charge by critics the Rajiv Gandhi government's decision to ban the book was driven by appeasement towards Muslims.

"I don't think it (the decision to ban the book) was wrong because you see it had led to law and order problems, particularly in Kashmir. In other parts of India also there was disquiet," Singh told PTI.