Rushdie pulls out of Jaipur lit fest, cites threat to life

Following almost two weeks of uncertainty over whether or not Salman Rushdie would be attending the Jaipur Literature Festival, the writer of 11 novels confirmed his absence, citing a threat to his life. In a statement released by his representatives in India, Rushdie confirmed that he would not be attending the festival as he had been told that paid assassins were on their way to Jaipur in a quest for him. “I have now been informed by intelligence sources in Maharashtra and Rajasthan that paid assassins from the Mumbai underworld may be on their way to Jaipur to “eliminate” me,” the statement said. [caption id=“attachment_188795” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“The author confirmed that he will not be attending Jaipur’s lit fest. Reuters”]  [/caption] While he expressed doubts over the accuracy of the intelligence tip he has received, he said that, “It would be irresponsible of me to come to the Festival in such circumstances; irresponsible to my family, to the festival audience, and to my fellow writers. I will therefore not travel to Jaipur as planned.” On 9 January, the  Islamic Seminary Darul Uloom Deoband said that the Indian government should cancel Rushdie’s visa as he had hurt the religious sentiments of Muslims in the past. Rushdie’s novel The Satanic Verses, which was banned by India, had sparked outrage in the Muslim world, and invited a fatwa against him by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the Supreme Leader of Iran, on 14 February 1989. The sixty-five-year-old Rushdie, was to attend the Jaipur Literature Festival tomorrow and, along with authors Rita Kothari and Tarun Tejpal, was slated to discuss the nuances of English with noted writer Ira Pande on the topic ‘Inglish, Amlish, Hinglish: The chutnification of English’. The Indian-origin writer had earlier visited the literary extravaganza in the Pink city in 2007. Even as the uncertainty over his visit loomed, Rushdie went silent on  Twitter, where he otherwise posts regular comments. In his statement, Rushdie said it was at the behest of Rajasthan’s local authorities. “For the last several days I have made no public comment about my proposed trip to the Jaipur Literary Festival at the request of the local authorities in Rajasthan, hoping that they would put in place such precautions as might be necessary to allow me to come and address the Festival audience in circumstances that were comfortable and safe for all,” his statement said. Announcing Rushdie’s absence, William Dalrymple (author of Nine Lives: In Search of the Sacred in Modern India), said that in a more just world, Rushdie’s arrival should have been heralded by people throwing rose petals on the streets, not slippers. He also pointed out that while Rushdie would not be attending the fest, there were 262 other authors in attendance. Sanjoy Roy, an organiser of the festival said the attitude of people towards Rushdie was a huge problem for Indian democracy.