SRINAGAR: The Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court will form a Special Bench of three judges to hear a petition challenging a government notification that declared 25 books on Kashmir’s political and social history “forfeited” under Section 98 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS).
Chief Justice Arun Palli indicated that orders for constituting the Special Bench would be issued shortly.
Advocate Vrinda Grover appeared before the Chief Justice on Tuesday, stating that the petitioners were seeking relief under Section 99(1) BNSS to set aside the government notification. Published in the official Gazette, the notification labeled the 25 books as forfeited for allegedly “propagating false narratives and secessionism.”
The petition, filed under Section 99 read with Section 528 BNSS, is brought by Air Vice Marshal (Retd.) Kapil Kak, author Dr. Sumantra Bose, peace scholar Dr. Radha Kumar, and former Chief Information Commissioner Wajahat Habibullah. It challenges the August 5, 2025, notification (S.O. 203) issued by the Home Department of the Government of J&K.
Petitioners’ Arguments
The petitioners argue that the order is arbitrary, sweeping, and unreasoned, falling short of the legal standards required under Section 98 BNSS. They note that the notification does not identify specific portions of the books to demonstrate how they allegedly propagate secessionist narratives, nor does it provide a reasoned justification for forfeiture.
The petition states that the order merely reproduces statutory language without citing any facts, passages, or representations from the books that purportedly violate the law. It refers to the Supreme Court’s ruling in Narayan Das Indurakhya v. State of Madhya Pradesh (1972), which held that quoting statutory provisions without stating underlying grounds does not constitute a reasoned order.
The petition further emphasizes the distinction between the government’s “opinion” and the “grounds” for that opinion, asserting that the latter must be clearly discernible from the order itself. It cites precedents such as Harnam Das v. State of Uttar Pradesh and Arun Ranjan Choudhury v. State of West Bengal, which held that the grounds must relate to the “import, effect, or tendency” of a publication, demonstrated through excerpts or content analysis.
Notification Allegations
The contested notification asserts that the “systematic dissemination of false narratives and secessionist literature” has fueled youth radicalization in J&K by glorifying terrorism, vilifying security forces, distorting historical facts, and promoting alienation.
It declares the listed books forfeited under Section 98 BNSS, alleging that they “excite secessionism and endanger the sovereignty and integrity of India,” thereby invoking Sections 152, 196, and 197 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS).
The 25-book list includes works by scholars and writers such as Sumantra Bose, A.G. Noorani, Arundhati Roy, Seema Kazi, Hafsa Kanjwal, and Victoria Schofield, many published by leading academic presses including Oxford University Press, Stanford University Press, and Routledge.
