After Hyderabad, Saffron Policing at Tirupati Book Fair

Weeks after attack on Hyderabad Book Fair, Tirupati book exhibition was similarly targeted by some Hindutva religious extremists on the evening of February 8, 2025

Chennai: Weeks after attack on Hyderabad Book Fair, Tirupati book exhibition was similarly targeted by some Hindutva religious extremists on the evening of February 8, 2025.

The attackers objected to the book “Quran Analysis” by a Hindu writer called Sharma. The author in this book describes many similar values between Islam and Hinduism, citing Quran as a source.

Some Hindutva extremists created a ruckus at the bookstall tearing the book and burning it that’s written in Telugu.

The miscreants chanted the slogan “Jai Shri Ram” and attempted to vandalize the Vishalandhra bookstall that exhibited this book. They resorted to false accusations, abusive language, and caused disturbances, eyewitnesses said.

“Hearing loud noises near one of the stalls I rushed there. A few Hindutva supporters were tearing and burning a book written by Sharma. They were attempting to set the book on fire while chanting slogans", Sakam Nagaraju who was present at the book exhibition, said.

“They even went to the Vishalandhra book stall, shouting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogan and in abusive language, questioned, ‘Why are you selling books like Ramayana Visha Vriksham written by Ranganayakamma?”

They also objected to the books written by Tamil Reformer, Periyar. Their allegation was that Periyar’s books advocate marrying one’s mother and sister.

Slamming the attack, Vaka Prasad, the convener of the "Tirupati Book Lovers United Forum", said that books are a symbol of freedom of thought and regardless of region or religion are the source of knowledge.

"No one has the right to curb our freedom of expression and questioned who these fanatics are to decide which books one should read or not", he said demanding against the miscreants who attacked the bookstalls.

A similar attack on a Veekshanam book stall was carried out by the Hindutva hoodlums at the Hyderabad Book Fair on December 29, 2024.

[The writer, Syed Ali Mujtaba, is a Journalist. He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba2007@gmail.com.]

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