Government unable to produce ‘untraceable’ notification against 1988 novel when citizen brought matter to court

Writing to the then Indian prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi, in October 1988, Salman Rushdie lamented that Indian democracy had become “a laughing stock” after the government placed a ban on importing his contentious novel The Satanic Verses.

Now 36 years later, the author may have the last laugh as the ban looks set to be lifted after the Indian government failed to locate the original order.