Publishing house Garuda Prakashan and its founders have received a “cease and desist” notice from Prof. Nandini Sundar regarding the upcoming publication of the book “Delhi Riots 2020: The Untold Story”. This book was originally slated to be published by a foreign publishing brand but was de-platformed at the last minute for extraneous reasons, leaving the three women authors high and dry.

Garuda Prakashan had then stepped in to help the authors get their voice out. On receiving this news, Prof. Nandini Sundar has sent a legal notice to Garuda Prakashan.

Garuda Prakashan is a young Indian publishing house committed to bringing forth alternative narratives and diverse voices towards a healthy democratic debate. Garuda is currently finding itself at the receiving end of baseless legal mudslinging. Garuda Prakashan stands strongly by its commitment to free expression and the written word.

“There are powerful forces which are trying hard to block the release of Delhi Riots 2020. Why are the facts it reveals so challenging for them?” asked Sankrant Sanu, CEO of Garuda Prakashan.

After Garuda Prakashan stepped up to publish the book, their website garudabooks.com was deluged by pre-orders. The book is slated to be released in the second half of September.

Since the book is currently in press after having gone through the editorial process by the Garuda Prakashan team, and no copies — physical or digital versions — have been circulated by Garuda so far, it’s obtainment by certain individuals and news media is a matter of concern.

“The irony is that Garuda Prakashan has not yet released any copy of the book to the public. How did they obtain a copy of a book which is not yet released. What is the basis on which a cease and desist notice is being sent,” questioned Sanu. “Clearly the aim is harassment and intimidation of a small publisher. Our strength is the love and trust of our readers who are eager for an authentic copy of the book. Our first responsibility is to our readers.”

Ankur Pathak, Co-founder, Garuda Prakashan, adds: “It is an attempt to bully and threaten a young publisher and its founders by flooding them with baseless notices. Since there is absolutely no legal basis for a notice on a book which is not even released, it is a deliberate attempt to impede the publishing of the book via intimidation.”

“It is quite unethical if you throttle diverse voices. If you disagree with a book, you can bring forth another book in response, another argument, but you cannot curtail the voices of others in a democratic country. Garuda Prakashan has a vision of bringing fact-based authentic content fearlessly. We will continue to do so, no matter how many challenges we have to face,” says Pathak.

Image by Fajrul Falah from Pixabay