In his first reaction to the stabbing of Salman Rushdie, India on Thursday condemned the “terrible attack” on the famous novelist and hoped he was quick. Rushdie, 75, stabbed in the neck and body in the Chautauqua Institution in New York on August 12.
“India always opposes violence and extremism. We condemn a terrible attack on Salman Rushdie and we hope he is a fast recovery,” said a spokesman for the Ministry of External Affairs Arindam Bagchi at his weekly media briefing. The attack on Rushdie sparked global criticism and outpouring support for the author.
Rushdie spent years hiding after Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, issued a ‘fatwa’ in 1989 who called on his death after the publication of his novel ‘The Satanic Verses’. After the attack, US Secretary Antony Blinken said Iranian state institutions had incitement of violence against Rushdie and novelists consistently defending universal rights of freedom of expression and religious freedom. A 24 -year -old man, Hadi Matar, was identified as an alleged attacker. After the attack, Iran rejected the relationship with the attacker.
