THIS is with reference to the report ‘FCC upholds ban on book imports from certain countries’ (April 18), according to which, the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) upheld the government ban on import of books from, among other countries, India. This is a fatal blow to citizens’ funda-mental right to read.

Our nation is not particularly fond of reading books, while India provides a large variety of books on various topics, especially law and literature as well as fiction and non-fiction titles in English. It may be surprising to many that India publishes about 90,000 books per year compared to 1,200 books in Pakistan.

To impose a blanket ban on all books published in India is not fair, and it is an encroachment on the rights of serious readers and students. Indeed, books that contain any sort of anti-state material or immoral content can be, and should be, proscribed. And, this should happen irrespective of the place of publication.

The trade ministry may impose a ban on import of other goods, like, say, mangoes, jewellery and fabrics, but some distinction should be made between mangoes and books. Mangoes are meant to satisfy one’s taste buds, but books nourish the mind.

Air-Cdre (retd) Khayyam Durrani
Karachi

Published in Dawn, April 30th, 2026