Book
Smash and Grab: Annexation of Sikkim
Smash and Grab: Annexation of Sikkim is a book by Sunanda K. Datta-Ray. The book dealt with India's annexation of Sikkim.
Description
About the work
Smash and Grab: Annexation of Sikkim is a book by Sunanda K. Datta-Ray. The book dealt with India's annexation of Sikkim.
The surviving record is interesting because it shows how even ordinary-looking books can acquire a charged political afterlife. As a book, it can be read not only for subject matter but for the way form, tone, and circulation make a text feel dangerous, intimate, or politically usable to anxious officials.
It also matters as part of a wider censorship history in India. The present page is a dossier starter built from source-tracked ban records; the surviving note currently says: The book dealt with India's annexation of Sikkim. The Delhi High Court had stopped its publication after a political officer station in Gangtok at the time filed a defamation suit. The book was later allowed for release. More publication history, translations, and close reading can be added later.
Overview
Why it was banned
Smash and Grab: Annexation of Sikkim entered censorship debates as a book associated with controversy, publication history, and state scrutiny. In the current dossier, the main state objections cluster around political sensitivity.
The earliest event currently captured here is 1984 in India, where Government of India or British Indian authorities banned publication, sale, or possession. The book dealt with India's annexation of Sikkim. The Delhi High Court had stopped its publication after a political officer station in Gangtok at the time filed a defamation suit. The book was later allowed for release. The book dealt with India's annexation of Sikkim. The Delhi High Court had stopped its publication after a political officer station in Gangtok at the time filed a defamation suit. The book was later allowed for release.
This entry is still incomplete: more jurisdictions, court orders, and translated justifications should be added over time.
This page is intentionally incomplete. The ban history is a starter dataset, not a final census of every jurisdiction or decree.
Counter and critical readings
Context, rebuttals, and criticism
- 100 Banned Books: Censorship Histories of World Literature Nicholas J. Karolides, Margaret Bald, and Dawn B. Sova
A compact reference on how censorship systems moved across states, churches, and courts.
- Banned Books: 387 B.C. to 1978 A.D. Anne Lyon Haight
Useful for comparing older obscenity, heresy, and political bans with modern free-speech disputes.
Ban history
Known government actions
| Date | Jurisdiction | Action | Reason | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | India | banned publication, sale, or possession | The book dealt with India's annexation of Sikkim. The Delhi High Court had stopped its publication after a political officer station in Gangtok at the time filed a defamation suit. The book was later allowed for release. | The book dealt with India's annexation of Sikkim. The Delhi High Court had stopped its publication after a political officer station in Gangtok at the time filed a defamation suit. The book was later allowed for release. |
Sources
Harvested references for this page
- Wikipedia: List of books banned in India reference partial
- Wikipedia REST summary API database partial
- 100 Banned Books: Censorship Histories of World Literature book partial
- Banned Books: 387 B.C. to 1978 A.D. book partial