Rushdie offended Muslims, cancel his visa, demands Deoband

Opposing controversial author Salman Rushdie's visit to India, Islamic Seminary Darul Uloom Deoband on Monday said the government should cancel his visa as he had hurt religious sentiments of Muslims in the past.

65-year-old Rushdie, who had earned the wrath of Muslims worldwide due to his novel 'The Satanic Verses', is set to attend the Jaipur Literature Festival this month end.

"Indian government should cancel his visa as Rushdie had annoyed the religious sentiments of Muslims in the past," Maulana Abul Qasim Nomani, the vice chancellor of Darul uloom, said in a release.

The government should take into account the feelings of Muslims against Rushdie, he stressed.

Rushdie's novel 'The Satanic Verses', which was banned by India, had sparked outrage in the Muslim world, including a fatwa against him by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the Supreme Leader of Iran, on February 14, 1989.

The Indian-origin Rushdie had earlier visited the literary extravaganza in the pink city in 2007.

On January 21, Rushdie along with authors Rita Kothari and Tarun Tejpal is slated to discuss the nuances of English with noted writer Ira Pande on the topic 'Inglish, Amlish, Hinglish: The chutnification of English'.