Salman Rushdie stabbing: India breaks silence on ‘horrific attack’ on author, condemns incident

India’s first response to the stabbing of Salman Rushdie came on Thursday, when officials there decried the “horrific attack” on the renowned author and hoped for his quick recovery. Hadi Matar, a guy in his twenties, has been identified as the suspect in this case.

“India has always stood against violence and extremism. We condemn the horrific attack on Salman Rushdie and we wish him a speedy recovery,” External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said at his weekly media briefing.

On August 12 at New York’s Chautauqua Institution, Salman Rushdie, 75, was stabbed many times in the neck and body. Rushdie’s assassination was universally condemned, and his supporters received an outpouring of love and admiration.

After the release of his book “The Satanic Verses” in 1989, Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a “fatwa” calling for Rushdie’s execution, prompting him to spend years in hiding. In the wake of the incident, Iran strongly denied any involvement.

US Secretary of Official Antony Blinken condemned the assault, saying that Iranian state institutions have incited violence against Rushdie and that the author has constantly defended the rights to free speech and religious practise.