To thine own self be true. And that’s the essence and ironically, messianic message of Salman Rushdie’s oeuvre and life. Knife, his latest is a sharp work of literature that cuts the flab of Joseph Anton and presents Rushdie as barebones.

But that’s not why this slim book is one of the most important pieces of writing of our times. Rushdie’s easiest work is probably the most difficult one for any reader with a conscience. As he lay recovering, half-blinded and handicapped, from an assassination attempt, the world around Rushdie busied itself with examining and re-examining the limits to free speech. What is hate speech? What is defamatory speech? Who ascertains what is worthy of “punishment”? Governments? Assassins? Radicalised mobs? Civil society?

With India in the throes of the general elections, these questions are more relevant than ever. Each time people exercise their right to vote, in India or elsewhere, they rally behind an idea. An idea that gets articulated in both speech and action. Like religion, politics is also a matter of faith. And as many of us end up realising, it can be equally one-sided. Devotion stays unrequited. Like love. Religion, politics, devotion, and love — they all require expression for sustenance. Yet, the respective expression to each of these categories attempts to preclude or, worse, penalise expressions for........

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