Extract from the WASHINGTON POST dated 11.9.76

Summary

This one-page Washington Post extract dated 11 September 1976 reports Minoo Masani’s legal conflict with the censor over Freedom First, a monthly pamphlet advocating free trade and liberal principles. It says the Bombay High Court ruled firmly in Masani’s favour, endorsing the view that censorship should serve democracy rather than destroy it.

The extract then describes the apparent suppression of Freedom First through a printer’s letter announcing that no further issues could be produced and that the printer’s association with the journal would end with the August issue. Masani attributed the letter to official pressure and characterized the episode as “a war of nerves.”

Key points

• Minoo Masani is described as a retired politician and former ambassador.
• Masani challenged censorship connected with Freedom First, a pamphlet promoting free trade and liberal principles.
• The Bombay High Court ruled in Masani’s favour.
• The judgment included a statement distinguishing democratic censorship from censorship that destroys democracy.
• A printer informed Masani that further issues of Freedom First could not be printed.
• The printer’s association with the journal was to end with the August issue.
• Masani believed the printer’s letter had been prompted by the authorities and called the situation “a war of nerves.”