Rushdie's writings painful: Imran Khan

Kolkata -  Describing the writings of Salman Rushdie as "painful" for the Muslim community, Pakistani politician and former cricket captain Imran Khan Monday said no one had a right to humiliate someone’s belief.

“First of all what is painful for a human community only the human community should decide…the issue is not what Rushdie wrote (in his novel 'The Satanic Verses'). The real issue is that nobody has the right to inflict pain on a society,” Khan said during an interactive session at the Kolkata Book Fair here.

“We should have respect to what is painful to each other and no one should have a right to inflict pain on each other,” he said.

He, however, blamed the Muslim leadership for failing to understand the values of the society and the community.

"The Satanic Verses" of Rushdie, a British-Indian author, was banned in India and many countries 20 years back after allegation that the novel’s portrayal of Prophet Muhammad insulted Islam.

Rushdie recently cancelled his visit to India for attending a literature festival in Jaipur after the authorities there warned the controversial author that he was a potential target of assassins at the event.