Bhagavad Gita Radio

In 2011, a trial was commenced to ban the Russian edition of the book Bhagavad Gita As It Is (1968), a translation and commentary of the Hindu holy text Bhagavad Gita, on charges that the commentaries fomented religious extremism. It contains a translation and commentary by A.C.

Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), commonly known as the Hare Krishna movement. The trial was initiated in June 2011 in Tomsk, Russia, based on an assessment of the book by scholars of Tomsk State University, which concluded that Prabhupada's commentaries incite religious, social, and racial intolerance. The trial caused controversy, which was reported in the Indian, Russian, and international media, as well as on social networks. The Indian government harshly criticized the proposed ban as "patently absurd" undertaking of "ignorant and misdirected or motivated individuals". The overwhelmingly wide negative response to the trial forced Russian officials to offer apologies to India, promising the necessary remedial measures to prevent the ban. The trial also sparked public protests and legal actions in India against the proposed ban and drew harsh criticism of the intellectual community in Russia, leading Russian scholars publicly denounced the perpetuation of the trial. The scholars appealed to President Dmitry Medvedev and Premier Vladimir Putin for intervention and warned them of the trial's negative consequences for India-Russia relations and for Russia's international reputation. In December 2011, the judge dismissed the court case, a decision praised by the communities both in India and Russia. On 26 January 2012, the Tomsk prosecutor's office filed an appeal against the judge's ruling, but on 21 March 2012, the appeal court dismissed it, upholding the lower court's verdict. On 29 May 2012 Tomsk region prosecutor's office decided not to challenge the appeal court's verdict.