Expelled BJP leader Jaswant Singh’s controversial book on M A Jinnah is selling not only in its original form at legitimate bookstores, but also in pirated prints on the pavements.

Jinnah India-Partition Independence costs Rs 695 if you want an original from Rupa Publishers. The cost of a pirated version varies, as low as Rs 150 for those who can bargain and as high as Rs 250 for those who cannot.

At Bandra station, outside the ticket booking office on the west side, a street stall owner says he has not stopped selling copies for a week. “Every morning, I get around eight to 10 copies; by 5 pm, they are all sold out,” he says.

This vendor starts off by asking for Rs 250. “It costs Rs 700 in a big store,” he says, but later agrees to sell for Rs 180. By 3 pm on Sunday, he has just two copies left. He refuses to say where the stock comes from.

At Colaba, Fountain and Churchgate, at railway stations and signals, bargains are being sealed between Rs 150 and Rs 250. A buyer at Fort says, “The cover and the pages are of poor quality and the print is smudged at places, but it’s Ok for a quick read.”

At Churchgate, near Gaylords Restaurant, a vendor quotes a “fixed price” of Rs 150. “The book is out of stock now but you can place an order and I will get it in a day or two,” he says. He says he has been ordering copies on alternate days and they sell out in four or five hours. “The book is controversial and so in demand,” he says.

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