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Madras court orders probe into Coimbatore library’s disputed book purchases
The Madras High Court has ordered Tamil Nadu’s anti-corruption agency to investigate disputed book purchases at a newly opened public library in Coimbatore and freeze accounts linked to a publisher accused of supplying them. The case began after novelist Perumal Murugan questioned the books’ accuracy and authorship, prompting wider concern about oversight of public spending and the reliability of AI-produced publishing.
Murugan alleged that nearly 1,800 Tamil books supplied to the Periyar Arivulagam library had unfamiliar authors, high prices and questionable ISBNs; one 300-page title reportedly cost 1,445 rupees. It remains unclear whether AI was used, and the state government and the previous DMK-led administration dispute responsibility. Separately, economist Jean Drèze says he did not write a book attributed to him at another library. More than 160 writers and others have called for an independent inquiry and an audit of collections across the state.
In short
- Court orders an anti-corruption investigation into library book purchases.
- Nearly 1,800 books are alleged to have questionable authorship.
- It is not yet clear whether AI was used.
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The case for
A thorough probe is justified because public money may have paid for books with questionable authorship, ISBNs or prices, and libraries depend on reliable collections. An independent audit could establish what was supplied, who approved it and whether safeguards failed, while protecting public trust regardless of which administration is responsible.
The case against
The allegations remain disputed, and the available account does not establish that AI was used or that wrongdoing occurred. Those accused and the officials involved are entitled to a fair process; freezing linked accounts or widening an audit before the evidence is assessed could be seen as premature or disproportionate, so any inquiry should be carefully scoped and follow due process.
Explained simply
Public libraries in India are funded by the state and local authorities, which buy books for readers to borrow. Those purchases involve public money, so officials are expected to check that books are genuine, suitable for the collection and fairly priced.
Perumal Murugan is a well-known Tamil novelist whose questions about books bought for a new Coimbatore library brought the purchases under scrutiny. The dispute has widened because other writers have also denied writing books attributed to them, while it remains unclear how the disputed titles were produced or who was responsible for selecting them.
The case raises questions about oversight of public spending and how libraries can verify authorship and quality as publishing tools, including AI, become more widely used. The outcome may affect how Tamil Nadu checks library collections and handles future book purchases.
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Originally published by BBC Technology as “New Indian mega library rocked by scandal over ‘AI-generated books’”.