3 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Mar 25, 2026 03:49 PM IST
Bestselling titles by popular South Korean novelist Haruki Murakami, Booker Prize-winning author Arundhati Roy and Israeli author Yuval Noah Harari: These were among 20,000 pirated books seized after a major piracy racket was unearthed by the Delhi Police Crime Branch.
Police also arrested a 67-year-old man involved in illegal printing and distribution of books belonging to Penguin Random House India Pvt. Ltd and seized printing machinery.
Police said the accused, Rohini resident Jwala Prasad Soni, was allegedly running an organised operation involved in the unauthorised reproduction and circulation of copyrighted books. Police officials said he played a key role in facilitating the printing, storage and supply of counterfeit books in violation of copyright laws.
Over 20,000 pirated books seized in Delhi through a collaborative crackdown led by Delhi Police with Penguin Random House India, @SimonSchusterIN & @HayHouseIndia – one of the capital’s biggest anti-piracy actions.
Read the full report: https://t.co/lWUS5K2Ee8
— Penguin India (@PenguinIndia) March 23, 2026
According to officials, the operation was initiated following a complaint received on March 14. Acting on the information, a team of the Inter State Cell (ISC) of the Crime Branch conducted a raid at Rohini’s Sector 16 under the supervision of ACP Ramesh Chander Lamba. During the raid, 8,593 pirated books were recovered.
Subsequent searches at another nearby location led to the seizure of an additional 11,544 copies, taking the total recovery to 20,137 books. Police said the accused would buy the original copy of the book and then make pirated versions of them.
During the course of the investigation, the accused allegedly attempted to mislead the police about the source of the printing. However, sustained questioning and police custody remand led to further breakthroughs.
Based on Soni’s disclosures, the police traced a printing unit in the Anand Parbat Industrial Area, from where two printing machines were recovered. Officials also seized negatives of four pirated titles and 12 printing plates used in the illegal reproduction process.
Police said the recoveries establish the accused’s direct involvement in the entire piracy chain from printing to distribution.
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Soni has a prior record in a similar offence, with a case registered against him in 2011 under the Copyright Act by the Economic Offences Wing.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Aditya Gautam said the operation highlights the organised nature of book piracy networks and reaffirmed the police’s commitment to tackling intellectual property theft.
Further investigation is underway to identify other individuals linked to the racket, police said.
In an article on the raid on the publisher’s website, Penguin Random House India said authorities recovered unauthorised copies of numerous bestselling and newly released titles including works by globally acclaimed and bestselling authors: Daniel Kahneman, Arundhati Roy, Simon Sinek, Yuval Noah Harari, Haruki Murakami, James Clear, and others, spanning both international and Indian publishing lists.
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Manoj Satti, SVP- Product, Sales & Marketing, Penguin Random House India, said in the article, “Piracy is not a victimless crime — it directly impacts authors, publishers, readers and the broader creative ecosystem. This operation sends a clear and unequivocal message: We will continue to pursue and act against piracy networks with full force…”
