Despite Government’s steps to provide security to Salman Rushdie, the controversial writer of ‘The Satanic Verses’, uncertainty is looming over his visit to Jaipur to participate in the five-day-long annual Jaipur Literature Festival starting here from January 21.

At a high level meeting on Thursday night, Rajasthan’s chief secretary S Ahmed discussed the issue after receiving inputs from the intelligence agencies.

Though on the face of it, the Government was maintaining that security would be provided to the writer during his Jaipur visit, behind the scene they are in touch with the organisers of the event to persuade Rushdie to cancel his plan if they are keen on having a trouble-free festival, which has become Asia’s largest literary meet, sources said.

Source also said that some bigwigs of the Congress are making efforts to see the cancellation of Rushdie’s visit as they feel the stand taken by Darul Uloom Deoband would affect the poll prospects in UP. A number of Muslim organisations have also opposed the visit of the writer, who had attended JLF in 2007, without attracting any controversy. Even the minority front of the BJP held a demonstration to oppose the visit.