New Delhi, Jan. 19 -- Literature enthusiasts' love affair with book fairs is no secret. Be it libraries, exhibitions, or bookstores, books have been celebrated for centuries. Each year, book fairs and literary events are organised to exhibit hundreds of varieties of books and draw massive crowds of avid readers.

This year too, the World Book Fair 2026 was held at Bharat Mandapam from January 10 to 18. However, it made headlines not for its diverse collection of books, but for the chaotic scenes that unfolded when the crowd's book madness turned into a free-for-all. What was meant to be a celebration soon descended into chaos and went viral for all the wrong reasons.

What began as a joyful celebration at one of the world's largest litera...