I want to stay peacefully in India: Taslima Nasreen

Kolkata, Aug 10: A day after being assaulted by some Muslims legislators during a book launch in Hyderabad, Bangladeshi feminist writer Taslima Nasreen today said that she wants to stay in India despite being violently opposed by radical Muslims.

However, she added that she should be allowed to stay in India 'peacefully' so as to pursue her writing.

"I believe in freedom of expression, my views can be different from their views. Because of my ideas I should not be killed. I want to live peacefully in this country, I want to write peacefully," said Nasreen.

Security has been tightened at Nasreen's Kolkata residence after the Thursday's episode.

"It's a democracy and everybody should believe in human rights and freedom of expression," she added.

Nasreen had fled from Bangladesh in 1994 when a local court there said that she had "deliberately and maliciously" hurt Muslims' religious feelings with her Bengali-language novel "Lajja", or "Shame".

The India political leaders today seemed to have different take on the Thursday's incident.

While Left leaders today condemned the incident, Samajwadi Party leader Shahid Aklaq questioned her stay in India.

"My question is to the government that why did a lady like her get the Indian visa knowing she has been a trouble maker in Bangladesh. She will also create problems in this country," Aklaq said.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is also a senior Congress leader, said that the controversial author should be careful about the sensitivities involved with religious issues.

"There are many things to write about in this world. Why do the writers have to take the support of religion, and that also when she (Nasreen) has been taken out of her own country she should be careful in doing so," Azad said.

However, his fellow Congress leader Ambika Soni condemned the attack.

"I condemn it as it is an attack on human being and a defenseless human being.
You have no right to take law into your hand," said Soni.

Nasreen worked as a doctor before turning to writing. She had applied for Indian citizenship, but has not been given one. She was awarded the Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought by the European Parliament in 1994.

ANI>