Controversial and well-known writer Taslima Nasrin arrived in Kolkata on Thursday, returning to the city after 19 years. Supporters gathered at the Kolkata airport to welcome her.
Speaking to reporters, Nasrin said she felt very happy and could not put into words what it meant to be back in Kolkata after so many years. She also thanked those who came to receive her.
Nasrin is scheduled to take part in a special cultural and literary programme at Rabindra Sadan on August 1. She is also expected to meet journalists in Kolkata on August 2.
Nasrin has faced severe threats linked to her writings on women’s rights and religion. She was expelled in 1994, later obtained Swedish citizenship, and lived in Europe and North America for about a decade.
After the Union government granted her residence permission in 2004, she began living in Kolkata. Protests against her writings in 2007 turned violent, and she left India in 2008 for Sweden; though she later returned to India on a long-term visa, she stayed in Delhi as the West Bengal government did not allow her to live in the state.
