Conch shells, billboards: Taslima Nasrin's grand Kolkata 'ghar wapsi' after 19 years

Exiled Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasrin returned to Kolkata nearly two decades after violent protests forced her to leave the city that she calls home. Nasrin will attend a cultural event against religious fundamentalism on Saturday.

In Short

• She arrived from Delhi and was welcomed by supporters at the airport
• Nasrin greeted the crowd with folded hands and said she felt happy
• The August 1 programme will mark her first public appearance since 2007

Two decades after she was hounded out of Kolkata by fundamentalist groups over her controversial memoir, exiled Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasrin returned to the city on Friday, which she once called home. Dressed in a traditional Bengali white sari with a red border, Nasrin was seen flashing a big smile as she landed in Kolkata from Delhi. Over the past week, she had been laying the ground for her Kolkata return - from sharing pictures of her billboards across the city to articles on her interviews with Bengali media.

It was an emotional homecoming for Nasrin, who was welcomed with the blowing of conch shells and ululation. "It feels really good... It feels good to be back," a visibly emotional Nasrin told the media. After all, Kolkata had been home for 14 years since her exile from Bangladesh following the publication of her controversial novel Lajja (1993).

TASLIMA NASRIN'S EMOTIONAL 'HOMECOMING'

Nasrin, who has often courted controversy with her bold writings, will attend a cultural event against religious fundamentalism on Saturday. The event, hosted by the Secular Mission Trust and Human Rights and Bangladesh Freedom Fighters Foundation (HRBFF), is likely to be attended by Bengal Chief Minister Suvendui Adhikari as well. She is also likely to address a press conference.

Her return has sparked a political row as well. While the ruling BJP has portrayed it as a break from the "appeasement politics" of the TMC and Left, the opposition has called the move an attempt to score political points. The BJP has countered by pointing out that no initiative was taken to bring Nasrin back during Mamata Banerjee's 15-year rule.

However, Nasrin is unfazed by the politics. For her, renewing a relationship with a city that was her home from 1993 to 2007 is the priority.

"Kolkata was the closest to my heart after I was forced to leave Bangladesh. Returning to Kolkata is returning home," Nasrin said in an interview with TOI.

WHY TASLIMA NASRIN WAS FORCED TO LEAVE KOLKATA?

Nasrin's return has generated significant public interest. She was forced to flee Bangladesh after multiple fatwas were issued against her over her novel Lajja. The book chronicled the persecution of Hindus in Bangladesh after the Babri Masjid demolition.

In exile, she spent a few years in Europe and the US after getting Swedish citizenship. Later, she eventually settled in Kolkata. Her stay was marked by controversies. In 2003, the Bengal government under then Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee banned her autobiographical work Dwikhandito (which means split in two).

The book detailed Nasrin's experiences and explored the rise of fundamentalism. Critics claimed it hurt the sentiments of the Muslim community.

The ban, however, was overturned by the Calcutta High Court two years later. Tensions started to simmer again.

In 2006, an imam announced a cash reward for anyone who blackened Nasrin's face. Matters came to a head in November 2007, when several Muslim outfits hit the streets in protest, clashed with police, and set vehicles on fire. Kolkata came to a standstill.

As the matter spiralled out of control, the Army was deployed - a spectacle the streets of Kolkata hadn't seen for years.

The Left Front government subsequently asked Nasrin to leave Kolkata. Initially, she shifted to Jaipur, before settling in Delhi. After a brief house arrest, she was eventually granted a long-term residence permit by the Centre.

'DIDN'T WANT TO RETURN AS A GUEST'

Her Kolkata visit comes against this backdrop. Over the years, Nasrin has repeatedly expressed her desire to return to Kolkata.

In the lead-up to her arrival, Nasrin has been giving interviews to several Bengali media outlets over the past week. In an exhaustive interview with Sangbad Pratidin, Nasrin said she didn't want to return to Kolkata as a "guest".

"I do not want to return merely as a guest... I want to be recognised as someone who belongs to the home of the Bengali language and culture," she said.

Recalling the controversy over her book Dwikhandito, Nasrin was quick to assert that she didn't write against Muslims, but questioned Islam's "anti-women, inhumane and discriminatory" rules. '

"Criticising a religion is not hatred of Muslims. Criticism is essential for the reform and evolution of society," she said in the interview.

Was she forced to leave due to "motivated politics"? Absolutely, Nasrin said. She emphasised that religious appeasement and electoral calculations were at play.

"Religious fundamentalists created unrest, but it was the government that forced me to leave. Instead of taking action against those who broke the law and threatened to kill me, the authorities removed me," Nasrin recounted.

For now, all eyes will be Nasrin as she attends her first public event in Kolkata on Saturday at the famous Rabindra Sadan. Her moves and words will undoubtedly closely watched.

- Ends