A Long-Denied Homecoming: Taslima Nasrin Returns to Kolkata After 19 Years
Indiadailyupdate.com – After nearly two decades of absence, Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasrin is set to return to Kolkata, the city she once called home. This visit signifies the resolution of a prolonged cultural and political dispute in West Bengal, which had persisted despite repeated requests for her to come back.
Organizers announced that Nasrin will arrive in Kolkata on the night of July 31 and participate in a public event at Rabindra Sadan on August 1. “Taslima will be reaching the City of Joy on the night of July 31,” said Santanu Singha, an organizer. “On August 1, a programme at Rabindra Sadan is planned, with the chief minister of West Bengal expected to attend.”
A Literary Voice in Exile
Following the publication of her novel *Lajja* in 1993, Nasrin became a prominent figure in South Asian literature. The book, set against the backdrop of communal violence in Bangladesh after the Babri Masjid demolition in December 1992, was banned in her home country and a fatwa was issued against her. By 1994, she had fled Bangladesh, beginning a three-decade-long exile.
Nasrin’s bond with Kolkata deepened in 2004 when she settled there. The city, with its shared language and literary traditions, offered her a sense of belonging that had been absent during her years abroad. However, this connection was severed in November 2007 when the release of her autobiography *Dwikhandito* sparked violent protests by Islamist groups in central Kolkata.
As tensions escalated, the Left Front government, led by Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, relocated her from the city, citing safety concerns. Since then, she has not returned, even though no formal ban was imposed. Over the years, successive West Bengal governments rejected her appeals to visit for literary events and book fairs.
Breaking the Stalemate
The controversy resurfaced in March 2025 when BJP Rajya Sabha MP Samik Bhattacharya, now West Bengal’s BJP president, called on the Centre to facilitate her safe return. Describing her as a “fearless voice against religious fundamentalism,” he emphasized India’s moral duty to shelter a writer who had sacrificed much for freedom of expression.
Nasrin’s planned visit, organized by Secular Mission and the Human Rights and Bangladesh Freedom Fighters Foundation, has received support from the current BJP government. Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari will share the stage with her at Rabindra Sadan. For a writer who once thought she had lost Kolkata forever, this return is more than a literary engagement—it is a long-awaited homecoming.
