The former Supreme Court judge Justice Markandey Katju has said that Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen should be given “permanent” residency in India.
Justice Katju, who is also Chairman of Press Council of India, said that he has read Ms. Nasreen’s controversial book Lajja (Shame) and “there is nothing in it against Islam.”
“In my opinion she should be given a permanent visa to reside in India,” the former Supreme Court judge in a statement. “…Several bigots and fanatics have hounded her ever since she wrote her book Lajja …. It only depicts the atrocities on Hindus in Bangladesh after the demolition of Babri Masjid.”
Writer’s responseMs. Nasreen told The Hindu on Friday that she was “entirely confused” about the nature of the permit given to her. She was granted a two-month (September-October) permission to stay in India on Thursday. But she was “not sure” if it was a full-scale resident permit.
“I understand, that a resident permit has to be for at least six months, but it is not,” said the author, who is staying on a resident permit in India since 2004.
What puzzled the writer more was that the permit was not a “single-entry tourist visa” either. “Initially, I thought it was a two-month single entry visa, when I got a call from Foreigner Registration office, yesterday. But they allowed multiple entries,” said Ms. Nasreen. She also “came to know” that the Home Ministry would initiate “specific verification.” She said she was “unsure about the (verification) procedure”.
“My address was verified in 2004, (now) Home Ministry provides security…what are they going to verify,” asked Ms. Nasreen. The author said she was “in a mess” as she was in the process of shifting 15,000 books from Sweden to India. “If I am not allowed to stay in (India) in the long run, then I would appeal (to the BJP government) to let me know, so that I will stop shifting my books and other things out of Sweden,” the author said.
