Published: 12:04 AM, 01 August 2026
Taslima Nasrin returns to Kolkata after two decades
Nearly two decades since violent protests over the controversial memoir "Dwikhandito" forced her to leave the city, exiled Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasrin has returned to Kolkata.
Nasrin arrived at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport from New Delhi on Friday, reports India Today.
She was welcomed by supporters. Nasrin greeted the gathering with folded hands, saying: "I'm feeling very good to be back."
She is to attend a public programme in Kolkata on Saturday. It will be her first public appearance in the city since she fled in 2007.
Protests by an Islamist group demanding a ban on Nasrin's memoir erupted in violence in
November 2007. The unrest prompted the West Bengal government to move her out of the state. She was transferred to Delhi under strict security before she left India for abroad.
Nasrin was born in Mymensingh in 1962. The publication of her novel "Lajja", which told the story of Hindu persecution in Bangladesh following the demolition of the Babri Mosque in India, drew widespread criticism for its portrayal of Islam. The book was banned in Bangladesh and was protested by hardline groups. In 1994, Nasrin fled Bangladesh for India in the face of death threats and legal action.
Nasrin has expressed her desire to return to Kolkata, which she describes as her second home, over the years, India Today says.
She spoke to reporters briefly at the airport, saying she was happy to return to a city she has long held dear.
