After Khaleda Zia’s death, Taslima Nasreen asks: ‘Will my exile end?’

Renowned Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen, who has been living in self-imposed exile in India, reacted sharply to the death of former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, saying the latter curtailed "freedom of expression" by banning her books and never allowing her to return home while in power.

In a social media post, Nasreen pondered whether her 31-year sentence of exile ends with Khaleda Zia's death and said the ban on her books should be lifted, and Bangladesh should move in the direction of protecting the freedom of expression.

“In 1994, she sided with jihadists by filing a case for “hurting religious sentiments” against a secular, humanist, feminist, free-thinking writer. She issued an arrest warrant against the writer. And then she unjustly expelled that writer—me—from my own country. During her rule, she did not allow me to return home. Will her death bring an end to my 31-year sentence of exile? Or will unjust rulers continue to carry injustice, ruler after ruler, generation after generation?” she posted on X.

Also Read: Amid reports of massive data breach, European Space Agency says impact limited to servers with unclassified documents

Nasreen, who authored several books including ‘Lajja’ (1993), ‘Utal Hawa’ (2002), ‘Ka’ (2003) and ‘Those Dark Days’ (2004), which were prohibited during Zia's tenure and the author was subjected to pressure from fundamentalist groups and repeated death threats, leading to her fleeing the country in 1994. She accused the late BNP leader of supporting these elements to curb free expression.

“I am thinking: with her death, will the bans on the books she had banned not be lifted? They should be lifted. She banned my Lajja in 1993. She banned Utal Hawa in 2002. She banned Ka in 2003. She banned Those Dark Days in 2004,” she wrote on X.

Nasreen underlined Zia's rise from a housewife to prime minister, saying she led a "successful life" and did not suffer much after 1981 when Sheikh Hasina put her in jail.

"Khaleda Zia has passed away. She was 80 years old. From a housewife, she became a party chief and served as the country’s prime minister for ten years. She lived a successful life—a long life. Sheikh Hasina kept her in jail for two years; apart from that period, I don’t think she suffered much after 1981. Everyone suffers from illnesses; she did too,” Nasreen said.

Khaleda Zia, who became Bangladesh’s first female prime minister in 1991 and was one of its most dominant political figures, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 80 after a prolonged illness.