Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi on January 6 said controversial Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen should apologise with “folded hands” for hurting the sentiments of Muslims of the country, and hinted that her book Dwikhandito (Torn Apart) could be banned.
Talking to reporters in Malda in West Bengal, he said: “We are a pluralistic nation and we respect all religions. I love literature and I have nothing against her writing. But that does not mean she can use her pen to insult and hurt the religious belief of the Muslims or for that matter any religion. The comments made by her in the book in question were uncalled for. She should bow down before the people whose sentiments she has hurt and apologise with folded hands, and expunge those pages from her book,” Dasmunsi said.
If Taslima has to stay in India or any other country, she has to honour and respect the philosophy and identity of that nation, he further said adding, “We did not allow Salman Rushdie’s book (The Satanic Verses) when it caused a flutter and raised controversy. She will not be an exception.”