Expressing concern that Bangladesh could go the way of Afghanistan, writer-activist Taslima Nasreen has said Islamist radicals were brainwashing the youth and inculcating beliefs in them to make them “anti-India, anti-Hindu and pro-Pakistan”.
Ms Nasreen said she and others initially Supported student movement in Bangladesh against an “autocratic government”.
However, recent actions such as Violence against HindusHe said the targeting of journalists and the release of “terrorists” from prisons showed that it was not a students’ movement but was “planned and financed by Islamic jihadists”.
“When students protested against the quota system in July, we supported them… We are people who believe in women’s rights, human rights and freedom of expression.”
He said, “Sheikh Hasina was a dictator who always promoted fundamentalists and curbed freedom of expression. People were angry with her.” PTI In an exclusive interview.
He said that he hoped that fair elections would be held to form a new government in a democratic manner.
“But later we realised that it was not a students’ movement. It was planned and funded by Islamist jihadists and a banned terrorist organisation,” said the writer, who had to flee Bangladesh in 1994 after receiving death threats from Islamist radicals and her books were banned.
“We realised that when they started breaking everything, all the statues, idols, museums. The way Hindus were attacked and killed was a nightmare.
“Now these people are filing cases against journalists and people close to Hasina. They are slowly revealing their true faces and intentions. All the terrorists in jail have been released. This was not a students’ movement at all,” the author said.
The author of ‘Lajja’ has not returned to Bangladesh since her exile and has been living in India since 2005 (except from 2008 to 2010).
He also expressed fears that the way the current interim government is functioning under the guidance of Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus, it seems Bangladesh could become another Afghanistan or Iran.
“They are celebrating their victory. People are burning the houses of Hindus. What kind of celebration is this? They are destroying everything. All the statues of freedom fighters have been vandalised, including the statue of the Father of the Nation Sheikh Mujibur Rahman,” Yunus says.
“But the statues of the Pakistani army remain intact – (the army) which killed 30 million people and raped lakhs of women during the war,” the 62-year-old author, who is considered a vocal critic of radical Islamist elements, said.
He said Mr Younus “knows very well that the country will be ruled by jihadists and he has no problem with that”.
“We thought they would hold elections. That did not happen. They are not talking about secularism and they want to make Bangladesh like Afghanistan or Iran which is very scary,” he said.
Mr Yunus had sought to stop attacks on Hindus after becoming the head of the interim government, but Nasreen alleged that he did not take any action against the violence.
“We don’t have any hope, but at the same time we are hoping that Bangladesh doesn’t become the next Afghanistan,” he said.
He also blamed Hasina for the current situation and said that the rise of Islamic fundamentalists did not happen suddenly.
“I blame Hasina for this because she always chose religion to stay in power. She built 560 model mosques and madrassas instead of secular schools to please the Islamists.
“They also destroyed the education system by making madrassa degrees equivalent to university degrees, allowing only those who studied the Quran and Hadith to go to universities and become teachers,” he alleged.
He said, “They made it compulsory for women to wear hijab and burqa. This is all due to Haseena.”
Ms Nasreen said anti-India sentiment was “very high” in Bangladesh at present.
He said, “I was thrown out of Bangladesh by Khaleda Zia in 1994 and when Hasina came to power, she did not allow me to enter the country.
Recalling her experience, the author said, “In 1998 I went to Bangladesh to visit my mother, who was in the last stages of cancer. My mother died and in the next few days Hasina expelled me from the country and never allowed me to enter again.”
He said, “I am not against Hasina because she harassed me, but because she was a dictator and did not believe in freedom of expression.”
“Many free thinkers were killed by Jihadis during his rule. The rise of Islamic fundamentalists has not happened suddenly. There were more attacks on Hindus during his rule than any other regime,” Nasreen alleged.
He said that the youth in Bangladesh are being brainwashed against India and Hindus.
“Hindus are now leaving and they are left with less than seven per cent. Islamic fundamentalists attack Hindus during elections, worship or grab their property. Hasina allowed them to preach religious sermons everywhere which were always anti-women and anti-Hindu.
He said, “When you brainwash youth like this, they will become a generation which will be against Hindus, India, women and will be pro-Pakistan, pro-jihad, pro-fundamentalists.”
Ms Nasreen said that under the current regime she cannot hope to return to Bangladesh and her residence permit in India has also not been renewed.
“I cannot go back to my country. Khaleda and Hasina never allowed me to do so and now it is impossible to even imagine it under this jihadist regime,” she said.
The veteran author said, “I feel India is like my home and I have been living here since 2005. Very surprisingly, my resident permit has not been renewed and there is no information about it. It expired on July 27. I don’t know anyone in the government and I have no idea. Usually it is renewed before the expiry date.”
“Some of my relatives are still in Bangladesh, but most of them, whom I loved very much, have died. My grandmother, my father, my uncle, my aunt. I have the right to enter my country. I ask this question to everyone, but sadly there is no answer,” she said.
Published – September 05, 2024 01:12 PM IST