Exiled Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen, a staunch critic of communalism, has found an irony in ousted Bangladesh premier Sheikh Hasina’s escape in the face of deadly student-led protests.
Ms Nasreen said Hasina had thrown her out of Bangladesh to “please Islamists”, and the “same Islamists” were part of the student movement that forced her to leave the country.
“Hasina in order to please Islamists threw me out of my country in 1999 after I entered Bangladesh to see my mother in her deathbed and never allowed me to enter the country again. The same Islamists have been in the student movement who forced Hasina to leave the country today,” said Ms Nasreen in an online post.
Ms Hasina fled to India in a military plane yesterday and is likely to fly to London to seek asylum in the UK.
The author blamed her for allowing “Islamists to grow” and letting those involved in corruption to thrive. She also spoke against Army rule in her country and batted for democracy.
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“Hasina had to resign and leave the country. She was responsible for her situation. She made Islamists to grow. She allowed her people to involve in corruption. Now Bangladesh must not become like Pakistan. Army must not rule. Political parties should bring democracy & secularism,” she said in an earlier post.
Ms Nasreen had to leave Bangladesh in 1994 in the wake of death threats by fundamentalist outfits over her book “Lajja”. The 1993 book was banned in Bangladesh, but became a bestseller elsewhere.
Khaleda Zia, the jailed arch-rival of Ms Hasina, was the prime minister at that time.
The author has been living in exile since.
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Bangladesh saw one of its deadliest demonstrations on Sunday with nearly 100 protesters dying in clashes with cops. In the fallout, the protesters breached the Prime Minister’s residence on Monday. Ms Hasina avoided a direct confrontation, having already resigned and left the country in a military plane.
The country’s army chief called a press conference hours later and declared an interim government would be formed to run the country.
Later in the day, Ms Hasina landed at the Hindon Air Force base in India – about 30 km from capital Delhi. She is likely to leave for London where she may seek asylum, sources told NDTV. They said her plane was being refuelled for the flight to London.
