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Title: Reported treatment meted out to Ms. Taslima Nasreen.
SHRI KHARABELA SWAIN : I raise the point of harassment meted out to the eminent literati Bangladesh, Taslima Nasreen. There is a studied and continued silence on the part of the Government of India. It is one of the most surprising things.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Where is she now?
SHRI SANTOSH GANGWAR : Her interview was there in the NDTV today. [MSOffice82]
SHRI KHARABELA SWAIN : She was in the most secular State of India like West Bengal. Do you want that in a country like India she should be removed out of that place just to pander the whims of the obscurantist Islamic fundamentalists? This is the sort of secularism that is being adopted by the Government of West Bengal. We say that India is a free country. What sort of freedom do we have? You may take the example of West where all sort of political refugees from various countries of the world take shelter. This is what democracy and freedom is.
So, my point is, Taslima Nasreen should be given the status of political refugee in India. The Government of India should give her protection. Everything should not be turned into a vote bank politics either by the Government of India or by the Government of West Bengal.… (Interruptions)
MR. CHAIRMAN : Nothing, except Dr. Arun Kumar Sarma’s submission, will go on record.
(Interruptions) *…
* Not recorded
