KOLKATA: Exiled Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen on Sunday opposed the ban on Bangladesh's Awami League, describing the decision as "a move against democracy" and asserting that political parties should not be outlawed.
Addressing a press conference in Kolkata, Nasreen also expressed uncertainty over the return of Bangladesh's deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina to her country.
Hasina, 78, has been living in India after she fled Dhaka following the collapse of her government in August 2024 in the face of a massive anti-government agitation.
"No political party should be banned. The manner in which Sheikh Hasina was forced to leave the country is questionable. It was not right to ban the Awami League. It was a move against democracy. I want the ban to be lifted as soon as possible," the 63-year-old writer told reporters here.
The Awami League was banned by Bangladesh's then interim government in 2025 under an anti-terrorism legislation.
Nasreen alleged that several leaders and workers of the Awami League had been targeted after Hasina's departure from Bangladesh.
"Many Awami League workers were tortured and murdered. Sheikh Hasina wants to return, but I do not know whether that will be possible. But no one wants me to go back," Nasreen said.
In 1994, the writer left Bangladesh in the face of death threats from radical groups over her writings and her views on religion.
Nasreen was critical of Bangladesh's political situation, alleging that religious fundamentalist forces were gaining ground in the country.
"Now we have Jamaat-e-Islami as an opposition party. It is against women's equality, and they want Sharia rule. If that happens, no minority will survive. Bangladesh is moving towards darkness. No one is trying to civilise the country. The government is only trying to remain in power," Nasreen alleged.
The writer also claimed that anti-Hindu sentiments were being propagated in sections of Bangladesh's religious institutions.
"In many madrasas and mosques, hatred against Hindus is being taught," she said.
Nasreen, who returned to Kolkata, India after nearly 19 years, was felicitated at a state government programme at Rabindra Sadan here on Saturday.
She had left Kolkata in 2007, when protests over the publication of her book 'Dwikhandito' (Split: A Life) forced the then Left Front government to move her out of the city.
