3 months ago
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The Bangladesh Nationalist Party's immense mandate successful the caller elections is much a reflection of the people's determination to support Islamist radicals retired of powerfulness than of the party's popularity, said Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasrin.
She said that having “Pakistan-backed radicals” similar Jamaat-e-Islami arsenic the main absorption enactment besides does not augur good for antiauthoritarian and progressive values.
"You spot immense crowds astatine Jamaat rallies. But that hasn't translated to votes. BNP's singular results bespeak the Bangladeshi people's determination not to let Pakistan-backed radicals similar Jamaat coming to power. Also, the lack of the Awami League made BNP the lone viable prime for galore voters," Ms. Nasrin told PTI Videos.
The BNP, led by Tarique Rahman, won a decisive mandate successful February 2026, winning 209 of the 298 seats. Its allies picked up different 3 seats, giving the artifact a wide bulk successful the 299-member Jatiya Sansad (Bangladesh Parliament).
The Jamaat and allies could container lone 77, forming the absorption bloc.
The “Lajja” writer expressed hopes that the governmental arsenic good arsenic instrumentality and bid concern successful the state volition alteration for the amended nether the caller Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.
"He has been speaking of taking everyone along, and ensuring information to minorities. Hopefully, the targeting of Hindus that was rampant nether the interim authorities of Mohammad Yunus, volition present cease," Ms. Nasrin said.
The 63-year-old, who presently lives successful New Delhi, rued not being allowed to sojourn Kolkata, wherever she remains immensely fashionable arsenic an author.
She was forced to permission the metropolis and determination to Sweden successful 2008, pursuing convulsive protests by the members of the All-India Minority Forum against her publication "Dwikhandito."
"That was during the Left regime. But Mamata Banerjee excessively has not allowed maine to instrumentality to Kolkata. For idiosyncratic truthful entrenched successful Bengali culture, having to unrecorded distant from Bangladesh and West Bengal is tormenting," she said.
Drawing a crisp opposition betwixt the conditions of the Hindu number of Bangladesh and Muslims successful India, Ms. Nasrin noted that Indian Muslims person “equal entree to each benefits arsenic a Hindu and tin instrumentality ineligible recourse erstwhile necessary”.
"Muslim colonisation successful India is not declining, and nary 1 from the assemblage thinks of migrating to a Muslim state for a amended life…But tin you accidental the aforesaid astir Hindus successful Bangladesh? Their numbers person declined implicit the years, owed to migration and different factors. Very often, they bash not attack the courts for fearfulness of persecution erstwhile wronged," Ms. Nasrin said.
Talking of the Iran situation, Ms. Nasrin said she is nary instrumentality of the "mullah-cracy" that denies adjacent rights for women, and enforces the hijab. However, she does not enactment the subject involution by the U.S. and Israel, which, isolated from weakening the regime, has resulted successful the deaths of hundreds of civilians.
"What justification is determination to weaponry a schoolhouse and termination implicit 150 students? If your exertion oregon quality is truthful inaccurate, past amended to support away," she said, referring to the aerial onslaught connected a schoolhouse successful the Iranian municipality of Minab connected February 28.
Ms. Nasrin has been surviving successful exile since being forced to permission Bangladesh successful 1994, aft receiving threats from Islamic fundamentalists for her views astir Islam and the Quran.
