Exiled Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen on Tuesday said the appearance of an article in a Karnataka newspaper purportedly written by her, which triggered violent protests in Shimoga and Hassan towns, is a “deliberate attempt to malign” her and “misuse” her writings to create disturbance in society.
Ms. Nasreen said in a statement made available to PTI that she never penned any article for a newspaper in Karnataka.
“The incident that occurred in Karnataka on Monday shocked me. I learned that it was provoked by an article written by me that appeared in a Karnataka newspaper. But I have never written any article for any Karnataka newspaper in my life,” she said.
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Ms. Nasreen said, “The appearance of the article is atrocious. In any of my writings I have never mentioned that Prophet Muhammad was against burkha. Therefore this is a distorted story.”
The author said, “I suspect that it is a deliberate attempt to malign me and to misuse my writings to create disturbance in the society. I wish peace will prevail.”
The violence in Shimoga, the home town of Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa, left two persons dead, one of them in police firing on Sunday.
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Ms. Nasreen, staying in an undisclosed destination due to security reasons since her return to India last month, had her visa extended recently by six months till August this year.
Replying to a question, she said she would not like to say anything other than the statement issued by her.