‘Why Censored?’ Taslima Nasreen Claims Her Play ‘Lajja’ Banned In Bengal, BJP Reacts

SOURCE ; NEW18

Last Updated:December 23, 2024, 22:48 IST

“Lajja” play, written by Taslima Nasreen, was scheduled to be staged at theatre festivals in Gobordanga and Pandua, Hooghly.

Award-winning exiled Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen on Monday accused West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of banning her play “Lajja” in the state saying that the CM is suppressing and censoring the art and literature.

In a post on Facebook, Nasreen claimed that despite advertisements for the festivals running for two months, Mamata Banerjee’s police suddenly intervened without prior notice, informing organisers that all plays would be allowed except “Lajja”.

The play was scheduled to be staged at theatre festivals in Gobordanga and Pandua, Hooghly.

“Mamata Banerjee has banned my play Lajja in West Bengal today. The play was scheduled to be staged at theatre festivals in Gobordanga and Pandua, Hooghly. Advertisements for the festivals have been running for two months, and now, without any prior notice, Mamata Banerjee’s police suddenly informed us that all plays will be staged except Lajja. The Nabapalli Natya Sanstha has staged this play three times in Delhi, with packed audiences each time,” Nasreen’s post read.

The author further claimed that the police have justified the ban by citing concerns over potential riots. “The police claim that staging Lajja will provoke Muslims to riot. Using the same excuse of potential Muslim riots, the state government had previously stopped the airing of my mega serial Dusshahobas, which dealt with strained relationships, on Akash 8 TV channel,” she said.

Nasreen further questioned the reason for the ban saying that “Lajja” depicts an incident from Bangladesh, making the fear of riots in West Bengal unfounded. “The incident depicted in Lajja is from Bangladesh. Why would Muslims in West Bengal riot over an incident in Bangladesh? This is beyond my understanding. Citing the fear of riots, I was once forced to leave West Bengal as well,” she added.

The author expressed her frustration over the censorship of art and literature and said that why no one is standing up against this injustice.

“Why is art and literature censored instead of taking action against those who want to incite riots? Why are the voices of artists and writers suppressed? How much longer will I alone continue to ask this question? Does no one else feel responsible for standing up against injustice?” she added.

BJP reacts

Reacting to Nasreen’s claims, BJP IT-Cell head Amit Malviya said, “In an unprecedented move, the West Bengal Police has banned the staging of Taslima Nasrin’s Lajja at theatre festivals in Gobordanga and Pandua, Hooghly, citing concerns over a potential Muslim reprisal”.

He added, “If Mamata Banerjee is unable to manage law and order in Bengal and is so intimidated by Muslim veto that even art, culture and freedom of expression are being stifled, then she should consider stepping down.”

“Lajja” novel

Lajja is a Bengali novel written by Nasreen. The term “lajja” translates to “shame” in Bengali and several other Indo-Aryan languages. The novel depicts the violence, rape, looting, and murders of Bengali Hindus that occurred in December 1992. First published in Bengali in 1993, the book was banned in Bangladesh.