Kolkata, 02 August (H.S.) : Former Tripura Governor Tathagata Roy has presented a copy of his book, Bharat Kesari Yugpurush Syama Prasad, to noted author Taslima Nasrin during her recent visit to Kolkata.

Sharing photographs of the meeting on social media, Roy said he gifted the book to Nasrin and welcomed her return to the city after 19 years.

In his post, Roy alleged that Nasrin had been forced to leave Kolkata during the Left Front government's tenure to appease the Muslim vote bank. He further claimed that the Mamata Banerjee-led government had also kept the doors of Kolkata closed to her for the same reason. These remarks reflect Roy's personal political views.

Roy also referred to the public reception accorded to Nasrin at an event held at Rabindra Sadan, describing it as overwhelming. According to his post, the programme, which lasted from around 5:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., featured speeches, poetry recitations and musical performances, with a large audience in attendance.

He further claimed that during the event, Nasrin invited noted poet Joy Goswami to the stage, following which a section of the audience raised objections and shouted slogans. Roy wrote that, in his view, the reaction was linked to Goswami's earlier public opposition to the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) alongside West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Neither Taslima Nasrin nor Joy Goswami had publicly responded to Roy's remarks at the time of filing this report.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh