Taslima Nasrin’s
Lajjawas published in 1993 and translated into English by Tutul Gupta as
Shamein 1994. Written in the wake of the demolition of the sixteenth-century Babri Masjid in 1992, the novel depicts the atrocities of Bangladeshi Muslim fundamentalists against the Hindu minority of the country. One of the principles of the Bangladesh constitution is secularism, and it is is therefore committed to communal harmony where people from four communities – Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, and Christian – live peacefully. After the 1947 Partition, however, there have been several eruptions of hostility against Hindus, and Nasrin draws attention to the intolerance of the anti-Hindu riots. As a result,
Lajjawas banned and Nasrin received death threats from Islamic groups.
Nasrin
1826 words
Citation: Islam, Rama. "Lajja". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 21 December 2020 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=39299, accessed 21 November 2024.]