HC dismisses plea for cancellation of Taslima Nasreen's visa

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday dismissed a PIL seeking cancellation of the visa given by government to controversial Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen for allegedly violating Foreigners Act by preparing scripts for a film and a serial here.

A division bench of Chief Justice G. Rohini and Justice Jayant Nath refused to entertain the plea, saying there was no public interest in the matter.

NGO All India Human Rights and Social Justice Front claimed Nasreen had indulged in "anti-national activities" by preparing the script for a TV serial, which was to be aired in West Bengal in 2013 but could not be screened on Bangla channel due to protests by some religious groups. She had also scripted a Bengali film "Nirbashito", purportedly based on her life, which was shown at the Mumbai International Film Festival in 2014, claimed the plea.

The plea said that the activities were in violation of the statute which prohibited preparing scripts for films and serials by a foreigner without permission from the government. It also sought prosecution of Nasreen for violating the Foreigners Order of 1948 and the Foreigners Act of 1946.