Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen on Wednesday said she is hopeful of being granted a residential permit by the Indian government even if it does not consider her plea for citizenship.
"I have not heard from the Centre. But I have not lost hope about my appeal for Indian citizenship on the grounds that I am a creative person. If that is not possible, I should be allowed to have a residential permit," Nasreen said.
Nasreen has not stayed in India for a minimum of 11 years, which is a requirement to grant citizenship.
Earlier, the Centre reportedly asked the West Bengal government and security agencies for clarifications on her plea to extend her visa.
Nasreen, whose tourist visa expired last month, had applied for Indian citizenship on February 14. She had also applied for a permanent residential permit.
Nasreen has been in self-exile since 1994 after religious fundamentalists in Bangladesh charged her with blasphemy and issued death threats against her.
