Saturday, February 19 2005 17:34 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Pune: The Government is considering exiled Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen's prayer for Indian citizenship, Home Minister Shivraj Patil today (Feb 19, 2005) said.

"We have received the application and are considering it," he said.

Patil was talking to reporters in Pune on the sidelines of the convocation function at the Bharati Vidyapeeth.

Nasreen, who is facing death threat from radical Islamic groups in Bangladesh, has sought Indian citizenship saying her country of origin has "slammed the doors" on her.

She had faxed a letter to Patil on Thursday (Feb 17, 2005) requesting she be given Indian citizenship or residential permit, whichever was possible.

The writer was issued a death threat by fundamentalist outfits in Bangladesh in 1994 for her alleged blasphemous writings and had faced court case on the charge of hurting religious sentiments.