New Delhi, Feb. 18: The home ministry today confirmed receiving Taslima Nasreen?s request for Indian citizenship or a ?residence permit?.

?A fax has been received by the minister?s (office) today that seeks either Indian citizenship or a residence permit for her,? a ministry official said this evening.

The Bangladeshi novelist and poet had yesterday said that she faxed a message to home minister Shivraj Patil in the afternoon, while in Delhi on her way back to Calcutta from an event in Raipur.

There was no firm word on the line that the government would take. Officials said a view would be taken on inputs from all concerned, including the foreign ministry and the Bengal government.

?The request is being forwarded to the foreigners? division that deals with such issues, with a direction to report back on the history and status of the case,? an official said.

?I think she may not get Indian citizenship ... at best, maybe, a visa extension,? the official added. He pointed out that the law stipulates a 12-year stay in the country for a person to be eligible for Indian citizenship.

?There is a clause that allows an exception to be made for eminent people but I doubt if she would fit the bill unless she has some very powerful people backing her. In any case, it is a very long and complicated process,? the official said.

Pakistan-born Adnan Sami can tell her that. The singer had met Patil?s predecessor, L.K. Advani, in 2001 to push his citizenship request but is still waiting.

A home ministry official refused comment on the status of his case.

Officials hint that they are not sure if Taslima is really interested in Indian citizenship. They believe she just wants to stay in Calcutta for a longer period and would be satisfied with a long-stay visa.

The officials also suspect if the state government ? whose views would be given due importance ? would want to play host to her for longer than necessary.

It had banned her book Dwikhandito in November 2003 on the grounds that it feared tension between two religious communities and had fought a legal battle to defend the move.

When the state government felt it could lose the legal battle, it issued a fresh ban notification citing the book?s attempt to ?hurt the religious sentiment of a particular community?.

The exiled writer, who has held a Swedish passport for nearly a decade now, had approached the Centre in vain for Indian citizenship in 2002.

One of the reasons being cited for the rejection is Delhi?s conscious decision not to disregard sensitivities in Dhaka on the issue.

Taslima had been issued a death threat by fundamentalist outfits in Bangladesh over her writings.