Afghan Police Arrest Two Over Indian Writer's Murder

A photograph taken in December 2002 of Indian author Sushmita Banerjee at a press conference announcing the launch of the movie "Escape From Taliban" in Mumbai.

Afghan police have arrested two militants in connection with the murder of Indian writer Sushmita Banerjee, whose memoirs about her escape from the Taliban were made into a movie.

Provincial officials in eastern Paktika Province said on September 10 that both suspects were members of the Haqqani network, a Taliban affiliate, which has a strong presence in the volatile province.

Banerjee, 49, was shot dead in Paktika last week.

Banerjee was married to an Afghan businessman and had recently moved back to Afghanistan to live with him.

Her book, "Kabulwala's Bengali Wife," about her dramatic escape in 1995, was made into a Bollywood movie in 2003.

Officials said the suspects confessed they were ordered to kill the author because the movie was "an insult to the Taliban."

Based on reporting by AFP and BBC