Looking Back on Independence Saga Partitioned Freedom by Ram Madhav

Independence struggle has been substantially dissected, deliberated and detailed during the past seventy five years. However, the dogmatic distortions in its narration have only increased the hunger for unraveling the mystery surrounding the incidents and the individuals during that long struggle for freedom. Ram Madhav’s book Partitioned Freedom is an outcome of author’s strong conviction that “Talking about that (partition) tragedy was considered politically incorrect and anti-secular. It was only after many decades, when the relations between the countries touched their nadir, pushing the world to the brink of nuclear war, did some debate over Partition and its fallacy begin prominently.”  He is of the opinion that however fictitious the Two-Nation-Theory might have been, it has not only divided the territory but also hearts. Therefore, revisiting horrors of the Partition is needed not just as an academic exercise, nor to hate anybody, but to learn appropriate lessons and avoid another Partition. 

This book deals with many incidents and individuals causing changes in the direction of freedom struggle that lead to the  Partition. 

The Root Cause

The partition of India, which author feels ‘Nobody Wanted it, But Nobody Stood Up’, was a gruesome event and the rationality of it is being questioned even today. Whether all the efforts of freedom struggle yielded the Independence, or the circumstances forced the British to leave India that resulted in our freedom is still a matter of unending debate. It also raised many questions regarding the fundamental sociological construct of the land. Author has dealt in great details the events  leading to and post 1857 revolt, which he prefers to call as First War of Independence and strongly decries calling it a Sepoy Mutiny. These events lead  not only to the emergence of  Islamic political ambitions but also created a deep rift within the freedom struggle. A country which had undergone two major colonial dominance over a millennia was confronted with a wide communal divide within few years of fight for political independence.  The consequence was a Partitioned Freedom.

Division of Bengal – A Precursor 

The intention of the British in dividing Bengal was to suppress the freedom movement led by the Indian National Congress, centered around capital Calcutta and Bengal Province.  Even though, the plan boomeranged by further intensifying the independence effort, it yielded unexpected gift to the colonial rulers in the form of consolidation of Islamic movement and the formation of Muslim League. This, in turn, provided the British an opportunity to invent and successfully implement Divide and Rule policy.  All the events that took place thereafter were leading towards a partition of the country. 

Ambassador of Unity turns Champion of  Partition

Author has dealt with the issue of Hindu-Muslin Unity and the turn of events during the freedom movement in great detail. Jinnah was a London-graduated barrister and an associate of Gokhale. He had joined the Congress in 1906 and had become secretary of Congress stalwart, Dadabhai Naoroji. He had opposed the partition of Bengal, describing it as “ the obnoxious virus introduced into body politic of India with evil design”.  He had opposed the provision of separate electorates under the Minto-Morley reforms in 1909, arguing that they reduced Indian politics into ‘two watertight compartments’. And in 1913, he even told the Islington Committee on administrative reforms that “ I do not see why a Hindu should not be in charge of a district where the majority happens to be Mohammedan”.

Therefore, by the time of Gandhi joining the Congress, Jinnah  was already a tall Muslim leader in the party. Both Jinnah and Gandhi had a common nativity and language- Gujarati, but belonged to two different religions. However, the rift between to two, and Gandhi’s preference to Ali Brothers, despite their changing positions, had grave consequences. Jinnah, an ambassador of Hindu-Muslim Unity turned into a successful champion of partition. He very ingeniously used the Khilafat issue as not only a clash within Europe, but a clash between the Cross and the Crescent, to consolidate the Islamists within the country and to arm-twist the British on the one hand and the Congress on the other to yield to their demands. 

Author states that “... in its competitive bargaining for League’s support, the Congress leadership gave up on those sane and secular Muslim leaders and leaned more and more on the communal and fundamentalist elements in the community”. The consequence was the partition of the country.  

Blind Faith in Unity

Gandhi’s strong belief in the communal harmony were rooted in his success during his South Africa days. This success also crowned him with sobriquet of ‘Mahatma’ which accompanied him to India. However, while glorifying Gandhi’s South Africa success, legal as well as socio-political, the fact that both Hindu and Muslim there were a very small communities in a larger demography cannot be overlooked. Gandhi’s steadfast belief and insistence on communal harmony in a very large country that India was, with its long colonial history led to disastrous consequences and raise many theoretical questions. 

Author provides several instances where Gandhi’s blind faith in unity only further divided the two communities. When Maulana Mohammed Ali, whom Gandhi preferred over then secular Jinnah, had stated  that ‘an adulterous Mussalman is superior to Mahatma Gandhi’ enraged Hindus, Gandhi simply explained the statement away. Gandhi called the rebellious and murderous Moplas as ‘human’ but categorized the conduct of Chauri Chaura protestors as ‘inhuman’. To  prevent any outrage against Muslims in case of his death during fast he ensured that regular Quran recital were arranged during his fasts. To placate feelings of Muslims Gandhi modified Hindu bhajan ‘Raghupati Raghav Rajara’ to add ‘Ishvar-Allah tere naam’. Vande Matarm which was a clarion call for a unified Bengal in 1905 and later on became the national song, was truncated to only first two stanzas in 1937 under pressure from the Muslim League, and finally was replaced by Mohammad Iqbal’s song ‘Saare Jahan se accha- Hindustan Hamara’. Ironically,  the poet who wrote these lines preferred to live in Pakistan! 

Could Partition be Averted?

As late as in 1944, Lord Wavell, the Viceroy had stated “India is a God-made triangle; you cannot divide it.” But within three years India was partitioned between India and Pakistan. 

Therefore,  Ram Madhav ponders that Bengal’s Partition was announced in 1904 but annulled seven years later, in 1911. India’s partition was demanded in 1940 and executed seven years later, in 1947. If Congress had launched Vande Mataram movement to oppose partition of Bengal in 1905, it announced Quit India movement to oppose India’s partition in 1943. The Vande Mataram movement was a grand success. It forced the British monarch to come down to India in order to declare partition null and void. But Quit India movement, after having picked up a nationwide momentum, soon fizzled out. Gandhi himself admitted that “Quit India movement had lapsed’. 

Author ponders could the last seven years before partition be any different (from the seven years of 1904-11)? Could Jinnah  be weakened? And could Partition have  been averted? 

Lessons from the Partition

The vivisection of Pakistan and the emergence of Bangladesh in 1971 throw up larger question for India. Author feels that now “It is not just about the hypothesis whether it [India’s Partition] could have been prevented. It is about whether another partition can knock at India’s doors and how such a calamity can be prevented.’ Acknowledgement by the Indian Government, for the first time in 2021, that the horrors of partition must be revisited in order to learn lessons from it.

Author ponders “Can the legacy of partition in the form of the division of hearts between Hindus and Muslims end? Can they live together as one nation? Or Jinnah’s ghost will continue to haunt us forever?

Valuable Addition

After nearly seven decades after Independence  a great political transition is taking place in the country and there is realignment of value system. This heralds emergence of a new India which wants to see history devoid of dogmas. Ram Madahv’s book exposes several chinks in our freedom history and poses several fundamental questions. Therefore, it  is a valuable addition to such a re-evaluation of events and individuals leading to the partition of the country in our fight for freedom. The book is very informative and provokes the readers to question the prevalent narratives about partition of the country.

This book has meaningfully titled eleven chapters, authenticated by chapter-wise References, two Annexures and supported by scientifically presented Index. It is reasonably priced for its rich contents. 

"ADAPT - To Thrive, Not Just Survive" by Harit Nagpal (Book Review by R. Chandra Prakash)

Our generation has witnessed an unprecedented transformation around us during the past sixty years.  These transformations have been far beyond the predictions in Future Shock of Alvin Toffler or even his The Third Wave.And it would not be wrong if one considers them to be beyond Peter Drucker’s theory of Knowledge Society. The innovations and the corporations have seeded these transformations. The composition, coverage and operations of business have become complex and risky. Greater competition coupled with narrowing profit margins force business houses to treat the customer with due respect. 

Today’s customer is well informed due to information revolution, particularly through the social media networks. Their wants and  demands keep on shifting, sometimes abruptly.  Such consumer behavior  cause constant business disruptions. The western world, where modern business management got evolved, has thoroughly prepared itself to generate content to deal with business disruptions. Most of thiscontent is prepared by university faculty who also have practical experience in and knowledge of business operations. This is possible as there is a lot of interaction between academia and business institutions. 

Unfortunately, India lacks such environment. Very few business executives have produced content based on their field experiences. Authors like Gurucharan Das have produced some content, but they are more in the micro-economic domain. Therefore, the book Adapt, To Thrive, Not Just Survive, by Harit Nagpal is a very welcome business discourse.  Based on his four-decade long experience in Indian industries, he illustrates how and why business disruptions may occur and their possible solutions. This book has certain unique features.

Features

First, the author has adopted a unique methodology of Case Study, coupled with dramatization of a crucial business challenge in the form of interactions between the people playing different roles. This facilitates the involvement of the reader in understanding its nuances. Second, he has chosen only ten common business challenges like: Customer Segmentation; Customer Communication; Product Quality and Customer Relations, Brand Management, Market Share, Teamwork Culture, and Product Life Cycle Management. Third,location of each of these case studies has been in different countries. In Chapter 1 it is Dhaka, Bangladesh, in Chapter 2 it is Milan, in Chapter 3 it is Malaysia, in Chapter 4 it is Alaska, and then there is Ghana, Pakistan, New Zealand, England, and Thailand. Such a diverse geographical environment provides for understanding the cultural environment challenges in a business. 

Fourth, the products chosen for in each chapter varies. It is Instant Food, Printing and publishing, Television telecasting, Housing, and even manufacturing of watches! Such divergence in product facilitates understanding the market / product dynamics and business challenges. 

Fifth at the end of each of these ten chapters the author provides for ten statements that reader should honestly respond to the business that they are part of, may be as an owner, or a manager. The reader has to answer these statements only in Yes or No choices. This exercise helps in internalizing the crux of the challenge/s explained in the preceding narration. Sixth, following of above methodology provides the readers with an opportunity to analyze and understand ten different disruptive business stories and deal with hundred constructive business questions. 

The book, thus, helps in understanding the organizational structure and response, inter-departmental dynamics, market analysis, customer preferences, product packaging, role of advertising, market cultural environment and the supply-chain dynamics.  

 

Presentation

The book is very imaginatively designed and presented. The cover page jacket has a colorful picture of chameleon’s tail to represent its adaptability to the environment. This also happens to be the essence of the topic of the book namely, the adaptability of business to its environment. 

 

Further, the chapter headings are very intellectually crafted with a more meaningful sub-title. For example: Chapter 1 The Customers We Want, and Those We Don’t Want has a meaningful and attractive sub-title - Navigating targeted segments. Similarly, Chapter 2 Ears to the Ground has - Listening to the customer, Chapter 6 Touching Customers’ Hearts has - Creating a brand that connects, Chapter 7 A House for Everyone has  - Growing the industry and your share of it. The typesetting is also reader friendly. These subtle attention to the minute things makes this book highly readable.  

 

Addition of Page Index at the end of this book would have facilitated its back reference. 

 

Usefulness

The book can be a very useful Handbook for the Business Schools students. This can also be a good-tool for upgradation of decision-making skills of employees in any business organization. 

​

 

Author

Nagpal is a Chemical Engineering graduate with an MBA Degree. The author’s professional career, spanning four decades with Lakme, Marico, Pepsi, Shoppers Stop, and Hutch/Vodafone, gives him the hand on experiences of various business challenges at different levels of managerial hierarchy.  Since 2010 he is with (Tata Sky)   Tata Play, and presently, its Managing Director/CEO. 

 

"Santana Dharma at Crossroads - Waiting for Shiva - Unearthing The Truth of Kashi’s Gyan Vapi" by Vikram Sampath (Book Review by R. Chandra Prakash)

Sanathana Dharma, true to its meaning perenniality, has survived several millennia of political and religious attacks. Today it is being practiced by nearly eighty percent of the population of the country. Islamic occupations of 1300 plus years, and more than two hundred years of Christian colonialism did severely affect the Sanathana Dharma.  The partition of the country in 1947 on religious lines gave the impression that thereafter Sanathana Dharma will have scope to heal its wounds and grow as a resilient Dharma.  

 

But it is during the post-independence period that Sanathana Dharma has suffered challenges to its very existence. Bharat’s rich religious heritage and cultural ethos were mortgaged to fake and fictitious ‘secularism’. The Constitutional amendment to overturn the very sane Supreme Court judgment in the Shah Banu marital case in 1985,  the passing of The Place of Worship Act in 1991, and many other similar steps taken by the Congress party giving the Muslims prominence as a religious minority and using it as a vote bank added new tensions to the inter-religious relations in the country

 

Ram Mandir – A Political Turning point

The consequences of the re-emergence of Muslim political importance in the independent India became quite visible during the Babri Masjid / Ram Mandir dispute. Long drawn political and the legal battles became the turning point. This was evident from the Jan Sangh’s / Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) campaign on Ram Mandir as a counter to the Muslim appeasements by the Congress and few other parties.

Victory of BJP in 2014 with its own majority in the Lok Sabha, and its return in 2019 with bigger majority than 2014,was largely the outcome of this religious divide. The Supreme Court judgement of Nov 2019 in favor of the Ram Mandir, the successful construction and consecration of grand Ram Mandir in January 2024, seems to have ensured the BJP to have a hat trick return in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

With the inauguration of Ram Temple at Ayodhya, not only a long felt need of Hindus has been fulfilled, but also the hurt feelings of the millions of Hindu believers have also been assuaged. This is factually proved by crores of people who have taken a darshan of Ram Lalla with in a very short time, with daily number of visitors being somewhere above two lakhs! However, this fulfillment has triggered the desire to retrieve at least two more holy temple places – Gyan Vapi in Kashi and Lord Sri Krishna in Mathura.

 

Gyan Vapi Temple/Mosque

 

Vikram Sampath’s book Waiting for Shiva, Unearthing the Truth of Kashi’s Gyan Vapi is a very timely work in the above context. Despite the visual proof, a part of magnificent old temple attached to the mosque and the very name of Gyan Vapi symbolizing Hindu Sanskrit roots, there has been stiff opposition from the Muslims and their organisations contending that the Gyan Vapi mosque is not built by partly breaking down the ancient Shiva temple. This has further increased the Hindu-Muslim divide.

 

The History and Sanctity of Kashi

 

The author has established in great details that the city of Kashi, Varanasi with its multiple names, has a long religious sanctity not only to Hindus, but also to the Buddhists and Jains before them. And its Gyan Vapi Shiva Temple of the past was its central religious magnet for the Hindus all over the country from time immemorial. The belief of Hindus that dying in Kashi or at least to be cremated there, is the only way of getting Moksha, the Nirvana. In that it is a Historical City, and the City of Light.

 

Even while the Gyan Vapi Shiva temple is the epicenter of   Kashi, author in great details proves that the city has had multitude of Lingas all over the city. The author provides clarifications for mythological meanings relevance of these Lingas in Hinduism.

 

The Conflict

 

Vikram Sampath elaborately narrates the historicity of the conflict between the Hindus and the Muslims in the context of Gyan Vapi. The Chapter The Spark in the Tinderbox contains the origin and progress of the conflict ever since the Britishers took control of India. There have been records of multiple Hindu-Muslim riots leading to legal tangles in the British courts. Several reports by committees of British officers provide testimony to hard feelings on both the religious groups.

 

The ownership of the lands on which the Gyan Vapi mosque and the partly demolished Shiva temple are located were also the subject of long drawn legal battles. So also the earning of rents from parts of these lands. These legal battles continued after the Independence of the country. The politicization of these conflict was the automatic outcome of post 1990 scenario. In the post The Place of Worship Act of 1991 and the demolition of the Babri mosque, Mulayam Singh govt added fuel to fire by banning puja at Gyan Vapi ruins, even though it was being carried on for a very long time.

 

Shringar Gauri And the ASI Survey

Since 2020 the Sringar Gauri case filed by five women and the never tiring advocate Hari Shankar Jain have added a new dimension to the Gyan Vapi temple/mosque case. The details provided in this book are a record of concurrent history of this issue. The dramatic turns and twists of legal battles from the local courts to the High Court and the Supreme Court and the entry of Archeological Survey of India [ASI] are detailed by the author.

To quote the author on the latest legal development, “This cleared the decks for a proper, scientific, and archeological survey of the entire premises of the Gyan Vapi complex. On the same day, on 4 August,2023, a team of around forty-five ASI officials initiated the survey. After initially bycotting the ASI survey order, the masjid officials and caretakers decided to cooperate with the survey as there few options left, especially with the top court of the land upholding the demand for ASI survey”.  Since the book got published quickly thereafter, the author tries to provide a very brief update till the January 2024.

 

The Wait Continues

One cannot discount the fact that the sight of mosques projecting magnificently over the partly demolished ancient Hindu temples, both in Kashi and Mathura, even after 75 years of independence is not only painful reminders of our historical tragedies, but also very demeaning in the changed social equations due to too much political biased patronage of one religious group over the other. When the ‘other’ happens to be the majority of the country which has borne the brunt of religious partition and post independence discriminations. 

 

Sanathana Dharma today stands at a crossroad. Should it, as an independent country, continue to ignore its past humiliations portrayed by several of its religious monuments at the altar of fake secularism? Or should it recover and reconstruct, at least a few important monuments, as a testimony to its historical religious eminence? Well time alone will provide the right answer.

Bharat No longer International Punching Bag - Why Bharat Matters.? - by S. Jaishankar "(Book Review by R. Chandra Prakash)

In 2019 Indian air force planes bombed Balakot, in Pakistan. This was a retaliatory action in response to Pulwama terrorist attack by Pakistan sponsored terrorist groups. When Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman was captured by Pakistan, Bharat got him back unscathed within couple of days.  Whereas, more ghastly Mumbai terrorist attack in 2009 by Pakistan sponsored group had only resulted in India’s paper protests. Till 2014 Pakistan’s “Atomic Power threat” had dictated India’s responses to its every grave terrorist attacks.

Similarly, in 2020 the China’s Galwan misadventure was repulsed by our defense forces, even though it cost the lives of our 20 brave Jawans. Whereas, till then India’s responses to every incursion, ever since 1962 Indo-China border conflicts, has been only paper statements.

Under the threat of Covid pandemic in 2020, the biggest ever evacuation exercise in modern history, India brought back nearly 250,000 of its nationals from across the world.  In 2022 Bharat very safely  and very quickly  had evacuated 23,000 (18,000  of whom were students)  of its trapped citizens from war-torn Ukraine. In May 2023 it successfully evacuated 534 of its citizens from war-torn Sudan. 

In 2023 the conduct of very successful one year long G20 Summit in 92 places all over the country  and on the suggestion of Bharat inclusion of African Union countries (with its own 55 membership) into the G20 fold are considered as a great international contribution. Indian Diaspora the world over is emerging as a very influential nationality and stands as a symbol of international brotherhood.

As recently as in Feb 2024 Bharat managed to get nine of its veteran defense personnel facing death sentences, for alleged espionage, released from a very powerful Islamic nation, Qatar. Inauguration by Prime Minister Narendra Modi of the massive and beautiful BAPS Hindu Temple  in UAE on 14th Feb 2024 is considered as the most successful diplomatic endeavor. It in fact stands testimony to the growing prominence of Bharat in the international arena.

And to cap it all now the Indian Navy is protecting and rescuing ships passing through the Suez Canal in the Red sea from  attacks by the Yemini Houti rebels. 

Bharat – The New India

It is in the above context that the book  Why Bharat Matters, by none other than present foreign minister S. Jaishankar, gets its extra-ordinary importance.

S. Jaishankar has credible credentials.. Apart from his experienced command over the diplomacy, he is very articulate, and reliably diplomatic, both in his speeches and writing. In Why Bharat Matters the author explains the metamorphic shift in the operation of our foreign policy, retaining  its long tested fundamental principles.

S. Jaishankar desires to discharge two responsibilities through this book. First, “to share the thinking of a rising power with a world that has become increasingly aware of that happening. Second, is to communicate the necessity of accurately understanding global developments to our own people. Only then our nation will fully appreciate the opportunities and challenges that lie before it.”  Without any hesitation it can be said that the reader will feel fully informed about both these objectives after reading his book. 

Cultural Foundations

Author is not only richly experienced in international relations, but his unique quality is his deep understanding and belief in Bharat’s cultural ethos. The author is of the belief that “A major rising power, however, needs more than just an accurate landscape analysis and ability to act on it. It must, first of all, be confident of its own values and beliefs and base its policies on those convictions. These will draw from the totality of its culture, heritage and traditions. That is why India can only rise when it is truly Bharat.” Hence, in this book S. Jaishankar draws inspirations from some of the episodes of our two major epics - the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, while narrating approaches in our foreign relations. 

Author details how Hanuman in Ramayana is perceived as an exemplary embodiment of service who performs his duties undaunted by any obstacles. And Sri.Krishna  who  in Mahabharata is regarded more as a strategist and counselor, a source of wisdom in difficult moments. S. Jaishankar  draws inspiration and parallels from such heroes of  these cultural stories in explaining the current approach to Bharat’s international relations.

Elegant Swan and Modi’s Impact 

Author confesses that the diplomacy of a major country is very arduous. “What public sees is an elegant swan; underneath, there is furious paddling.” He credits PM Modi’s work style, which is his ability to constantly integrate the big picture and the smallest of details. He feels that the ‘what’ and ‘how’ of Modi’s foreign policy is there for all to see. However, the more complex proposition of ‘why’ is hidden in Modi’s deeper commitment to national rejuvenation and the resurgence of a civilization. 

Foreign Policy under Modi 

The book provides an elaborate framework explaining the transformations in Bharat’s foreign policy approaches since 2014. Having provided with the world view from the Bharat’s points of view author explains how our foreign policy is the outcome of our internal political and economic performances. Further, how our foreign policy is influenced by the state of the world as well and its proper understanding in the context of our own strengths and weaknesses. 

In the past decade the world has undergone fundamental changes. Cold War has given way to bi-polar and multi-polar relationships. And therefore ‘New Delhi has shed much of the ideological baggage of the past.’ Bharat has been successful in dealing with quick changes such as Brexit and post Brexit relationships with Britain and at the same time the remaining countries of European Union. Similarly Bharat managed to swiftly and safely maneuver  the political as well as the economic consequences of Russia-Ukraine war. And very recently the Israel-Palestine war. In both these cases our stakes in all the warring countries were very deep. Yet, Bharat managed to remain unaffected and more importantly maintained good foreign relations with all of them. 

Interestingly, today wherever there is international strife, all the countries of the world are looking forward to Bharat to intervene and find mutually acceptable solutions. This is because as per  the author “In the last quarter of a century, India has grown to emerge as the fifth largest economy, a nuclear weapon power, a technology centre, a reservoir of global talent and an active shaper of international debates. Its interests and influence have grown well beyond the Subcontinent.” 

Swimming Upstream

However, Jaishankar is conscious of the fact that the present world order is built by certain key players to serve their purpose, “ a power like India will have to swim upstream for a long time to come.” Yet, henceforth  India will no longer be a punching bag in the politics of others. Author is fully convinced that ”With each passing day it is becoming clearer that India matters because it is Bharat.”

This is S. Jaishankar’s second book, and his first book was titled India Way.-Strategies for an Uncertain World. Both the books, coming from a highly experienced career diplomat and a successful foreign minister, will be very important source of learning for the students of International Affairs.  And of course to those who evince interest in this area. 

"Varna, Jati, Caste - A Primer on Indian Social Structure" by Rajiv Malhotra and Vijaya Viswanathan (Book Review by Chandra Prakash)

Caste system is accused of creating extreme discriminations in the society. It has also become a political tool to condemn Sanathana Dharma. Recent utterances by a group of politicians from Tamil Nadu against Sanathana Dharma, and similar echoing statements from parts of the country have made headlines. The assurances by few opposition political parties to carry out Caste Census for providing proportional governmental benefits, in case they come to power at the Centre in 2024, is a new dimension in post independent India. More particularly so the new stand of the Indian National Congress which ever since independence has vigorously opposed and stalled any attempt to bring the caste factor into the political arena! 

Even though the facts indicate to the contrary, the proselytizing religions like Christianity and Islam claim to be casteless religious practices! And they have used casteism as a lever for the conversion of the Hindus.  

It is to be noted that so called ‘intellectuals’ of Indian origin in Ivy league institutions of the United States have started anti-Hinduism campaign alleging caste-based discrimination in jobs. Some states in USA have even passed laws to prevent such ‘caste-based discrimination’. 

Interestingly however, there is no clarity about the origin or even the existence of castes in Sanathana Dharma. The book under review - Varna, Jati, Caste – A Premier on Indian Social Structure by Rajiv Malhotra and Vijaya Viswanathan throws a lot of light on this controversial subject. 

Historical Contours of Castes

Authors have established with facts and figures that ‘caste’ was never a part of Hinduism, but was ‘innovated’ by the British during their Census exercises of 1830s. They state that unable to fathom the heterogeneous social classifications prevalent in the contemporary Hindu social groups, the Census Officials adopted from the Portuguese the term ‘caste’ as a common denominator.  Thus started the use of ‘official’ caste nomenclature in the discourses of the country. 

To substantiate their stand the authors, provide a brief social history and explain the social fabric of Sanathana Dharma under the sub headings - 1. Early Vedic 2. Late Vedic 3. Dharmashastras (overlapping with 2) 4. Muslim Rule 5. European Colonial Rule 6. Post Independence and 7. Globalization. 

Vedic Sustainable society

The authors explain how Hinduism’s Vedic Civilization was very scientifically evolved. The authors are of the opinion that “during the early Rig Veda period we come across artisans, farmers, priests, and warriors. Society was basically egalitarian. We do not have evidence of a deep-seated, institutionalized, and hierarchical classification of people. Even, during the later Vedic and Itihasic period, the idea of varna was in its nascent form and not rigidly dependent on birth. Artisans such as metalworkers, chariot-makers, and carpenters were not dependent on birth. ... were not necessarily birth based occupational jatis.”

Quoting Megasthenes it is said that slavery was unknown in India, no Indian slave existed, and all Indians were free. Greek writers refer to the Shudras as Sodrai and describe them as an important community of northwest India at the time of Macedonian king, Alexander (326 BCE). “This is contrary to the view presented by modern scholars that Shudras and Dalits have been slaves since Vedic times.”

Manusmriti 

It is a fashion these days to blame Manusmriti for creating the present caste system. However, “The Manusmriti explains that jatis originated due to intermarriage between different varnas. This shows that different varnas did intermarry. Thus, sixty-one jatis are mentioned in the Manusmriti and more than one hundred are mentioned in the Brahmavaivarta Purana. .... During the post Maurya period (187BCE-320CE) there were intermarriages between different varnas, and jatis were giving birth to newer jatis.”

As per available information there is common agreement that birth based varna came after the Vedic period and untouchability came after Buddhism.  It can be seen that “Many rishis were born as non-Brahmins....Valmiki (author of the Ramayana) and Vyasa (author of Mahabharata, and editor/compiler of Vedas) and even the great sage, Vashista. They were all born in the lowest strata. Kalidasa, respected as the greatest Sanskrit poet, came from a humble and obscure origin.”

Dharmashastras and Manusmitri are accused of inculcating the practice of untouchability. On the contrary, as per these texts persons following disapproved vocations (hunting, butchery etc) became untouchables. “Some occupations were considered impure in the path to spiritual liberation, and there was emphasis on not coming in touch with individuals performing impure activities. But these restrictions were due to a metaphysical sense of hygiene and not the result of hatred or any kind of ethnic prejudice.”

The authors try to analyze the core Hindu texts to prove that the modern scholarship has been unreliable and reductionist, and deserves to be contested. 

The Distortions

It is a fundamental truth when the authors emphasize that Hinduism is an open architecture offering a vast library of texts providing guidance, and therefore there are multiple choices. Every Hindu can, and does, cherry-pick his personal choices of metaphysical interpretation, of guru for guidance (or no guru), of ishta devata (chosen deity), or rituals, of festivals of pilgrim centers, and of lifestyle. No other faith/religion provides such a vast choice. Authors are of the view that distortions have crept in over the period such as during Buddhism and the conversion process of Christianity and Islam. There are records in Hinduism substantiating the fact that a person’s varna was not fixed permanently upon birth. Parents’ varna or jati could shift to another if he was unable to follow his hereditary role or was attracted to another by inclination or talent. There are records that in Vedic times Shudras have occupied the position of kings and emperors. And Shudra kings regarded themselves as an integral part of the Hindu society. 

Shudras enjoyed high socio-economic status in ancient India as the Shudra artisans and craftsmen who formed a profession-based guild system, were highly trained and possessed high educational standards.  Such guild systems functioned till as late as the twelfth century. Subsequently due to ‘Muslim invasion guilds became immobile and ossified, resulting in their degeneration and subdivision’.

However, it is during and after the British colonial period much of distortions started to creep into the Sanathana Dharma. Quoting extensively from Dharmapal’s book The Beautiful Tree the authors prove that in Madras District (1825) the Shudras were the largest student group both in schools (66.9%) and at home (28.70%) in comparison with the Brahmins (7.42%) & (28.68%), and Vaisyas (15.12%) & (23.19%) respectively. Interestingly, Hindus as a student group constituted 97.23% of total students in the school and 93.61% in home in comparison with the Muslims who constituted only 2.77% of School students group and 6.39% of home group. The situation was said to be similar in other places all over the country at that time. The ramifications of such a steep religious divide in the educational efforts went deep into the struggle for independence and thereafter. 

With such high participation in the school education Sudras earned respectable place in the contemporary society. Authors provide a diagrammatic picture of such comparatively higher socio-economic status of Sudras till such time to prove their point. It was only the simplistic interpretation of Varna/Jati system for the enumeration of census in 1832 that the term Caste was injected into the Hindu society. And this social engineering has played a havoc in otherwise harmonious and open structured social fabric of the Sanathana Dharma. 

Untouchability - A British Social Engineering

The British extensively used untouchability as a Hindu religious curse when in reality it was during their rule that it became a rampant practice mainly due the British toilet habits. The authors have diagrammatically displayed how the untouchability became a different nomenclature Category over a period – from the Fifth Varna, to Depressed Class, to Untouchables, to Harijans and finally to the Scheduled Castes. The authors summarize that “what was initially a theoretical structure, crystallized into substance at the ground level. This was incorrectly projected backwards to define the characteristic of ancient Vedic society.” And the detailed historical analysis substantiates authors’ conclusion.

B. R. Ambedkar on Castes

Understanding India’s caste politics is incomplete without knowing the contributions by B.R. Ambedkar to the subject. Authors have extensively quoted from the works of B. R. Ambedkar. He unequivocally “rejects the Western view that castes are separate races” and is of the opinion that “to hold that distinctions of castes are really distinctions of race, and to treat different castes as though they were so many different races, is a gross perversion of facts.” He later reiterates this view “The caste system does not demarcate racial division. The Caste system is a social division of people of race.” 

B. R. Ambedkar not only disagreed with Gandhi on Islam, but held “both Islam and Christianity dangerous options for Indians to adopt because he feared it would tear apart the fabric of Indian society.” The authors quote extensively from his works to substantiate his views on Buddhism and Communism. 

The Relevance of Caste today

The authors feel that “The original dynamics of the (caste) system were disrupted and undermined by many social and political upheavals. Over time, varna became jati, which then morphed into caste. The caste system is now mostly dead, but its ghost continue to haunt India.” With more than 36% of the country’s population now living in urban localities, with enhanced infrastructural facilities reducing the rural-urban socio-economic chasm, caste is gradually becoming socially irrelevant. However, its diabolic importance in the political sphere is what makes it relevant today. However, faster economic development will automatically eliminate even that political abuse.

Timely Book

This book is part of a series of earlier publications by Rajiv Malhotra in association with other eminent writers on various burning issues of Hinduism. Few other books are Breaking India –Western Interventions in Dravidian and Dalit Faultlines [2011] (with Aravnindan Neelakantan), Snakes in the Ganga – Breaking India 2.0 [2022] (with Vijaya Viswanathan) and The Battle for Sanskrit [2016]. 

Caste controversy is central to every onslaught on the Sanathana Dharma and hence it becomes related to other works of the author/s in some way or the other. Thus, the importance of the current book gets enhanced and its publication becomes timely. Its sub-title “A Primer on Indian Social Structure” is not only understatement, but also a reflection on the humility of the authors. They deserve to be commended for their continued sincere efforts to provide a clear and authentic foundation for the understanding of Sanathana Dharma. 

HINDUS IN HINDU RASTRA - Eighth-class citizens and Victims of State-Sanctioned Apartheid by Anand Ranganathan (Book Review by R. Chandra Prakash)

After 75 years of independence the Hindus are getting divided on caste and sub-caste lines seeking greater share in politics and economy. Consequently, despite being a big majority religion Hinduism is at a cross roads in the country’s politics. At the same time, the Post 1975 International Oil-Crisis has changed the international political dynamics. The Islamic block has emerged as a powerful political and economic player. And this has had its own adverse influence on the Indian political scenario. The Muslims in India have politically consolidated into a powerful vote bank and have acquired a phenomenal political clout. The time lapse plus the new world order have overshadowed the pain and sacrifices of partition of the country on religious lines. 

The Indian National Congress party [INC], which ruled the country for the first 60 plus years after independence, has been accused of being inimical to Hinduism and favoring the Muslims as a minority. So much so, it is accused of being an instrument of Islamisation! And no surprise that INC has been losing its Hindu vote share, and as also the power at the Centre.

Therefore, for the first time when Bharatiya Janatha Party [BJP] was voted to power at the centre and several states with a thumping majority of its own in 2014, it was assumed that people have preferred this party because it will protect Hinduism. And its return at the centre in 2019 with a bigger majority only redoubled such expectations. 

State-sponsored Apartheid

Anand Ranganatha’s book Hindus in Hindu Rastra – Eighth-Class Citizens and Victims of State-Sanctioned Apartheid tries to explain how Hindus were short-changed by Mahatma Gandhi. After independence how the INC practiced minority appeasement at the blatant cost of the Hindus, who constitute a majority in the country. Author does not spare even the BJP government whose policies he finds no different from that of INC, even though it is considered to be or accused of being a Hindu party. Ranganathan is of the opinion that the policies are not appeasement of minority, but it is an issue of Apartheid. A State-sponsored, State-sanctioned discrimination against a particular community, that is the Hindus. 

Fake Secularism

Ranganathan is very clear that Secularism is total separation of religion and State. And he is of the opinion that there are half a dozen Articles and Amendments and directive principles in our constitution that make it plural, not secular nation. It was during the Emergency that Prime Minister Indira Gandhi who inserted the word Secular in our preamble, whereas it was absent from Ambedkar’s Constitution! 

It is ironical that all legal efforts are made to declare Bharat as a secular state, and at the same time the governments of 10 states control more than 110,000 Hindu temples. Tamil Nadu government controls 36,425 temples and 56 mutts, and its Temple Trust owns 478,000 acres of temple land!  The situation is no different in communist ruled Kerala state. It has five Devaswom Boards – Travancore, Guruvayur, Cochin, Malabar and Koodalmanikyam- with 3,058 temples under their control!  And the states pride in appointing non-Hindus to the Boards of the temples. And most of the times governments do not respect Hindu religious norms in appointing the priests and in the performance of various temple-centric worship rituals. Rather, they take pride under the socialist/liberal/secular garb to intentionally appoint people from non-Hindu religions. 

Interestingly, none of these governments will dare follow similar ‘liberal’ practices when it comes to Islamic and Christian religious places. What sort of distorted secularism is this? Ranganathan questions when the BJP has been in power at the centre since 2014, why is that it has not taken any step to either remove such a ‘secular policy’ or even try to liberate the Hindu temples from the wrongful control of the state, which constitutionally claims to be secular?

Ranganathan very elaborately examines the provisions of The Waqf Act, The RTE Act, The Places of Worship Act, and several other legislations which have adversely affected the religious interests of the majority Hindu population of Bharat. 

A Case of Kashmiri Hindus

Kashmir was originally inhabited by the Hindus, as is evident from the existence of Sharada Peeth and several other religious institutions of great importance to the Hindus. However, over a period this land got inhabited by the followers of Islam. They claimed to be far different in their cultural ethos from the other Muslims, a soft Islamic hilly culture. But soon after independence Kashmir became a political and a communal hotbed.  The cause was the insertion of provision of Article 370 and 35A providing Special Status to this state. Consequently, a simmering anti-Hindu communal apartheid turned in 1989-90 into a savage butchering of Kashmiri Hindus in thousands, and many more thousands fled. Shockingly, there was no murmur from the secularists, socialists, or even the liberals. 

In keeping with its promise BJP removed the infamous Articles 370 and 35A and took very tough steps to stem the religious and political terrorism. And the newly formed Union Territory of Kashmir recorded highest ever tourist footfall of 16 million in the past year! Author quotes Sushil Pandit, a Kashmiri Hindu, and himself a victim of ethnic cleansing, who says – ‘Tourism in Kashmir funds Jihad. The Hindus are funding their own demise.’ The author narrates several heinous crimes against the Hindus in Kashmir and states ‘Kashmir Hindus are Jews, but unfortunately, India is not Israel. They call Kashmir the Switzerland of the East. Wrong. It is the Srebrenica of the East. And it will remain so till such time every Kashmiri Hindu is returned home.’ The Truth cannot be hidden any more.

An Open Sky Awaits Hinduism

Author is of the opinion that judiciary almost exclusively is trying to reform Hinduism. Despite the fact that Nupur Sharma had simply quoted what was from the revered Islamic scriptures, Supreme court found it unnecessary to club multiple FIRs against her. He further feels that the court could have left it at that and dismissed the case, but they did not. Author extensively quotes from the judgment and leaves it to the reader to decide ‘whether their remarks against a helpless, victimised, shunned, discarded, hunted young Hindu woman were not bolstered by decades of institutional vilification, ridicule and discrimination against Hindus.’ Then there are cases like Shabarimala, where the court vetoed the discrimination, even though similar discrimination is found even in other religion. 

Ranganathan feels that ‘A progressive, secular State that, correctly, removes discriminatory practices from the Hindu religion but cowers behind a lam-post like a wet cat when it comes to removing discriminatory practices from other religions, is not a progressive, secular State – it is a scared State.’ There are plenty of cases leading to state sanctioned discriminatory religious practices. But he laments ‘what is to be done when the judiciary singles out the Hindus? What is the course then? And describing how the image of the Blind Lady with a Scale has been sullied he concludes – ‘There is none.’ 

He is afraid that selectivism against only Hindu festivals and religious practices will soon result in a scenario where the Hindus begin to dislike their own traditions. From there, the road to self-loathing is but a few yards away, and we know where that road leads to- forsaking Hinduism itself and accepting another religion. “The camel has sneaked into the tent. An open sky awaits.” 

Author and the Book

Anand Ranganathan is well-known figure on primetime television debates. So are his frank and forthright views which are supported by a cannonade of facts. He is very well read and a descent debater. Even though, he is a Professor of Molecular Medicine, his knowledge of Literature, Religion, Sociology and Political is astounding. In nutshell Ranganathan is a rare scientist-academician and a nationalist to the core.

The book under review is of only 135 pages. But contains a lot of explosive narratives in eight chapters. A foreword by Sai Deepak; opinions of Meenakshi Jain the Historian and Vishnu Jain, the Lawyer and a Hindu Right Activist; and three pages Afterword by Dr. Vikram Sampath, a Historian, and a Fellow of Royal Historical Society make this book a credible starting point to understand the predicament of Hindus in Hindu Rashtra today. 

A very thought-provoking book. A must read.

REVOLUTIONARIES - The Other Story of How India Won its Freedom by Sanjeev Sanyal (Book Review)

Our history books have made us to believe that it is the Gandhi’s path of Non-violence, Satyagraha and struggle of Indian National Congress [INC] party that got us the freedom. That our fight for freedom dates back beyond the birth of INC and the arrival of Gandhi as a Mahatma from South Africa is not stated in such a history. 

Nor does it narrate the heroic deeds of hundreds of martyrs who sacrificed their life at very young age fighting for country’s independence or suffered inhuman Kalapani punishments in the Cellular jail of Andaman. Many of these freedom heroes though came mainly from undivided Bengal and Punjab, several others came from different parts of pre-independent India.  

Correcting History

Sanjeev Sanyal in his book Revolutionaries – The Other Story of How India Won its Freedom, is unequivocal in saying that “The Independence movement was made up of a large number of disparate world views and the sequence of events was impacted by their divergence and convergence at different point of time. This was true even within camps. In turn, these were driven by a variety of factors, ranging from ideology to the social dynamics of the followers of each group. As with any large movement, the freedom movement is not a story of linear progression but peppered with mistakes, U-turns, the vagaries of fortune and leaders working at cross- purposes.”

He provides concrete evidences in his book of several heroic people working as individuals or as a network, whose courageous anti-colonial actions, operating from India as also from the foreign soil, with own resources as also from resources mobilized from far and wide, and the violent events which so unnerved the colonial masters  that they had to drastically change their strategies and  policies substantially, if not fully, and eventually forced them to leave the country.

Crucial Role of 1857

It is very surprising why we continue to call events of 1857 as a ‘Mutiny’, even when it was fully known that the British were appalled by the its happenings and things were never the same thereafter? Further, that the 1877 Great Famine, an act of climate which ‘ballooned by rapacious policies of the British spawned the Revolutionary movement on a pan India basis’ was never discussed! More interestingly, not much is said about the ‘true reasons’ for passing of The Indian Councils Act of 1909 under Morley-Minto Reforms providing greater representation of Indians, even if with separate electorates for Hindus and Muslims. 

Or the true reasons as to why British shifted the Capital from Calcutta to New Delhi! And that ‘true reason’ was that the fifty years between 1857 and 1907 were the period which spawned heroic rebels, many of whom went on to create troublesome political environment for the British, particularly in Bengal. Because these freedom fighters had resorted to activities which the British labeled as ‘anti-national’ and ‘criminal’ under the suitably modified laws, that they were labeled as ‘Rebels’, and ‘Revolutionaries’ by our leftist historians. Obviously, these Heroes did not make it to the definition of ‘Gandhian Non-Violent freedom history’.

Untold Stories

The critical roles played by Arya Samaj, Brahmo Samaj, Anushilana Samithi, Abhinav Bharat, Hardayal’s Nalanda Club in Berkley, Yuganatara Ashram of California in instilling the sense of patriotism, sacrifice for the cause of nation’s freedom, supporting underground activities and building network are seldom part of our much-flaunted freedom history. 

The first-generation Revolutionaries (1887-1911) lead by Arabindo Ghosh, Savarkar, Madan Lal Dhigra, Bhikaji Cama, VVVS Iyer, Hardayal and Shyam ji are mostly absent from our history books. Similarly, the second-generation Revolutionaries lead by Rashbehari Bose who went on to establish Indian Independence League in Japan, Jitendra Mohan Chaterjee and Basanta Kumar Biswas and their daredevil revolutionary network are hardly heard of.

Rashbehari Bose

It was as per Rashbehari Bose’s plan that his accomplice Basanta Kumar Biswas threw a bomb at Lord Hardinge and his wife on December 1912 when his grand Viceregal procession was entering Delhi. This entourage which was to mark the shift of capital from Calcutta to Delhi and was meticulously planned to establish the British superior authority and power over the subordinate Indian citizens. This Chandini Chowk bomb attack not only sent a shock wave across the colonial administration but also laid the foundation for many such attacks to come. Rashbehari Bose’s daring escapades within the country under the nose of colonial masters, contributions to the formation of Indian National Army and support to Netaji Bose are very diligently detailed by Sanjeev Sanyal.  

Alluri Seetha Rama Raju and Rampa Rebellion

Also simply called Rama Raju, was born in a village near Vishakhpatanam in 1897 in a middle-class family. Drifting away from formal education being intellectually curious read extensively in Telugu, Sanskrit and English. Around 1915 he became a Sanyasi and during his piligriage to Nashik and Varanashi got acquainted with Gadar and Jugantar revolutionaries. Having been disappointed with the Gandhian non-cooperative movement he organised tribesmen to carryout attack on colonial administration. Several troupes, including British Officers were killed. 

Well-built and full beared, armed with traditional weapons and a revolver struck through his belt, Rama Raju was as charismatic figure as Chandrashekar Azad. He was trapped and killed in May 1924, only 27 years of age.  Rama Raju’s leadership in Rampa Rebellion had generated romantic folk legend which inspired a lot of popular culture. Sanjeev Sanyal feels that this hero lacs adequate research and recognition.

 

Gaddarites and the Hindustan Republican Army [HRA] 

The Gaddarite phase of revolutionary movement shaped the events post Jallianwalla Bagh massacre of 1919 to the formation of first HRA and later on Indian National Army.

HRA was formed online with Irish Republican Army by a group of revolutionaries lead by Sachindra Natah Sanyal and Pratul Ganguli. It was these revolutionaries who first enunciated the goal of Poorna Swaraj. Whereas, Indian National Congress and Gandhi were prepared for a ‘Dominion Status’ and their concept of Swaraj meant only ‘self-government’ with the Empire if possible, and outside if necessary!

International Revolutionary Efforts

Revolutionaries were internationally well-knit web of people connected in multiple ways with each other. Shyamji in Europe, Jwala Singh, the Potato King, in North America, Pandurang Sadashiv Khankoje in Japan and later on in the North America. Khanjoje in association with Amba Prasad even managed to organise an army of 5,000 in Shirap, Persia. Khankoje went on to meet Lenin. Later on shifted to Mexico and became a successful agricultural scientist. 

Mahendra Pratap formed a Provisional Government of India in Kabul in 1915 with himself as President and Barkathulla as Prime Minister. 

Conspiracies, Bombs and Bullets 

Revolutionaries carried out several bomb attacks and killed many British Officers. Nasik Conspiracy Case of 1909-10, Lahore Conspiracy Case of 1915, Dalhousie Square Bomb Case of 1930, Alipore Arms Conspiracy Case of 1930-36, are some of such cases etched on the walls of Cellular Jail in Andaman.  

Then there were Chittagong Armory Raid of 1930 where a British Sergeant Major was killed, General Lowman killed by Benoy Basu, J. J. Simpson was shot dead by Benoy Basu, Badal Gupta and Dinesh Gupta, J. J. Gerlick, Alipore Judge shot dead because he had ordered death sentence on Dinesh Gupta and in 1932 Bina Das attempted to kill Governor Stanley Jackson. These and many other similar rebellious actions had shaken the roots of British colonial rule. 

That they were in continuation with the 1857 rebellion cannot be ignored. Only a thorough historical research of the documents available in the libraries can establish the extent of contributions of these actions in making the British to leave the country.

End of an Era

Sanyal explains that by 1933 all prominent revolutionaries were either killed or imprisoned. Unfortunately, the movement degenerated from organized armed resistance to anarchic acts of violence that were not sanctioned either by founding principles or by the public support. As often happens, common criminals made claims of being revolutionaries to justify armed robbery. 

A few genuine among them having suffered years of torture in prison and then partition, suffered from ‘post-traumatic stress disorder’ and several found it difficult to hold regular jobs and drifted into life of extreme poverty. Bina Das who shot Bengal Governor Stanley Jackson in 1932 went on to become a recluse after her husband’s death and having served one term as a member of Bengal Assembly after independence. Her emaciated body was found abandoned by roadside. 

Narayan Savarkar, brother of Veer Savarkar, was killed by the injuries inflicted by mob of anti-Brahmin revolt post Godse killing Gandhi. Veer Savarkar escaped this attack but died in Mumbai due to poor health and without recognition. 

Valuable Book

Sanyal’s book has only eight chapters plus an Epilogue of 291 pages. Its detailed Notes and Index makeup to a total of 331 pages. This is a valuable book in many a sense. It truly tells “The Other Story” of how India won its Freedom, which either have seldom been told. Stories told in this book are genuinely epoch-making ones. It records the sacrifices made by young men, apart from those known cases like Bhagat Singh and Chandrashekar Azad. 

This book should trigger greater research into the contributions of 1857 rebellion and the continued revolutionary movements thereafter in making the British hurriedly leave Bharat in 1947. Hitherto the Bombay Naval Revolt’s role in this is yet to be properly assessed.