Satya Column: An effort to document history impartially has begun

How many people in the country know that Ahom warrior LachitBorphukan defeated the Mughul army of Aurangzeb during the 17th Century in the Battle of Saraighatin Assam?Historians forgot to document how the Mughal Army retreated. Moreover, there was no mention of LachitBorphukan in textbooks. Only after the BharatiyaJanata Party came to power, the historic event was documented in textbooks, and it was decided to celebrate November 24th as LachitDiwas.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke about it while observing the 400th birth anniversary of LachitBorphukan. He pointed out how foreign rulers had distorted Indian History by not mentioning native war heroes and their sacrifices. Their history documented a lot about those who had looted and tortured us for several decades, but nothing about the successes, sacrifices of local war heroes and the nation’s traditions.

Even after the country became independent, the rulers of the country could not alter the agenda of the British rulers. “We documented what the Moghuls and the British related to us… When a nation learns about its true history and learns lessons from its experiences and treads on the right path, then only it will be able to pave the road for bright future,” the PM said.

During the regimes of the Mughuls and the British, many Indians had fought for freedom of their motherland and in the process laid down their lives. Our historians and academicians acted with partiality in recording these sacrifices. Ever since the BJP came to power, it has been trying to set right the distortion of history by rewriting it.

History did not document the roles played by Mangal Pandey, Bhagat Singh, BinoyBasu, Badal Gupta, Dinesh Gupta, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, according to Netaji’s granddaughter Chandrakumar Bose.

India would have become independent in 1944 had Subhash Chandra Bose supported the Congress. Because the Congress had started playing politics and Mohammad Ali Jinnah proposed the ‘two-nation’ theory of dividing the country on religious grounds, Chandrakumar Bose said.

Current history books praise the Mughal rulers who had raided the country. There are no detailed accounts of the achievements of Mouryan rulers, the Guptas, the Cholas, the Pandyas and the Chedi rulers, according to depositions before the Parliamentary Committee by several historians. It has become customary for Indian historians to state that Indian History began with the 200-year British rule of the country. In fact, we should look at the nation’s history for 1,200 years. National Council for Educational Research and Training former director Rajput and representatives of the BharatiyaSikshan Mandal opined that impartial accounts of achievements of Indian war heroes should be mentioned in the country’s history.

Unfortunately, the Leftists infiltrated various organizations in the post-Independence era and influenced textbooks according to their philosophy. Hence, an effort to document history impartially has begun.

It will not be over by mere documenting of history properly in textbooks. To leave a strong impression in the hearts and minds of people about history, statues of heroes should be installed, and memorials built. That is why the Modi government has installed the statues of Birsa Munda, LachitPhukan, Subhash Chandra Bose and Sardar Patel. It has takenseveral measures to render justice to Dr BR Ambedkar, who,during the regime of the Congress, got a raw deal.

The Mouryan era lasted 137 years, while the era of the Guptas lasted 230 years. In southern India, three empires ruled for over 1,500 years since the days of Lord Buddha. Did the textbooks teach the same to our students? Did the textbooks explain to our students vividly that the Ahom dynasty belonging to Lord Indra ruled for 598 years — from 1228 AD to 1826 AD — during the period when women played a crucial role in administration?

The Mahabharat says, “What is in India is nowhere else, and what is not here is nowhere else”, while encapsulating the land of the Vedas and this wonderful culture. But, why our historians have failed to explain it comprehensively? Is it feasible to analyze Indian history without understanding the greatness and united, mighty culture of this land? The history of the Indian Freedom Struggle should be understood with a proper perspective, but not with a narrow mindset. The recent remarks passed by Rahul Gandhi against Veer Savarkar reflect his short-sightedness. Veer Savarkar, while he was a student atFerguson College in Pune, had floated an organization called Abhinav Bharat. While he was in London, he worked towards achieving freedom for the country through revolutionary methods.

In 1909, he had opposed the Morley-Minto reforms and planned an armed revolution. He faced charges of smuggling guns into the country. The books authored by him on the Indian Movement and the Sepoy Mutiny were banned by the British. Prior to Rahul Gandhi’s great grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru entering politics, Veer Savarkar was arrested by the British in 1910. He was arrested for trying to escape by jumping from the ship. He was sentenced to undergo 50 years in jail and exiled to the Andaman Nicobar islands. He served 11 years of rigorous imprisonment in the cellular jail at the Andaman& Nicobar islands. Is it proper on the part of Rahul to criticize Veer Savarkar because of ideological differences?

The BJP has no intention of givinga religious colour to history. It wants to portray history comprehensively. The Mughals and the British raided the country from the soil of other nations. The BJP wants to document the sacrifices made by all those who had resisted foreign rulers.

Rahul Gandhi would never be able to understand in his lifetime the real philosophy of the BJP as he has come under the influence of pseudo intelligentsia.