Historians linked to RSS, ABVP, critics of Left in new ICHR
NEWDELHI: Raghuvendra Tanwar, an expert of modern Indian history and author of a book on the life of late Hindutva ideologue Veer Damodar Savarkar, Umesh Kadam, dean of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), have been included in the newly constituted Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR), officials said on Thursday.
Meenakshi Jain, who teaches history at Gargi College, Hansraj College’s Saradendu Mukherjee, who are both known to be critics of leftist influence in academics, also found a place in the reconstituted 18-member team, a list of which was accessed by Hindustan Times. Both colleges are affiliated to Delhi University.
Significantly, Jain, who is being reappointed to the council, has written several books including ‘The Battle for Rama—Case of the Temple at Ayodhya’, ‘Rama and Ayodhya’. She has also been a fellow of the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library.
“The newly constituted council consists of eminent historians from different regions as well as sections of the society. Significantly, it has been ensured that the specialisations are varied with some being experts in ancient, modern or medieval history while there are others who specialise in Buddhist history,” a senior government official said on condition of anonymity. The term of the council is three years.
Jain, Mukherjee and Ishwar Chandra Vishwakarma, known for his association with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)-linked All India Itihas Sankalan Yojana, have served as members of the council earlier too.
The team also includes several new faces like, Professor Kapil Kumar of the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), Surjit Kaur Jolly, former principal of Delhi University’s Shyama Prasad Mukhkerjee College, who has done research on Sikh history, Prof Rahman Ali, who has done research on subjects like Hindu temple architecture as well as the Islamic Architecture of Deccan and also finds his name in the list.
Retired professor CI Isaac of CMS College in Kottayam, is another member. Isaac reportedly was associated with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarathi Parishad (ABVP) during his school days, sources said. His publications include a book on Swami Vivekananda and another on the decline of the Vijayanagar empire.
When contacted, Isaac said the “priority would be to bring an Indo-centric approach to history”.
Former vice-chancellor of Raj iv Gandhi University in A runachal Pradesh, Tamo Mi bang, Rajasthan University’s Vibha Upadhyaya, who specialises in ancient Indian history, Shridhar Madhukar, former professor of Pune’s Savitri Bai Phule University, who specialises in medieval history, Osmania University’s V Kishan Rao, an expert on ancient history, Baidyanath Labh, who was recently appointed vicechancellor of Nava Nalanda Mahavihara University in Bihar, Himanshu Kumar Chaturvedi, professor of Deen Dayal Upadhyay Gorakhpur University, Tumkur University’s M Kotresh, Pataliputra University’s Rajeev Ranjan and Suman Jain, an expert in medieval history, Rajeev Ranjan, an expert on Buddhist history and former dean of Ujjain’s Vikram University, are another prominent names on the list.