Bhopal: Nationalism, region and religion different from that of RSS will be discussed and debated at the 79th conference of Indian History Congress beginning in city from Tuesday.
The conference gained limelight recently when Pune University cancelled the programme at the eleventh hour allegedly under BJP government’s pressure. Nevertheless, the venue was shifted to Bhopal on a very short notice.
Convenor, Dr Richa Malhotra said that the focus of conference would remain on Gandhi besides history of Madhya Pradesh from ancient to contemporary. A paper based on micro-level study, ‘Region, Religion and Nationalism- quest for identity in Central Provinces’ too would be presented.
History of Madhya Pradesh will be discussed in reference to period between 1857 and 1947. Papers on Gandhi movement in MP, Praja Mandal Movement, forest movement etc will be presented in the conference. MP will be discussed for two days in various sessions. Papers on Yogini idols found in Shahdol district, everyday life in 15th century and tribes and societies in MP will be presented. “Rich cultural history of MP would be discussed in depth through presentation of various papers,” said Malhotra.
Secretary of the Indian History Congress (IHC), Prof Mahalakshmi said that dissemination of knowledge verified by authentic sources is the main objective. Amidst debate between history and myth and a parallel narrative built on nationalism- it is imperative that credible organisations put forward the verified aspects. “Historians having affiliations with different ideologies come and present papers here. IHC is always open for healthy discussion on any topic with scientific approach,” said Rakesh Batabyal, centre for media studies, JNU.
IHC, established in 1935 is the largest professional and academic body of Indian historians with over 10,000 members. This is for the second time that the conference is being held in Bhopal. Earlier it was held in 2001.
Renowned scholars including Irfan Habib, Mridula Mukherjee, Suchita Mahajan besides about 1000 scholars would be attending the conference. Former vice president Hamid Ansari, Sitaram Yechuri and others will also attend the conference.