A seminar in New Delhi emphasises the importance of Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb, arguing that it is impossible to separate these influences from modern Indian food, language, and art
NEW DELHI — Prominent speakers at a two-day seminar titled “Revisiting the Muslim Contribution to India’s History, Society and Civilisation” in the national capital highlighted how the confluence of cultures had enriched the country’s past. At the same time, they also regretted attempts to present India’s complex history solely in terms of conflict and differences of opinion.
Speakers at the seminar, organised by the Indian History Forum on Saturday, underlined the country’s syncretic culture and deplored attempts by the media to push this vital point under the carpet.
The speakers included Congress Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor, RJD Rajya Sabha member Manoj Jha, former Rajya Sabha MP Mohammed Adeeb, author Ashok Kumar Pandey, and scholars and Jamaat-e-Islami officials S. Sadatullah Husaini and Dr. Shadab Munawwar Moosa.
Moosa said today’s history textbooks often present inaccurate and misinterpreted information. He added that the country’s museums also do not adequately present Muslims’ contribution to the freedom struggle. The medieval period was the most contested area today, he said.
The chapter on medieval India in NCERT’s Class VIII social science textbook, Exploring Society: India and Beyond, describes the Muslims of South Asia as invaders who came to spread their religion.
It says they imposed the discriminatory jizya tax on non-Muslims, thus encouraging conversions, and that this period witnessed many instances of religious intolerance.
The seminar emphasised the importance of Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb, a fusion of Hindu and Muslim cultures, arguing that it is impossible to separate these influences from modern Indian food, language, and art.
Congress lawmaker Tharoor emphasised that India never had a monolithic culture, and that the country’s evolution was marked by cultural interactions.
“The architecture stands as an example of synthesis. The Qutb Complex, Humayun’s Tomb, and Taj Mahal provide evidence of a civilisation in conversation with itself. Any attempt to reduce India’s past to a single narrative is bound to fail,” he said.
Tharoor said attempts were being made to view India’s history through conflict. He said historiography, the study of how history is written and interpreted, is central to understanding the past.
“To view the entire past through conflict is to miss the actual history. The complexity of civilisation is reduced to isolated incidents,” he said.
“Selective interpretation has become the practice. When history is presented selectively, there is a narrowing of perspectives.”
RJD’s Jha said the country’s social fabric had deteriorated in recent years and would take much longer to repair. He said today’s society was unlikely to produce people like Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, who were committed to secularism and India’s shared past.
Husaini, Adeeb and Moosa highlighted attempts by some historians to marginalise the Muslim contribution to the nation’s past.
Husaini said Muslims did not come to India only as invaders and did not loot the country’s resources. They settled here and contributed to the economy, trade, culture and education. Islamic rulers brought diverse regions together to create a single union.
Author Pandey said the media’s failure to highlight India’s syncretic culture led people to get the wrong message about communities and regions like Kashmir.
Congress leader Gurdeep Singh Sappal said the misinformation being spread about history and society was amplified by social media, which was controlled by IT companies.
He appealed to social media users to counter false narratives by circulating correct information.
