Special panel discussion on book of Prof Chris Moffat

Chandigarh: The Department of Gandhian and Peace Studies organized a special panel discussion on the Book of Prof. Chris Moffat (from the Queen Mary) on “India’s Revolutionary Inheritance: The Politics and Promise of Bhagat Singh”, here today. The Chairperson of the Department Dr. Manish Sharma introduced the invited members of the panel discussion sitting on the dais and also spoke about the book. 

In his introduction, Prof. Chris talked about his book that his main objectives were to do What anti-colonial histories mean for politics in contemporary India? How can we understand a political terrain that appears crowded with the dead, heroic figures from past struggles who call the living to account and demand action? What role do these 'afterlives' play in the inauguration of new politics and the fashioning of possible futures? In this engaging and innovative analysis of anti-colonial afterlives in modern South Asia, Chris Moffat crafts a framework that takes the dead seriously - not as passive entities, ceremonially invoked, but as active interlocutors and instigators in the present. Focusing on the iconic revolutionary martyr Bhagat Singh (1907–1931), Moffat establishes the problem of inheritance as central to the forms and futures of democracy in this postcolonial polity. Tracing Bhagat Singh's revenant presence in India today, he demonstrates how living communities are animated by a sense of obligation, duty or debt to the dead. And most of his research areas are Pakistan and India. 

Prof. Ronki Ram, Dean Faculty of Arts, informed the audience that such a scholarly work will help in rebuilding the bonding between the common masses and Bhagat Singh as he was very rightly said that Bhagat Singh belongs to the common masses and he gave his life for the common masses while following the footsteps of Mahatma Gandhi. And he also said that we should see Bhagat Singh from two angles, one as revolutionary who wants to take revenge of wrong doings and the other who followed the footsteps of Mahatma Gandhi. 

Prof. Harish Puri in his remarks about the book said that this is a scholarly done work which reflects not only Bhagat Singh’s perception but of the historians also. And he corelated the timings of his movements that how they can be taken up by todays youth with one condition that they have to follow the complete ideology of Bhagat Singh. In his remarks about the Book of Chris, Professor Ishwar Dayal Gaur talked about the inheritance the book of Chris has followed and the narratives comes handy while traveling to Pakistan and doing the research over there. He also put emphasis on the cultural background which takes Bhagat Singh from a simple freedom fighter to a differently extreme level. In her talk about the book, 

Prof. Sukhmani Bal Rair talked about the idea of how this book will give rebirth to the concept of Bhagat Singh. And in the other part she talked about the other contemporary rights which will enhance the further research on Bhagat Sigh. 

In his concluding remarks, Prof. Jagmohan Singh (Nephew of Bhagat Singh) said that this book is one of the best book in terms of research and which shows the indepth research taken in finalization of everything in bringing the ideology of Bhagat Singh. In the end, the audience asked questions relating to the book which were answered by Prof. Chris and the members of the panel. 

The panel discussion was also attended by Prof. Chaman Lal and various Chairpersons of the social sciences departments and a large number of research scholars and students. Dr. Jasbir proposed the vote of thanks to all.