Delhi Sultanate And Mughal Erasure From NCERT Textbooks: Consequences Of Distorting India's Cultural Identity

What had been in the offing has finally come true. The Delhi Sultanate and the Mughals have officially been ousted from Class 7 NCERT textbooks. And with that, the fight against the Mughals is well and truly over. As for the roads of central Delhi, the process of renaming is underway and may reach completion in the near future.

Logically speaking, a fight requires an adversary, which in this particular instance was history. Armed with the power and reasoning of Hindutva, the central government decided it was time to put an end to a rule that turned the very course of Indian history, the details of which, marked as achievements of the Mughals, have long been dropped from the books. And so, with a decisive new education policy, it went about achieving this goal.

For all it’s worth, it has been a rather unique fight and unequal, too, at many levels. The uniqueness stems from the fact that it is being fought in two time zones—Present and Past. The initial move was made some time in the 12^th century by Sultan Muhammad of Ghor as he laid the foundations of the first Muslim rule in the northern part of the subcontinent.

The retaliation has come after more than a millennium. As for lack of equality, well, the government might have the power and the resources to exercise its control over the present; it certainly can’t do so over the past. Also, history has facts on its side, which cannot be countered by narratives alone.

Now the question is: Can we really erase the history of a millennium? And if so, what will be the consequences?

Many countries, such as Russia, Germany, and even England, have tried to do that, but none succeeded. Though in England many are still unaware of the crimes committed by the British in their colonies. The interesting thing about the Indian culture is that it is a mix of diverse cultures and traditions right from the ancient times to the present.

As has been pointed out innumerably, our food, clothing, art, architecture, language and mannerisms are a result of a composite culture. And that is our identity. It is very difficult to segregate one from the other.

Erasing this history would be tantamount to negating the process of evolution that people of the Indian subcontinent have undergone over the past millennium—socially, politically, economically and spiritually, the Bhakti movement being a prime example of that.

Expunging this period from history can have disastrous consequences. In history, the time factor is important because it carries with it the various changes that a society undergoes, including generational changes. As history follows a systemic progression, doing away with a major chunk of it can result in major chaos and lead to social discord at every level—caste, class, religion, region, gender and generation.

Teaching about Indian cultures and traditions to the younger generation is essential, but it should not happen at the cost of our identity.