Jinnah: A Corrective Reading of Indian History (Volume I)

Indians by and large see Gandhiji as Father of the Nation, he brought Freedom, he is indeed the adarshapurush, even avatar almost at par with the Buddha or Christ; thus Jinnah becomes diametrically the opposite – a traitor, who partitioned Mother India, ruthlessly ‘cutting his pound of flesh’. For the average Indian Gandhiji symbolizes purity, simplicity, selflessness, sacrifice, divinity, that Gandhiji could do no wrong; Jinnah and Pakistanis wronged us! Without a corrective reading of Indian History it is impossible for India to come to terms with the ‘legacy’ of partition; above all we must atone ourselves with our collective Indo-Islamic and Indo-British past, which was broken during our ‘non-cooperating nationalist era’; neither by the Indian Muslims nor by the British was portion willed; the joint Hindu-Muslim Lucknow Pact on Neo-Hindu foundations of Bharatiyata would have ensured Freedom in unity – a reconciled subcontinent absolutely is the precondition for an ‘Asian Peace Order’ and a ‘Post-nuclear Global Peace Order’ of psychologically realized human unity. This 2-volume book is the quest of such a post-nuclear global order on the matrix of the Rajiv Gandhi Action Plan on the postulate of a South Asian Nuclear-free zone broadening towards a nuclear-free Asia and nuclear-weapon-free world as being pursued by the various Resolutions currently on the UN agenda; because a nuclear-fee Asia and world is impossible without a subcontinental reconciliation, the author pleads for a new understanding of Jinnah in Indian history; Hind Swaraj created ‘Muslim Swaraj’; without a honest examination of our Gandhian assumptions of the nationalist era it is impossible for India to realize her fuller Indic Self and destiny in history. The author tenders apology if some of our cherished Gandhian national sentiments are hurt, the truth must be faced.