THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: President Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday called for the celebration of the ‘argumentative Indian, not the intolerant Indian,’ underscoring the need to protect the freedom to doubt, disagree and dispute intellectually as an essential pillar of democracy.
“Nothing should lie outside the realm of reason, and therefore of discussion and argument. Such freedom is vital for progress in any field, especially a calling and craft like history,” Mukherjee said, inaugurating the 77th session of the Indian History Congress at the Kerala University. The freedom of speech, he said, was one of the most important fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution.
Multiple views, thoughts and philosophies have competed with each other peacefully for centuries in the country. However, there has been an unfortunate tendency from time to time to take offence at the expression of views perceived to be hostile to our social or cultural institutions, past or present. Similarly, critical appraisals of heroes and national icons have been met with hostility and sometimes even violence, he said.
“It is my firm conviction that India’s pluralism and social, cultural, linguistic and religious diversity are our greatest strengths. Our traditions have always celebrated the argumentative Indian, not the intolerant Indian,” Mukherjee said.
While it is natural to see glory in the past of one’s own country, patriotism should not result in blinkered approaches to interpreting history or a compromise with truth in order to justify an argument of choice, the President said. He urged historians to engage in an objective pursuit of history, which, he said, requires the impartial mind of a judge and not the mind of an advocate. Historians should also study how a composite culture and national sentiment have grown in India over the centuries. Such a study, he said, would have valuable lessons for modern-day nation building.
“What is the essential chemistry that has bound these millions and millions of people into a single identity?” he said.
The President expressed the hope that the Indian History Congress would continue to remain alert and vigilant in the cause of an objective study of history. The President presented the Rajwade Award to eminent epigraphist Iravatham Mahadevan for his ‘life-long service to Indian history.’
Governor P Sathasivam, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, ministers Kadakampally Surendran and C Raveendranath, Mayor V K Prashanth and Indian History Congress president Shireen Moosvi spoke. The congress, being hosted by the Kerala University after a gap of 58 years, will come to a close on Friday.