Sekhar Bandyopadhyay – författare

The book seeks to situate caste as a discursive category in the discussion of Partition in Bengal. In conventional narratives of Partition, the role of the Dalit or the Scheduled Castes is either completely ignored or mentioned in passing. The authors addresse this discursive absence and argues that in Bengal the Dalits were neither passive onlookers nor accidental victims of Partition politics and violence, which ruptured their unity and weakened their political autonomy. They were the worst victims of Partition. When the Dalit peasants of Eastern Bengal began to migrate to India after 1950, they were seen as the 'burden' of a frail economy of West Bengal, and the Indian state did not provide them with a proper rehabilitation package. They were first segregated in fenced refugee camps where life was unbearable, and then dispersed to other parts of India - first to the Andaman Islands and the neighbouring states, and then to the inhospitable terrains of Dandakaranya, where they could be used as cheap labour for various development projects. This book looks critically at their participation in Partition politics, the reasons for their migration three years after Partition, their insufferable life and struggles in the refugee camps, their negotiations with caste and gender identities in these new environments, their organized protests against camp maladministration, and finally their satyagraha campaigns against the Indian state's refugee dispersal policy. This book looks at how refugee politics impacted Dalit identity and protest movements in post-Partition West Bengal.

Modernity, which emphasizes the relegation of religion firmly to an individual's private life, is a challenging idea for any culture. In India it faces a particularly unusual problem: the persistence of numerous traditional and religious practices means that religion and modernity co-habit here in a complex, plural, transient, and historically evolving relationship. Religion and Modernity in India explores this complex relationship through a series of case studies on the quotidian experiences of people practising a variety of religions. It presents the dynamically interacting textures of society engaging with modernity in divergent ways, both historically and in contemporary times. The essays in this collection consciously bring in the idea of inclusivity by factoring in the small and local contexts. They raise important questions about marginality and sexuality, and discuss the oral and cultural traditions of both mainstream and marginal communities such as tribal communities and women. In doing so, they put forward the perspectives of groups that represent difference but at the same time are linked to a larger whole.

Indians now constitute a significant ethnic minority in Australia and New Zealand. According to the most recent census figures, they number slightly more than half a million, but represent a successful ethnic community making significant contributions to their host societies and economies. The histories of their migration go back to the early colonial period, but rarely do they find any space in the global literature on Indian diaspora, probably because of their small numbers. This book covers their history over the past two and half centuries, covering both the 'old' and the 'new' diaspora; the first group consisting of the labourers who migrated under pressure of colonial capital, and the second group representing the post-war professional migrants. But this book is not just about the diaspora, it also looks closely at the host societies which over this period have been receiving and interacting with these migrants. And it looks at a few Antipodeans too, who were going to India in the early twentieth century and making contributions in terms of ideas and service.

Promoting the understanding of the impressive economic growth and social transformation in China and India, the authors demonstrate the diverse economic, political, social, cultural, international and historical conditions in these two developing countries and point out the theoretical problems of comparative development models in particular.

This book explores the meanings and complexities of India’s experience of transition from colonial to the post-colonial period. It focuses on the first five years – from independence on 15th August 1947 to the first general election in January 1952 – in the politics of West Bengal, the new Indian province that was created as a result of the Partition. The author, a specialist on the history of modern India, discusses what freedom actually meant to various individuals, communities and political parties, how they responded to it, how they extended its meaning and how in their anxiety to confront the realities of free India, they began to invent new enemies of their newly acquired freedom. By emphasising the representations of popular mentality rather than the institutional changes brought in by the process of decolonization, he draws attention to other concerns and anxieties that were related to the problems of coming to terms with the newly achieved freedom and the responsibility of devising independent rules of governance that would suit the historic needs of a pluralist nation. Decolonization in South Asia analyses the transitional politics of West Bengal in light of recent developments in postcolonial theory on nationalism, treating the ‘nation’ as a space for contestation, rather than a natural breeding ground for homogeneity in the complex political scenario of post-independence India. It will appeal to academics interested in political science, sociology, social anthropology and cultural and Asian studies.

This book explores the meanings and complexities of India’s experience of transition from colonial to the post-colonial period. It focuses on the first five years – from independence on 15th August 1947 to the first general election in January 1952 – in the politics of West Bengal, the new Indian province that was created as a result of the Partition. The author, a specialist on the history of modern India, discusses what freedom actually meant to various individuals, communities and political parties, how they responded to it, how they extended its meaning and how in their anxiety to confront the realities of free India, they began to invent new enemies of their newly acquired freedom. By emphasising the representations of popular mentality rather than the institutional changes brought in by the process of decolonization, he draws attention to other concerns and anxieties that were related to the problems of coming to terms with the newly achieved freedom and the responsibility of devising independent rules of governance that would suit the historic needs of a pluralist nation. Decolonization in South Asia analyses the transitional politics of West Bengal in light of recent developments in postcolonial theory on nationalism, treating the ‘nation’ as a space for contestation, rather than a natural breeding ground for homogeneity in the complex political scenario of post-independence India. It will appeal to academics interested in political science, sociology, social anthropology and cultural and Asian studies.

This book focuses on the aftermath of the 1947 Partition of India. It considers the long aftermath and afterlives of Partition afresh, from a wide and inclusive range of perspectives and studies the specificities of the history of violence and migration and their memories in the Bengal region. The chapters in the volume range from the administrative consequences of partition to public policies on refugee settlement, life stories of refugees in camps and colonies, and literary and celluloid representations of Partition. It also probes questions of memory, identity, and the memorialization of events.Eclectic in its theoretical orientation and methodology, this book will be of interest to scholars and researchers of partition history, colonialism, refugee studies, Indian history, South Asian history, migration studies, and modern history in general.

This book focuses on the aftermath of the 1947 Partition of India. It considers the long aftermath and afterlives of Partition afresh, from a wide and inclusive range of perspectives and studies the specificities of the history of violence and migration and their memories in the Bengal region. The chapters in the volume range from the administrative consequences of partition to public policies on refugee settlement, life stories of refugees in camps and colonies, and literary and celluloid representations of Partition. It also probes questions of memory, identity, and the memorialization of events.Eclectic in its theoretical orientation and methodology, this book will be of interest to scholars and researchers of partition history, colonialism, refugee studies, Indian history, South Asian history, migration studies, and modern history in general.

Politics and culture are organically related in the city of Calcutta. The period (1940s to 1950s), was chaotic and turbulent, yet, this was also a time of significant creativity in literature,  art, films and music in the city. This is an unusual feature of any city but is interestingly characteristic of Calcutta. The originality of the work lies in blending poetry with historical writing, retaining the essence of both forms against the backdrop of the tumultuous events of the critical decades, as against the entire historical period of a city. This historical method together with twenty-one papers give the reader a sense of the pulse of this complex city ‘emerging creatively and chaotically from its colonial past’.

This book looks at how the caste system has withstood resistance from below and survived the challenge of colonial modernity. By using empirical data from Bengal, it explores how Hindu caste society has sought to maintain its cultural hegemony and structural cohesion by frustrating reformist endeavours, by co-opting challenges by the Dalit and by marginalizing internal dissidence during the colonial period. It draws on case studies of early cultural encounters between 'high' Brahmanical tradition and the more egalitarian 'popular' religious cults of the lower castes. It also examines the Hindu 'Partition' campaign, which tended to appropriate dalit autonomous politics and made Hinduism the foundation of an emergent Indian national identity.The book will be of use to scholars and researchers of history, political science, religion, minority studies, gender studies and South Asian studies.

Politics and culture are organically related in the city of Calcutta. The period (1940s to 1950s), was chaotic and turbulent, yet, this was also a time of significant creativity in literature,  art, films and music in the city. This is an unusual feature of any city but is interestingly characteristic of Calcutta. The originality of the work lies in blending poetry with historical writing, retaining the essence of both forms against the backdrop of the tumultuous events of the critical decades, as against the entire historical period of a city. This historical method together with twenty-one papers give the reader a sense of the pulse of this complex city ‘emerging creatively and chaotically from its colonial past’.

The papers in this book show that the state intervenes in the development process according to its own predilections, depending on the interests and views of those who dominate the state. Ruling elites may have different priorities, as is revealed very clearly in the different policies adopted in Bengal under the colonial state, the state of Pakistan, the state of Bangladesh and the Left Front government of West Bengal. These policies had a differential impact on various communities, Hindus and Muslims, higher castes and lower castes, Bengalis and non-Bengalis and often on different sections within each community.

Over the last twenty-five years significant epistemological shifts and methodological innovations have enriched the historiography of colonial Bengal. The essays in Bengal: Rethinking History critically examine some of?those?trends?and?indicate?possibilities?of?future?research.In the first section of this book, Lakshmi Subramanian discusses the debates concerning the early fortunes of the English East India Company, Sanjukta Das Gupta deals with the complex literature on peasant and tribal movements, Arjan de Haan looks at the debates with regard to the industrial working classes and Brian Hatcher traces the changing trends in the interpretation of Bengal Renaissance. The essay by Bob Pokrant, Peter Reeves and John McGuire on the historical significance of fish, fisheries and the social life of Bengal fishermen is an example of the new areas of research?that?are?being?opened?up?in?recent?years.In the second section on social identities and politics, Asim Roy provides a comprehensive study of the enormous volume of literature on the Bengali Muslims’ quest for identity, Sekhar Bandyopadhyay discusses the literature on caste system and construction of identities among lower caste Hindus and Samita Sen takes a critical glance at recent researches on the history of women. Nationalism has been one of the most explored areas of Bengal history. In this volume Sugata Bose critically examines the existing views on Bengal nationalism, while Joya Chatterji investigates the problems of interpreting?the?troubled?politics?of?the?1940s.This book does not propagate any particular view of history, as the essays represent a melange of opinions, sometimes at variance with each other. It looks critically at the existing historical discourses with a view to stoke?new?debates.