[sacw] SACW Dispatch | 5 Oct. 00

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch
5 October 2000
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex

*********************************
#1. India Pakistan Digital History Text Book website
#2. Bangladesh: Beware Of Religion Exploiters
#3. Give A Good Riddance To Pirs - The Mischief-makers Of Bangladesh
#4. Comment on 1 year on the Musharraf govt. in Pakistan
#5. Pakistan: Letter from Publisher & CEO of the DAWN following the Army r=
aid
#6. India/USA: Hindutva Horseplay in Harappa :The Indus Valley Decipherment=
=20
Hoax

*********************************

#1.

India Pakistan Digital History Text Book website:
http://www.chowk.com/bin/showa.cgi?qdaudpota_sep2600

______

#2.

The Daily Star
October 03, 2000
Editorial

BEWARE OF RELIGION EXPLOITERS

WITH the high-profile Pir Mujibur Rahman's death in extremely unnatural=20
circumstances questions arise on two levels. Forensically, who could have=20
been his implacable enemy exacting such a vendetta on him; and=20
sociologically, the so-called pirism, which does not find support in the=20
authentic Islamic ethos comes under the prism as a big question-mark.
Those who trade on human miseries are called unethical businessmen. But=20
what are we going to term those as who have made a commercial art of=20
religion, a money-spinning business of it with an extortionist zeal? They=20
thrive on the soft-belly sensibilities of people who revere their=20
religious-looking persona and have among their top adherents persons of=20
high positions as purveyors of their social, administrative and even=20
political clouts. The connective tissues of that kind of a fraternity=20
create a self-serving society as the fake evangelist does his pickings of=20
wealth, power and yet greater influence as he goes on. It may have started=
=20
with a flicker of an aura of spirituality, then it progresses through a=20
blend of vague incantation and ministration before being eventually topped=
=20
by occasional grunts and yells about auspicious or ominous developments=20
lying in store. Then they grow into full-fledged merchants of religion=20
trying to wield an influence of virtually pressure or lobby groups in=20
matters of personal or clannish interests, as if calling the shots from=20
hermitage.
We implore the truly religious people of the country who constitute a vast=
=20
majority of our population to stand up against the exploitation of religion=
=20
by a handful of self-proclaimed pirs. The progressive media, let them be=20
assured, will not flinch from extending their support to such a noble cause=
=20
of upholding true religious spirit in the society. Furthermore, we are=20
fully appreciative of the vigil the government has mounted upon those=20
people who are out to destabilise the society under religious garbs. The=20
government deserves popular support on this.

______

#3.

News From Bangladesh
Readers Opinion

GIVE A GOOD RIDDANCE TO PIRS - THE MISCHIEF-MAKERS OF BANGLADESH

By A.H. Jaffor Ullah

His e-mail address is - jhankar@b...

"Faith may be defined briefly as an illogical belief in the occurrence of=20
the improbable." -
H. L. Mencken, 'Prejudices'
Is Bangladesh a Pir infested nation? Believe it or not, lately, the=20
ubiquitous Pirs of Bangladesh are making headline news in a big way. There=
=20
is a reason for this diligence on the part of newspaper community. On=20
September 29, 2000, one of the most colorful Pirs of Dhaka was murdered in=
=20
his Huzrakhana (hermitage), which has a fancy name - "Noor-e-Madinah Azmiri=
=20
Durbar" ("The Light of Medina and Durbar of Azmir). The slain Pir took the=
=20
fancy last name of "Chisty" to identify himself with Khaja Mainuddin=20
Chisti, the original Pir or Aolia of Azmir (Azmeer). According to newspaper=
=20
report, Pir Mujibar Rahman Chisti was one of the more colorful Pir of=20
Dhaka. Naturally, his brutal death had rekindled the interest of=20
newspapermen in the arcane world of Pir/Sufi/Dervish.
Bangladesh is truly a land of Pir. People here call a Pir by different name=
=20
such as Aolia, Dervish, Huzur, Mawla, Bhandary, and many other names=20
specific to certain region of the country. The most common way a devotee=20
would call their Pir a "Pir Shaheb." The rich and poor alike in Bangladesh=
=20
revere these people because the devotees think that Pirs are endowed with=20
supernatural power, which falls in the realm of para-physics. The devotee=20
often visits his or her favorite Pir at the time of distress, family=20
crisis, to bear the good news and what not. As long as a Pir can deliver=20
the goods (read good fortune), he would be in hot demand in a locality. It=
=20
is not uncommon to find one particular Pir in every locality of a big town.=
=20
Thus, Dhaka might have hundreds of Pir scattered allover the megalopolis.=20
In the 1960s, the Pir of Shahbagh, an upcountry Urduwalla, was the most=20
sought after Pir of Dhaka. Outside his Huzrakha (hermitage) one could see=20
quite a few shiny cars, which Dhaka had only few then, all lined up with=20
rich and powerful devotees of the Pir. In those days, the Pir of Shahbagh=20
was so immensely popular that one had to be monied to see him. The poor=20
would be lucky if they could cast a glimpse on the Pir, never mind meeting=
=20
him face-to-face. The adulation of the frenzied devotee could be heard from=
=20
a distance. Among the devotees of Shahbagh's legendary Pir were army=20
officers, government bureaucrats, politicians, top class businessmen, etc.=
=20
Many business deals could have been brokered in the milieu of Shahbagh=20
Pir's place. As one can see, with the blessings of a Pir, myriad problems=20
could be solved, which otherwise would remain unsolved. Therefore, in an=20
environment of low efficiency a Pir could do his magic to bring fruition in=
=20
no time. Intelligent people knew this and they flocked to Pir's Huzrakhana=
=20
for results, which they would get. The common folks of our motherland would=
=20
visit a Pir for reasons that are remotely connected to money matters. If=20
some family members have unconquerable disease and malady, the folks would=
=20
go to receive Pani PoDa (hydro-therapy) or for some amulet (Tabeez), which=
=20
all falls on the category we Bangalees call Tuktaak.
The above-mentioned activities of Pirs in Bangladesh are traditional chores=
=20
of duty of a Pir and are a thing of the past. Now, the job description of a=
=20
Pir had changed for the better. For one thing - the chores have gotten more=
=20
complex. On the top of doing all those traditional stuffs the Pirs are=20
increasingly becoming political. In the last few months, the newspapers of=
=20
Bangladesh had published the account of chance encounters between two rival=
=20
factions of Pirs in Dhaka area. One group called the devotee of Chor-Monai=
=20
(a place near Narayanganj) and the other group called themselves the Murid=
=20
of Arambagh's Pir. While one group favored instituting a full-scale Islamic=
=20
constitution for Bangladesh, the rival group opposed it. Bangladesh's=20
newspapers have published photos of those brutal encounters and one can=20
view them in a web site=20
(http://communities.msn.com/IslamizationofBangladeshIsitcomplete).
The newspaper account of modern-day Pir depicts a very different picture of=
=20
those mendicants Pir/Dervishes of the bygone days. Now they say that some=20
Pirs of Bangladesh are immensely wealthy. And that is not all! These Pirs=20
are exercising their influence on national and regional politics. The daily=
=20
Star reports that there are about 30 influential Pirs in Dhaka alone.=20
Apparently, these Pirs have amassed an extraordinary sum of money.=20
Therefore, they are rich and powerful. The newspaper account states that=20
this wealth is misbegotten. The tentacles of Pirs' influence are so wide=20
spread that no branches of government had been spared. The Daily Star=20
report boldly states that Pir's followers include ministers, top government=
=20
officials including police and custom officers, army officers, politicians,=
=20
businessmen, etc. This complex web of networking is the key to success for=
=20
many Pirs. Unfortunately, the nonchalant devotees fail to understand that=20
and they give undue credits to the Pir for solving their personal or=20
business-related problems. Therefore, Pir is a bon fide institute in=20
Bangladesh whose roots spread in all possible directions in our society.
The slain Pir of Dhaka was something more than a mendicant. He was said to=
=20
be a millionaire and influential not only in Dhaka but also in abroad. The=
=20
Pir was taking his voyage to US on September 8, 2000, when the airport=20
authorities didn't allow him to leave the country. The law enforcement=20
department was watching the Pir believing that he was a foreign agent.=20
Dhaka's newspaper The Independent also published today (October 3, 2000) a=
=20
news story revealing some details of the slain Pir's activities. The news=20
paper account has revealed that Pir Chisty was in cahoots with another Pir=
=20
from Narayanganj (aka Chor-monai) to have maintained links with the high=20
commissioner's office of a South Asian nation. The newspaper didn't name=20
the country. Nevertheless, it is obvious which country they are referring=20
to. The Independent report cast a gloomy picture of Pir Chisty's anti-state=
=20
activities and it concludes that the slain Pir fell victim to "tug-of-war=20
between two intelligence outfits."
It seems as if the Pirs of all three countries of South Asia have some=20
sorts of alliance. The Independent report states that within the short span=
=20
of last 3 days after hearing the news of Pir Chisti's unexpected demise, 40=
=20
Pirs from neighboring countries have flown to Dhaka to pay homage to theirs=
=20
fallen brother. The airport authorities of Dhaka gave this information to=20
the reporter. It seems therefore, the leading Pirs of Dhaka have broadened=
=20
their operation to include espionage among their chores of ornery duty.=20
This cloak-and-dagger profession, which was once only associated with=20
British Agents 007 and others such as CIA, had lured Bangladesh's Pirs into=
=20
its fold. The Independent newspaper report draws a conclusion -- based on=20
Bangladesh intelligence's findings - that points towards a foul play in Pir=
=20
Chisty's untimely death.
It is expected that Pirs of Bangladesh will be under the magnifying glass=20
for the near term. The authorities should ask the Pirs some tough questions=
=20
relating to their income and assets. Questions should also be raised=20
regarding the non-payment of income tax. Pirs in Bangladesh are notorious=20
for grabbing government or private land. They are so powerful that law=20
enforcement department wouldn't dare to ask them any question let alone=20
inquire about illegal possession of land. The Pir community is now=20
distressed and vulnerable. The government has a job cut out for them. It is=
=20
about the time to round up some influential Pirs of the country. In this=20
day of Internet, there shouldn't be any room for superstition and black=20
magic. The civil society should push for a good riddance of all the Pirs.=20
Their days are numbered anyway. No new lease on theirs life should be given=
.
More articles should be written to expose the arcane world of Pir and=20
Piraki. These dubious bunches have strangulate Bangladesh's society for a=20
long time. As we know, the common folks were ill educated in the olden days=
=20
and they patronized all these devious activities in the name of religion.=20
The society had paid very dearly to the scheme and machination devised by=20
these charlatans. While their heydays are gone, their profession had lost=20
its luster. There shouldn't be any room for these folks whose primary role=
=20
is to devise artifice to get some quick positive results. The clodhoppers=20
of Bangladesh society had patronized these folks insofar as they made a=20
good living out of the miseries of our people. The myth and mystery of this=
=20
arcane profession, Pir, should be exposed now. The society should give a=20
good riddance to this profession at the earliest.

______

#4.

[Published on the 1st anniversary of the Oct 1999 coup in Pakistan ]

The News International
News on Sunday
Special Reports

THE FAVOURITE RETREAT

If ever there was a desire on the government's part to succeed against the=
=20
forces of bigotry, defeat has been its fate

=95 And now a few words on exploitation of religion. Islam teaches toleranc=
e,=20
not hatred, universal brotherhood and not enmity, peace and not violence,=20
progress and not bigotry...I urge them (the ulema) to curb elements which=20
are exploiting religion for vested interests and bringing a bad name to our=
=20
faith...I would like to assure the religious minorities that they enjoy=20
full rights and protection as equal citizens...-- General Pervez Musharraf,=
=20
in his first address to the nation as the Chief Executive, October 17, 1999=
.
"And now a few words on exploitation of religion..." An afterthought,=20
perhaps, destined to lead nowhere. And nowhere it is. Welcome.
In October last year serious concerns were being expressed about the future=
=20
of the country after the military coup against the Nawaz Sharif government.=
=20
At the same time, an attempt at placation was made by presenting Gen=20
Musharraf as a liberal general -- God forbid, the last of a dying breed in=
=20
Pakistan.
The subsequent 12 months are a proof of how the Liberal General has failed=
=20
to make any inroads into the territory occupied by the agents of bigotry.=20
It is another state, governed by another set of rules. But its support in=20
the Islamabad establishment cannot be underestimated. Result: all the=20
official campaigns to bring about improvements in the blasphemy laws, in=20
meeting the demands of the minorities and in ridding the madrassahs of the=
=20
militant elements died an early death.
The Pervez Musharraf government organised a human rights conference in=20
Islamabad on April 21 this year. The CE chose the occasion to announce his=
=20
intentions to effect a procedural change in the registration of blasphemy=20
cases. Under the proposed change, an inquiry by the deputy commissioner was=
=20
to be made mandatory before a blasphemy case could be registered. This was=
=20
a long-standing demand, in the face of increasing incidence where the=20
blasphemy law was exploited to settle a personal score. In the words of the=
=20
military government's own law and human rights minister in Punjab "99 per=20
cent of cases in Pakistan are based on false allegations."
As the Musharraf ministers lent their voices to the desire for change, the=
=20
religious parties were having none of it. Protest rallies were called and a=
=20
shutdown was announced on May 19. But the need didn't arise. Musharraf=20
retreated on May 17.
The government 'attempt' to cleanse the madrassah stables of militancy met=
=20
a similar fate. Interior Minister Moeenuddin Haider began by announcing, in=
=20
January this year, a crackdown on madrassahs offering military training to=
=20
its pupils. But soon enough, as the hardliners responded angrily, the=20
interior minister's tone changed. Statements followed: "99 per cent of the=
=20
madrassahs are not involved in giving military training..." The government=
=20
wants to assist the deeni madrassahs in improving their educational=20
standards. The crackdown man eventually ended up in praising the madrassahs=
=20
for "teaching students how to live a good and virtuous life."
There was, however, some consolation for the interior minister. He=20
qualified for an award for making the most famous denial of the year when=20
he disowned a remark about a secular Pakistan attributed to him by the New=
=20
York Times.
The foregone defeats on the blasphemy and militancy fronts should have been=
=20
enough of a signal for the government to mind its own business. But it=20
confronted the rightist might one more time and tried to use a survey=20
conducted by the Curriculum Department, Islamic Education Sector for a=20
close look at the madrassahs. The madrassahs declined to give any=20
information, and even refused to fill in the tax survey forms. Finally, the=
=20
government put off the curriculum survey, on August 18.
This leaves out the minorities. Literally too, for they have once again=20
been separated from the rest of the Pakistanis in the government's power=20
devolution plan.

-- Asha'ar Rehman

______

#5.

[Letter from Publisher & CEO of the DAWN Group of Newspapers following the=
=20
Army raid on their premises. Many of you have already seen news reports=20
regarding following raid, but this letter provides the full account of what=
=20
happened]

29 September 2000

Dear Sir,
I am writing to draw your attention to an important matter that indicates=20
the worsening environment for the freedom of press environment in Pakistan.=
=20
It is exceedingly difficult for governments to live with a free and=20
independent press in Pakistan. Of late, the present military administration=
=20
has become increasingly hostile towards any criticism whatsoever in the=20
press. This hostility has manifested itself under various guises in=20
particular, with respect to the DAWN Group of Newspapers, Pakistan largest=
=20
independent English language newspaper and magazine publishing house.

There have been several warnings over the last few days, both direct and=20
indirect, to publishers, editors and journalists of the DAWN Group that the=
=20
authorities were preparing for something 'significant'. In particular, the=
=20
government strongly protested against the writings of a senior DAWN=20
journalist who had earlier commented in a despatch from New York that the=20
administration of The Chief Executive of Pakistan, General Musharraf, was=20
preparing to initiate a new round of repressive measures against the free=20
press. Recent legal notices sent to DAWN by the regime's Minister of=20
Information and a senior official of the Ministry of Information in=20
Islamabad, not to mention the watering down of a proposed Freedom of=20
Information Act draft, served as major indicators of a new press strategy=20
being pursued by the present military regime. The independent policies=20
followed by DAWN and its sister publications have proved to be the first=20
target of such repressive measures.

On Wednesday September 27, without any prior warning an army monitoring=20
team consisting of six armed army personnel, accompanied by three engineers=
=20
of Karachi Electric Supply Corporation (KESC) and an alleged representative=
=20
of the Electrical Inspector, Government of Sindh, arrived at the=20
headquarters of the DAWN Group of Newspapers at Haroon House, Karachi. The=
=20
contingent of the army monitoring team and the KESC engineers insisted on=20
an immediate inspection of all equipment and meters on the premises. The=20
notice handed over to the DAWN newspaper instructed the newspaper to, quote=
=20
make necessary arrangement and to extend your co-operation for carrying out=
=20
the Survey/Testing of the metering equipments by our Engineers unquote,=20
under the Electricity Act of 1910.

This team backed by the armed army personnel threatened the immediate=20
disconnection of the electric supply to the press and the consequential=20
stoppage of all newspaper printing and publishing activities of the DAWN=20
Group, if immediate and complete access by armed personnel to DAWN was not=
=20
allowed.

Although the representative of the management of Pakistan Herald=20
Publications(Pvt) Ltd, the publishers of daily DAWN, the daily Star, and=20
periodicals Herald, Spider and Aurora, protested against the strong arm=20
tactics being used, the members of the inspection team demanded immediate=20
entry and access to all floors of the publishing establishment, and of=20
particular interest to them were the offices of the publishers, editors and=
=20
journalists, the satellite communication rooms and secured areas where=20
sensitive pre-press and printing technology effects the daily printing of=20
DAWN and its sister publications.

The Army Inspection team also categorically refused to comply with the=20
security procedures of DAWN which had been enforced in DAWN's headquarters=
=20
since the terrorist bomb blasts over a year ago, when journalists and press=
=20
workers' lives were threatened by as yet unidentified terrorist groups,=20
although they allowed the accompanying KESC Engineers to observe DAWN's=20
security rules. They also warned press photographers against taking of=20
photographs of the inspection, stating 'this was a secret operation ordered=
=20
by the higher ups and that no photographs were to be published in the DAWN=
=20
Group of Newspapers.'

After a gruelling four hours inspection process, the Army Monitoring Team=20
prepared a statement and ordered the management representatives present to=
=20
sign it immediately. Although the 'secret' statement virtually cleared the=
=20
DAWN's headquarters of any charges arising as a consequence of this=20
operation, the representatives of the DAWN management refused to sign the=20
statement on the grounds that duress was being applied by the Army=20
Monitoring Team especially as nothing untoward had been uncovered. In=20
particular the report prepared by the Engineers cleared DAWN of any wrong=20
doing in every single one of the 18 listed criteriors for billing=20
discrepancies.

A compromise was affected whereby, one of the legal advisors of the DAWN=20
Group, signed the document without prejudice to any future observations=20
that DAWN or its legal advisors might wish to make with respect to the=20
'findings' of the document.

Whilst even listing televisions, refrigerators and the electric kettles'=20
consumption loads, the Army monitoring team showed no remorse at the=20
harassment of an organization that pays over Rs 10 million of electricity=20
dues annually from this one site alone (approximately US $ 150,000) and one=
=20
that has never defaulted on payments. It is surprising that the Army=20
monitoring team and their counterparts in the KESC did not find any more=20
significant defaulting customer, or alleged electricity thief than the=20
country's leading English language newspaper group-- unless, "something=20
other" than a mere electricity inspection was the purpose of this manoeuvre=
.

The high handed manner in which the inspection by the Army monitoring team=
=20
was carried out left an indelible Impression that a punitive raid rather=20
than an electrical Inspection was the basic objective of the operation as=20
no other newspaper has been a recipient of a similar aggressive armed=20
'electricity inspection' such as the DAWN Group has witnessed in the last=20
24 hours.

The unwarranted intrusion of armed personnel onto the premises of DAWN gave=
=20
rise to the distinct speculation that a threatening posture had been=20
adopted by the military authorities on the pretext of an unfruitful=20
electricity inspection. No apparent wrongdoing was either noted or observed=
=20
by the representatives of the KESC or the Military. The presence of armed=20
army personnel however, in this kind of operation is unprecedented. Perhaps=
=20
this is the Administration's way of indicating what lies ahead for the=20
remnants of a besieged free press in Pakistan.

The above incident needs to be looked into as it is likely to endanger the=
=20
functioning of the free press in Pakistan. Our colleagues in press freedom=
=20
organizations throughout the world, have always been of great source of=20
moral inspiration and help in fighting previous attempts to muzzle the=20
voice of a free press. We urge you to extend your co-operation to us once=20
again. It would be appreciated if you would address your concerns on this=20
particular matter in separate communications to General Musharraf, the=20
Chief Executive Government of Pakistan, Mr. Irshad Hassan Khan, Chief=20
Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and Mr. Javed Jabbar, Minister for=
=20
Information and Broadcasting Government of Pakistan, urging the=20
administration to desist from repressive tactics in their efforts to curb=20
the freedom of the press in Pakistan.

For ease of communication I am including the relevant fax numbers :

General Musharraf, Chief Executive,
Government of Pakistan
+9252 920 4632

Mr Irshad Hassan Khan
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan
+9252 920 3452

Mr. Javed Jabbar,
Min. for Information & Broadcasting Gov. of Pakistan
+9252 920 2961

Thanking you for your help in this matter.
Sincerely,
HAMEED HAROON CEO & Pubisher

______

#6.

Frontline
Volume 17 - Issue 20, Sep. 30 - Oct. 13, 2000
Cover story

HORSEPLAY IN HARAPPA
The Indus Valley Decipherment Hoax

MICHAEL WITZEL, a Harvard University Indologist, and STEVE FARMER, a=20
comparative historian, report on media hype, faked data, and Hindutva=20
propaganda in recent claims that the Indus Valley script has been decoded.

LAST summer the Indian press carried sensational stories announcing the=20
final decipherment of the Harappan or Indus Valley script. A United News of=
=20
India dispatch on July 11, 1999, picked up throughout South Asia, reported=
=20
on new research by "noted histo rian, N.S. Rajaram, who along with=20
palaeographist Dr. Natwar Jha, has read and deciphered the messages on more=
=20
than 2,000 Harappan seals." Discussion of the messages was promised in=20
Rajaram and Jha's upcoming book, The Deciphered Indus Script. For nearly a=
=20
year, the Internet was abuzz with reports that Rajaram and Jha had decoded=
=20
the full corpus of Indus Valley texts. This was not the first claim that=20
the writing of the Indus Valley Civilisation (fl. c. 2600-1900 BCE) had=20
been cracked. In a 1996 book, American archaeologist Gregory Possehl=20
reviewed thirty-five attempted decipherments, perhaps one-third the actual=
=20
numb er. But the claims of Rajaram and Jha went far beyond those of any=20
recent historians. Not only had the principles of decipherment been=20
discovered, but the entire corpus of texts could now be read. Even more=20
remarkable were the historical conclusions that Rajaram and his=20
collaborator said were backed by the decoded messages. []Harappa, area of=20
the 'parallel walls.' Courtesy of the Archaeological Survey of India,=20
Punjab Photographic Volume 463/86. The UNI story was triggered by=20
announcements that Rajaram and Jha had not only deciphered the Indus Valley=
=20
seals but had read "pre-Harappan" texts dating to the mid-fourth millennium=
=20
BCE. If confirmed, this meant that they had decoded mankind's earliest=20
literary message. The "texts" were a handful of symbols scratched on a=20
pottery tablet recently discovered by Harvard University archaeologist=20
Richard Meadow. The oldest of these, Rajaram told the UNI, was a text that=
=20
could be translated "Ila surrounds th e blessed land" - an oblique but=20
unmistakable reference to the Rigveda's Saraswati river. The suggestion was=
=20
that man's earliest message was linked to India's oldest religious text.1=20
The claim was hardly trivial, since this was over 2,000 year s before=20
Indologists date the Rigveda - and more than 1,000 years before Harappan=20
culture itself reached maturity. Rajaram's World After months of media=20
hype, Rajaram and Jha's The Deciphered Indus Script2 made it to print in=20
New Delhi early this year. By midsummer the book had reached the West and=20
was being heatedly discussed via the Internet in Europe, India, and the=20
United States. The book gave credit for the decipherment method to Jha, a=20
provincial religious scholar, previously unknown, from Farakka, in West=20
Bengal. The book's publicity hails him as "one of the world's foremost=20
Vedic scholars and palaeographer s." Jha had reportedly worked in isolation=
=20
for twenty years, publishing a curious 60-page English pamphlet on his work=
=20
in 1996. Jha's study caught the eye of Rajaram, who was already notorious=20
in Indological circles. Rajaram took credit for writing most of the book,=20
which heavily politicised Jha's largely apolitical message. Rajaram's=20
online biography claims that their joint effort is "the most important=20
breakthrough of our time in the history of Indian history and culture."=20
Rajaram's 'computer enhancement' of Mackay 453, transforming it into a=20
'horse seal' (From the book The Deciphered Indus Script, p. 177) [] (Left)=
=20
Figure 7.1a: The 'Horse Seal' (Mackay 453) (Right) Figure 7.1b: The 'Horse=
=20
Seal' (Artist's reproduction) Boasts like this do not surprise=20
battle-scarred Indologists familiar with Rajaram's work. A U.S. engineering=
=20
professor in the 1980s, Rajaram re-invented himself in the 1990s as a fiery=
=20
Hindutva propagandist and "revisionist" historian. By the mid-1990s, he=20
could claim a following in India and in =82migr=82 circles in the U.S. In=20
manufacturing his public image, Rajaram traded heavily on claims, not=20
justified by his modest research career, that before turning to history "he=
=20
was one of America's best-known wor kers in artificial intelligence and=20
robotics." Hyperbole abounds in his online biography, posted at the=20
ironically named "Sword of Truth" website. The Hindutva propaganda site,=20
located in the United States, pictures Rajaram as a "world-renowned" expert=
=20
o n "Vedic mathematics" and an "authority on the history of Christianity."=
=20
The last claim is supported by violently anti-Christian works carrying=20
titles like Christianity's Collapsing Empire and Its Designs in India.=20
Rajaram's papers include his "Se arch for the historical Krishna" (found in=
=20
the Indus Valley c. 3100 BCE); attack a long list of Hindutva "enemies"=20
including Christian missionaries, Marxist academics, leftist politicians,=20
Indian Muslims, and Western Indologists; and glorify the mob dest ruction=20
of the Babri Mosque in 1992 as a symbol of India's emergence from "the grip=
=20
of alien imperialistic forces and their surrogates." All Indian history,=20
Rajaram writes, can be pictured as a struggle between nationalistic and=20
imperialistic forces. In Indology, the imperialistic enemy is the=20
"colonial-missionary creation known as the Aryan invasion model," which=20
Rajaram ascribes to Indologists long after crude invasion theories have=20
been replaced by more sophisticated acculturation models by serious=20
researchers. Rajaram's cartoon image of Indology is to be replaced by "a=20
path of study that combines ancient learning and modern science." What=20
Rajaram means by "science" is suggested in one of his papers describing the=
=20
knowledge of the Rigveda poets. The Rigveda rishis, we find, packed their=20
hymns with occult allusions to high-energy physics, anti-matter, the=20
inflational theory of the universe, calculations of the speed of light, and=
=20
gamma-ray bursts striking the earth three times a day. The l atter is shown=
=20
in three Rigveda verses (3.56.6, 7.11.3, 9.86.18) addressed to the god=20
Agni. The second Rajaram translates: "O Agni! We know you have wealth to=20
give three times a day to mortals." One of Rajaram's early Hindutva pieces=
=20
was written in 1995 with David Frawley, a Western "New Age" writer who=20
likes to find allusions to American Indians in the Rigveda. Frawley is=20
transformed via the "Sword of Truth" into a "famous American Vedic scholar=
=20
and historian." The book by Rajaram and Frawley proposes the curious thesis=
=20
that the Rigveda was the product of a complex urban and maritime=20
civilisation, not the primitive horse-and-chariot culture seen in the text.=
=20
The goal is to link the Rigv eda to the earlier Indus Valley Civilisation,=
=20
undercutting any possibility of later "Aryan" migrations or relocations of=
=20
the Rigveda to "foreign" soil. Ancient India, working through a massive=20
(but lost) Harappan literature, was a prime source of civilis ation to the=
=20
West. The Deciphered Indus Script makes similar claims with different=20
weapons. The Indus-Saraswati Valley again becomes the home of the Rigveda=20
and a font of higher civilisation: Babylonian and Greek mathematics, all=20
alphabetical scripts, and even Roman numerals flow out to the world from=20
the Indus Valley's infinitely fertile cultural womb. Press releases praise=
=20
the work for not only "solving the most significant technical problem in=20
historical research of our time" - deciphering the Indus script - but for=20
demonstrating as well that "if any 'cradle of civilisation' existed, it was=
=20
located not in Mesopotamia but in the Saraswati Valley." The decoded=20
messages of Harappa thus confirm the Hindutva propagandist's wildest=20
nationalistic dreams. Rajaram's 'Piltdown Horse' Not unexpectedly,=20
Indologists followed the pre-press publicity for Rajaram's book with a mix=
=20
of curiosity and scepticism. Just as the book hit the West, a lively=20
Internet debate was under way over whether any substantial texts existed in=
=20
Harappa - let alone the massive lost literature claimed by Rajaram. Indus=20
Valley texts are cryptic to extremes, and the script shows few signs of=20
evolutionary change. Most inscriptions are no more than four or five=20
characters long; many contain only two or three characters. Moreover,=20
character shapes in mature Harappan appear to be strangely "frozen," unlike=
=20
anything seen in ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt or China. This suggests that=20
expected "scribal pressures" for simplifying the script, arising out of the=
=20
repeated copying of long texts, was lacking. And if this is true, the Indus=
=20
script may have never evolved beyond a simple proto-writing system. []=20
Mackay 453 before its 'computer enhancement' by Rajaram. When you look at=20
the original picture, it is clear that the seal impression is cracked. Once=
=20
Rajaram's book could actually be read, the initial scepticism of=20
Indologists turned to howls of disbelief - followed by charges of fraud. It=
=20
was quickly shown that the methods of Jha and Rajaram were so flexible that=
=20
virtually any desired message co uld be read into the texts. One Indologist=
=20
claimed that using methods like these he could show that the inscriptions=20
were written in Old Norse or Old English. Others pointed to the fact that=20
the decoded messages repeatedly turned up "missing links" betwe en Harappan=
=20
and Vedic cultures - supporting Rajaram's Hindutva revisions of history.=20
The language of Harappa was declared to be "late Vedic" Sanskrit, some=20
2,000 years before the language itself existed. Through the decoded=20
messages, the horseless Indus Valley Civilisation - distinguishing it=20
sharply from the culture of the Rigveda - was awash with horses, horse=20
keepers, and even horse rustlers. To support his claims, Rajaram pointed to=
=20
a blurry image of a "horse seal" - the first pictorial evidence eve r=20
claimed of Harappan horses. Chaos followed. Within weeks, the two of us=20
demonstrated that Rajaram's "horse seal" was a fraud, created from a=20
computer distortion of a broken "unicorn bull" seal. This led Indologist=20
wags to dub it the Indus Valley "Piltdown horse" - a comic allusion to the=
=20
"Piltdown man" hoax of the early twentieth century. The comparison was, in=
=20
fact, apt, since the "Piltdown man" was created to fill the missing link=20
between ape and man - just as Rajaram's "horse seal" was intended to fill a=
=20
gap between Harappa and Vedic cultures. []M-1034a Once the hoax was=20
uncovered, $1000 was offered to anyone who could find one Harappan=20
researcher who endorsed Rajaram's "horse seal." The offer found no takers.=
=20
The "Piltdown horse" story has its comic side, but it touches on a central=
=20
problem in Indian history. Horses were critical to Vedic civilisation, as=20
we see in Vedic texts describing horse sacrifices, horse raids, and warfare=
=20
using horse-drawn chariots. I f Rigvedic culture (normally dated to the=20
last half of the second millennium BCE) is identified with Harappa, it is=20
critical to find evidence of extensive use of domesticated horses in India=
=20
in the third millennium BCE. In the case of Hindutva "revisionists" like=20
Rajaram, who push the Rigveda to the fourth or even fifth millennium, the=20
problem is worse. They must find domesticated horses and chariots in South=
=20
Asia thousands of years before either existed anywhere on the planet.=20
Evidence suggests that the horse (Equus caballus) was absent from India=20
before around 2000 BCE, or even as late as 1700 BCE, when archaeology first=
=20
attests its presence in the Indus plains below the Bolan pass. The horse, a=
=20
steppe animal from the semi-temperate zone, was not referred to in the=20
Middle East until the end of the third millennium, when it first shows up=20
in Sumerian as anshe.kur (mountain ass) or anshe.zi.zi (speedy ass). Before=
=20
horses, the only equids in the Near East w ere the donkey and the half-ass=
=20
(hemione, onager). The nearly untrainable hemiones look a bit like horses=20
and can interbreed with them, as can donkeys. In India, the hemione or khor=
=20
(Equus hemionus khur) was the only equid known before the horse; a few=20
specimens still survive in the Rann of Kutch. [...] .

The full text of the above story from Frontline is available at:
http://www.the-hindu.com/fline/fl1720/17200040.htm

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South Asia Citizens Web Dispatch (SACW) is an informal, independent &=20
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