Ramachandra Guha pens 'the most ambitious book' on Gandhi
New Delhi, July 24 : Renowned historian and author of several bestselling books, including the highly acclaimed "India After Gandhi" and "India Before Gandhi", Ramachandra Guha has penned a new book on the father of the nation, which has just gone to the press and will be out in September.
Billed as the most definitive new biography of Gandhi, the upcoming book is titled "Gandhi: the years that changed the world (1914-1948)" and will be published by Penguin Random House India.
"This magnificent book," sources said, "will not only tell the story of Gandhi's life, from his departure from South Africa to his dramatic assassination in 1948, but also the history of our freedom movement and its many strands".
It is said to be a book with "a Tolstoyan sweep", revealing Gandhi to the readers just as he was understood by his contemporaries. The book will also include new readings of his arguments with B.R. Ambedkar, Mohammad Ali Jinnah and Subhas Chandra Bose, among others.
Drawing on never-before-seen sources and animated by its author's unparalleled sense of drama and politics, Guha's latest work will be marketed as the "most ambitious and integral book" on Bapu.
The book will be relevant, particularly in the context of religious tensions and communal disharmony engulfing the country in contemporary times. At the same time, the 60-year-old historian is known for his profound research and objective portrayal of his subjects, and readers can look forward to drawing lessons from Gandhi's life in current times.
It is a follow up to "Gandhi Before India" (2013). Further details on the book and a formal announcement is awaited from the publisher.
Guha's large body of work, covering a range of fields and yielding a number of rational insights has made him a significant figure in Indian historical studies. He is valued as one of the major historians of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.
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Unruly scenes witnessed in Punjab Assembly
Chandigarh (PTI): The Punjab Assembly on Friday witnessed high drama on Friday after Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira made an allegedly objectionable remark against Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann during an intense argument over the alleged use of mobile phone in the house by the legislator.
During the one-day special session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha here, Mann accused Khaira of using a mobile phone when Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan was reading out an official resolution on the revision of wages.
After rising from his seat, the chief minister pointed to the speaker, claiming that Khaira is busy on his mobile phone and urged him to ask the Congress MLA what Sandhwan had said about the resolution.
The speaker then asked Khaira to maintain order in the house and listen to the resolution carefully.
Mann then asked Khaira, "Why don't you go out and then use it (mobile phone)," which led to a strong verbal altercation during which the opposition MLA hurled an accusation against the chief minister. Meanwhile, the speaker appealed for order and insisted that the chair be addressed.
However, both Mann and Khaira continued arguing and could be seen pointing fingers at each other as the proceedings of the house were disrupted.
The AAP MLAs also rose from their seats with Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema condemning Khaira for his conduct and demanded action against him.
Cheema further alleged that Khaira "always tries to disturb the house" as he spoke about his conduct in the assembly.
The incident occurred as an official resolution on the revision of wages was presented at the special session by Labour Minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond who said it paid homage to labourers on the International Workers' Day.
"Workers are the axis of construction of the nation, the community, the state and society. Every construction project succeeds only through their blood and sweat," the resolution read.
As per the resolution, "The base rate of minimum wages for the working class in Punjab was last revised in the year 2012. Although the dearness allowance has continued to increase since 2012, there has been no increase in the base rate of minimum wages.
On this sacred occasion of May Day, in this special session of the legislative assembly, this house proposes to revise and increase the minimum wages of labourers and strongly recommends to the government to take a decision regarding the increase of minimum wages for workers, so that the contributions of the workers can be acknowledged." PRK
