"Paradox of nationhood: Holiday politics in contemporary Manipur" a talk by Dr. Malem Ningthouja at Teen Murti House, Teen Murti Marg > 3pm on 28th May 2013

Time : 3:00 pm

Entry : Free (Seating on First-Come First-Served basis)

Place : Seminar Room, Nehru Memorial Museum & Library (NMML), Teen Murti House, Teen Murti Marg, New Delhi
Venue Info :  Events | About | Map | Nearest Metro Station - 'Race Course(Yellow Line)'

Event Description : The Nehru Memorial Museum and Library cordially invites you to the Weekly Seminar on ‘Paradox of nationhood: Holiday politics in contemporary Manipur’ by Dr. Malem Ningthouja, Independent Scholar, New Delhi.

Abstract : Manipur in Northeast India is a hotbed of conflicts and assertions centred on different nationalisms. There are at least four dominant nationalisms that are opposed to one another; Indian nationalism, Manipur nationalism, Nagalim, and Zale’n-gam. The conflicts and assertions are evident in counteracting national propagandas and policies to justify nationhood claims and also to organise people. Another facet of propaganda and policies is the assertions or negations of institutionalised ‘holiday’. The paper argues that a holiday is a formalised ritual constructed in recognition of the presumed historical significance of an event or practice or person and manifests in itself an institutionalised subjection of the people through an imposition of a certain degree of cultural uniformity. A holiday, therefore, falls into the category of ‘invention of tradition’ and can be seen as a mechanistic approach aimed at subjecting a population to meanings associated with constructed practices or symbols. It is an attempt to integrate the cultural sentiment of a projected nation under a common practice i.e., to continuously defend an imagined collective identity. The politics centred on ‘holiday’ provides enough food for thought to argue that nationhood claims are largely paradoxical. The paper further discusses the holiday lists adopted by the State and argues that there has been a mixed commitment of the government towards upholding (1) Indian nationalism, (2) Manipur patriotism and (3) democracy in framing holidays. The mixed commitment reflects a continuous tussle between what the communities uphold as ‘community rights’ and the government’s response to such rights, e.g. the demand for recognition or deletion of 18 June as state holiday. The holiday policy, as a result, instead of achieving the objectives of ‘integrity’, has created tension between the people and the State on the one hand and on the other hand among the people themselves. The paper also discusses ‘different’ negation or assertion of holidays by insurgents and holidays independently observed by various civil society organisations.

Speaker : Dr. Malem Ningthouja pursued B.A. (H) History, from Hindu College, Delhi and completed M.A., M. Phil and Ph. D in History from the University of Delhi. He is founder cum chairperson of Campaign for Peace & Democracy (Manipur), and an alternate member of the International Coordination Committee of the International League of People’s Struggle. He is the author of Freedom From India: A History of Manipur Nationalism, Spectrum, Guwahati, 2011 and has edited compiled documents on AFSPA entitled The Armed Forces Special Powers Act 1958: Manipur Experience, CPDM, New Delhi, 2010. He contributes articles and papers to local, national and international journals and seminars. His forthcoming book Fight for a Nation: A History of Diametrical Nationalisms in Manipur, Setu Prakashini, Kolkata, is in the press.

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