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PUNE, INDIA, January 6, 2004: Members of the Sambhaji Brigade ransacked the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute last Monday. The vandalism was provoked by a book written by James Laine on the Hindu King in India during Islamic domination named Shivaji. The article says, “It is not known which specific passages provoked the group.” However when the Sambhaji Brigade consisting of 250 members caused the destruction at BORI, they made it clear that it was because Shrikant Bahulkar, a Sanskrit scholar, had assisted Laine when he was conducting research for his book on Shivaji, which raises questions about his parentage. In December in an attempt to resolve the controversy, Laine apologized for his statements about Shivaji and the publisher, Oxford University Press, withdrew the book from the market. Apparently the apology by Laine and withdrawal of the book was not enough to appease the Sambhaji Brigade. The revenge initiated by the Brigade has done irreparable damage. Manuscripts dating back 2,000 years have been torn. A Syrian clay tablet dating back to 600 B.C. has been defaced. Over 20 years of work on the cultural index of the Mahabharata has been ransacked. Precious Sanskrit manuscripts have been trampled on. Ancient books and palm leaf inscriptions were destroyed. Leela Arjunwadkar, president of the Governing Council of the institute says, “I am unable to estimate the monetary loss, but India’s cultural heritage has received a huge setback. It will be difficult for the institute to get back on its feet.” Eight research scholars (mostly foreigners), who were staying at the guest house in the institute, have fled to safety. A monk from Vietnam who was doing research on Pali scripts comments, “We come here because we have heard about BORI. This is a great indological center, the library, the scholars, the environment is so peaceful. But, I don’t know if this place is safe anymore.”



Amidst all the mindless destruction a ray of hope filtered in at the Bhandarkar Institute when a team of college students and some neighbors and friends united together to clean up the rubble. Gauri Deshpande, a first-year student from Fergusson college says, “We discussed it in the class today and decided that instead of just talking about the incident we should go and see if we could be of any help. Now we will come here everyday after college.” Aarti Shaligram, a neighbor who lives opposite the BORI, says, “I had heard about the institute but never visited it before as I thought that it would not be open for common people like me. But when I read the newspapers today, I could not stop myself from coming here to help.” Prajakta Sarnaik, a student of Sanskrit from SP College adds, “We can replace the furniture, but who will give us the manuscripts that have been damaged or stolen? Now people will think twice before handing over their precious collections to institutions like BORI.”



Please check out the following additional URLs for more information on this incident: ananova.com or timesofindia or cities.expressindia.com

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