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Showing posts from February, 2026

Groblog: Analyzing the attack on Syed Irfan Habib by BJP supporters in Delhi University

I asked Grok on the nature of controversy around the work of Syed Irfan Habib in the wake of ABVP attack on him during a SAMTA festival organised by AISA in Delhi University and found the following:    Syed Irfan Habib (often referred to as S. Irfan Habib, born 1953) is an Indian historian specializing in the history of science , modern political history, and related areas. He formerly held the Abul Kalam Azad Chair at the National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA) and has written on topics like Maulana Azad's life, science in colonial India, and secularism. He is distinct from the more prominent medieval historian Irfan Habib (his senior colleague/relative at Aligarh Muslim University, known for Mughal history and Marxist approaches), though the two are sometimes confused in discussions. The controversies surrounding Syed Irfan Habib's work primarily stem from his public intellectual role, writings on secularism, liberalism within Muslim communiti...

Groblog: BJP is misguiding their voters on the Budget of the Department of Minority Affairs and Madarsa Education

We have witnessed arguments of appeasement which BJP has been chanting for many years as if muslimeen and muslimaat are part of demography of India. So, we asked Grok a question as to whether the budgetary allocation by the Finance Department of the Government of West Bengal was disproportionate. We found the following response. After sharing the responses , we will be presenting an analysis consider the national vision of Viksit Bharat:  The budgetary allocation for madrasas (and broader minority affairs) in West Bengal has been a point of political debate, particularly in recent budgets like the 2026-27 interim budget. In the 2026-27 budget , the Department of Minority Affairs and Madrasah Education was allocated ₹5,713.61 crore , as per the official budget speech from the West Bengal Finance Department. This department covers madrasa education, minority welfare schemes, scholarships, infrastructure in minority-concentrated areas, and related programs (not exclusively madrasas, t...