The usual band of the ignorant and the bigoted have got together to protest Romila Thapar’s appointment to the Kluge Chair (see entry under 24 April). The Babu notes that the argument put forward by one C V Prakash encapsulates the classic rightwing Hindutva attitude to the study of history perfectly: “India’s heritage and culture are beyond anyone’s research to conclude. Even otherwise, I do not have any doubt in mind that such a culture built by so many sages, rishis and God by Himself cannot be washed away. It will remain in our heart/body/soul and mind. Papers doesn’t matter.” All the Babu can do is shrug his shoulders, and note that the good people at the Library of Congress who selected Thapar for the Kluge Chair remain unmoved by this predictable barrage of protest.