The book titled India and Kuwait: Historical, Academic and Cultural Relations, originally written in Urdu and extracted from the doctoral thesis of late Dr Abdul Qadir Shams Qasmi (1972-2020) by Dr Mohammad Khalid Azmi opens up exquisitely detailed, thoroughly researched and insightful account of the cultural and historical relationship between India and the Kuwait. Vividly exploring the historical and cultural relations between the two countries, the book was released on the occasion of Kuwait national day at Hotel river view in New Delhi.
The first copy of the book was handed over by the book editor Mr Mohammad Khalid Azmi to Dr Akhtarul wasey, professor emeritus at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, who along with the other guests representing diverse strata of the society, formally released it.
After a brief introduction from the moderator Dr Shahabuddin a lively discussion ensued by the expert in middle east affairs Dr M A Mufazzal (former youth representative at United Nations). He was of the view that India’s relations with the peoples of the Gulf and particularly Kuwait go back several hundred years when Indian sailors, merchants, intellectuals and men of faith traversed the waters of the Indian Ocean, exchanging navigation skills, goods, ideas and belief systems. They thus enriched each other materially and spiritually and created a shared ethos that endures to this day. Summarising the main points of the book, he emphasised that it was a well written, lucid and balanced study of the historical ties between the two countries.
Following his keynote address Mr Asghar Ali Madni took the podium to highlight that the author being a journalist had successfully brought a sense of detachment in his study. It was, according to him, a valuable addition to the study of Indo-kuwait bilateral relations.
It was followed by a brief introduction by the noted scholar Dr Raziul Islam Nadvi to the themes and chapters of the book. The book has 5 chapters spread across dozens of interesting sub themes including the role of endowment, Kuwait’s humanitarian efforts, cultural and academic exchanges between the two countries.
Dr Raziul Islam Nadvi’s introduction was followed by a panel discussion on some of the themes covered by the book. The members of the panel Dr Suhail Anjum, Professor Iqtidar Hussain, Dr Ajmal Qasmi, Dr Khalid Mubashshir, Siraj Naqvi, and Mr Shams Tabrez Qasmi.
The panel discussion was followed by the presidential remarks delivered by Professor Akhtarul wasey. He has greatly appreciated the rigorous analysis, and the application of methodology and data sources appropriate to the research problem at hand. The book, she said, has been successful in representing the results in a manner that was simple and comprehensible and not burdened by jargon.
The event comes to an end with the vote of thanks proposed by Dr Mohammad Khalid Azmi