CHANDIGARH: British-era landmarks in Punjab may have their English names changed to Indian in near future. The Congress government in the state is drafting a legislative bill which could pave the way for renaming colonial landmarks.Though state finance minister Manpreet Badal has clarified that the move should not be seen as an attempt to distort history, historians warn that the task should be left to experts and any deviation from a holistic view of Punjab’s cultural heritage could be detrimental to taking a fair view of the past.Badal, who headed the Congress panel to draft its manifesto, told TOI that the new government, apart removing the state’s colonial past, wanted to celebrate the era of the Sikh Empire under Maharaja Ranjit Singh . “Punjab’s ‘Law of Historical Memory’ is aimed at identifying specific periods of prosperity and decline. It is to be celebrated as a period of greatness and strength,” he said.The proposed law, planned to be tabled in the monsoon session of Punjab assembly, is based on a legislation of the same name, which was enacted in Spain in 2007 against the 1939-75 dictatorship of General Franco.Asked if the law could end up as an attempt at rewriting history, Badal said it should rather be looked at as an effort to encourage the knowledge of Punjab’s past. “The law seeks to reignite the Punjabi sense of pride by collectively identifying our epochs of greatness and misfortune, both. We must unequivocally aspire to the former, while denouncing the latter,” he said.However, historians are not excited about the move. Guru Nanak Dev University department of history faculty, Prof Sukhwant Singh, said the British rule, too, was a part of Punjab’s past. “Ranjit Singh’s treaty with the British was a smart move by him to survive them. There’s no denying that the British were better than local rulers at that time in some ways. This fact cannot be brushed under the carpet,” he said.Apart from removing colonial reminders, the law will lay down procedures for locating, preserving and displaying relics of the Khalsa Empire. “The rule of British is to be formally condemned as the single most unfortunate, cruel, and humiliating phase of Punjab’s history. Any surviving colonial remnants that serve as glorification of subjugator will either be destroyed, or displayed in a manner that clearly functions as a reminder of inflicted injustice,” Badal said.However, Prof Sukhwant said the original names of British-era landmark would, in all possibility, continue to be popular. “The names of Company Bagh and Hall Gate in Amritsar have been changed after Independence to Ram Bagh and Gandhi Gate. But, the original names are still popular. People often don’t receive letters addressed at Gandhi Gate. Rechristening the famous Lawrence Road, too, will have little significance,” he said.A former professor of history at Chandigarh-based Panjab University , who did not wish to be named, said such attempts at fiddling with the past could end up in “messing up the balanced view of Punjab’s history”. “As it is, there is no feeling among students or teaching community that references to colonial past of the state were offensive in any way and need to be rewritten,” he said.