Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose
Biswanath Bhattacharya
January 23, 2024, 07:48:12
“Give me blood, I will give you freedom. “
This was the clarion call, no hanky panky, direct instruction in a stern voice. To have freedom, you are to surrender yourself.
Is there any Bengali or Punjabi or, for that matter, anyone in India who does not get extra adrenalin when he utters the name Netaji? None in India till India. The vicious circle of Congress comprising Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabhbhai Patel or the communists could not erase Netaji from the psyche of the Indian Subcontinent, including Pakistan or Bangladesh.
An element of intrigue trails Subhas Chandra Bose’s persona, his life, disappearance and death. He was a dynamic personality of India’s freedom movement who inspired hundreds of Indians to join the struggle.
Books on Bose offer an insight into his beliefs and motivation. Not many definitive biographies of Bose have been written by Indian historians, and the most authentic narratives are from his family members and those who have had personal experiences of him being associated with his Azad Hind Fauj.
Scholar and politician Krishna Bose, the wife of Bose’s nephew, Sisir Bose, travelled the world to piece his life from childhood to death. A compilation of her findings, written in Bengali over six decades, has been edited and translated by her son, Sumantra Bose. Published last August, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s Life, Politics and Struggle profiles Bose and includes 95 images and letters from family albums and the Netaji Research Bureau archives. Over the years, Krishna Bose researched and visited the Manipur battlefields where the Indian National Army (INA) waged its valiant war; the Andamans where Bose raised the national tricolour; Singapore, where the INA took shape; Vienna and Prague, his favourite European cities; and Taipei, where his life was said to have been tragically cut short. She met Bose’s contemporaries: the women who fought in the Rani of Jhansi Regiment; Basanti Debi, the “formidable widow” of Netaji’s political guru Chittaranjan Das; spouse Emilie Schenkel; and leading soldiers of the Azad Hind movement. They all shared vital memories, giving details about Netaji’s life.
In His Majesty’s Opponent: Subhas Chandra Bose and India’s Struggle Against Empire, Sugata Bose, son of Krishna and Sisir Bose, analyses Bose’s life and legacy, tracing the intellectual impact of his years in Calcutta and Cambridge, the ideas and relationships that influenced him during his time in exile and his ascent to the peak of nationalist politics. He documents Bose’s thoughts during his imprisonment and travels and his struggle to unite India's religious, linguistic and economic diversities into a single independent nation.
Sisir Bose, who is Bose’s elder brother Sarat Kumar Bose’s son, also wrote a concise biography, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, that was published during the centenary celebrations of the Indian National Congress. Simple and lucidly written, it focuses on the charismatic leader’s life in the background of the freedom struggle.
Similarly, Subhas Chandra Bose: The Springing Tiger by Hugh Toye is a comprehensive and valuable history of the leader. It talks about how the INA was established with captured British Indian soldiers during WWII, and it is a significant study of Anglo-Indian relations over a vital period and of the new brand of leaders in Asia. The story of Bose’s life has an enduring interest. Toye makes his protagonist come alive in all his idealism, fiery nationalism and political astuteness, giving a peek into its implications and providing context.
A brilliant biography of Bose and his elder brother Sarat Chandra Bose, Brothers Against the Raj is by American historian Leonard A. Gordon of Harvard University. Packed with information with over 150 interviews with the Bose brothers’ political contemporaries and family members and hundreds of unpublished letters, it brings to life two important leaders in Indian history, recounting their story in the context of the turbulent times of international relations and the complex politics of India and Bengal during their time.
There are several books based on what is widely known about Bose — when he resigned from the Indian Civil Service to join the freedom movement, threw a challenge to the Congress leadership, and took up an extremist stance against the British, evaded the intelligence network to travel to Europe and Southeast Asia, formed two governments and raised two armies, all in two decades. But Chandrachur Ghose throws new light on Bose’s political activities surrounding revolutionary groups in Bengal, Punjab, Maharashtra, and the United Provinces.
In a critical biography, Bose: The Untold History Of An Inconvenient Nationalist (2 , Ghose talks about Bose’s efforts to bridge the increasing communal divide and his influence among the splintered political landscape, his outlook towards women, his plunge into spirituality and penchant for covert operations. He discusses one of the most sensitive issues — a fiercely patriotic Bose aligning with the Axis camp.
The War Diary of Asha-san by Lt. Bharati Asha Sahay Choudhry and Patriot: The Unique Indian Leader by Lt. Manwati Arya, I.N.A, show another side of Bose as a leader who practised impartiality and secularism and why people cutting across caste, creed and religion were willing to join his fight. Even Gandhi, who once considered Bose “rebellious”, later said, as Sugata Bose writes in His Majesty’s Opponent, “Netaji’s name is one to conjure with. His patriotism is second to none.”
On February 12, 1946, Gandhi wrote in Harijan: “The lesson that Netaji and his army brings to us is one of self-sacrifice, unity — irrespective of class and community — and discipline.” Bose’s followers still wonder how he would have shaped India’s future through his political, social, and moral commitments.
Laid to Rest: The Controversy over Subhas Chandra Bose’s Death by Ashis Sen, he has told that the air crash of Taihoku on August 18, 1945, is the Rashomon (It is a Japanese word meaning dispute, Rashomon" was the big south gate of ancient Kyoto city in Heian period when Kyoto was the capital of Japan -"mon" means "gate". Many robbers lived in the gate after it became a ruin) moment in Asian and Indian political history. What exactly happened when the aircraft carrying Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, the tragic hero of India’s freedom struggle, was never conclusively understood as everyone who survived that incident and the official power centres of the world had a different opinion about it. Ashish Ray has put an end to speculations around the air crash that probably was the first violent incident that left a permanent mark on the postcolonial history of India.
Apart from the meticulous historical and archival research, Ray’s submission is backed by Anita, Netaji's daughter. In a stunning declaration that should finally and firmly lay Netaji to rest, she discloses in the elegant foreword to the book that there were uncertainties to begin with about what exactly happened to Netaji but highlighted that out of the three commissions of inquiry — Shah Nawaz Khan Commission, Khosla Commission and the Mukherjee Commission — two concluded that Netaji had died. However, a personal moment of truth came in 1979 for Anita Pfaff. In a headline-worthy statement, the daughter writes in Sen’s book that she had been aware of the fact of Netaji’s demise in the air crash after she witnessed an interview with one of the survivors in 1979.
In a certain tragic way, Netaji died in the way that he lived — dramatically. Netaji’s death in the Taihoku crash spared him all the harassment that awaited him in the hands of the Anglo-American victors. But it cannot be a cause for satisfaction as India failed to confront the truth for more than seven decades. But for further public acceptance, Netaji’s daughter has urged that his DNA should be extracted from the remains kept at the Shinto shrine near Tokyo.
Among those who sacrificed their all in this struggle, the name of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose takes a high place. He will always retain a place of affection and honour in every Indian heart. Netaji’s entry into political life gave a new turn to India’s struggle. A new wave of enthusiasm swept the country. His restless and dynamic spirit led him to a path somewhat different from ours. Gandhiji used to say that the only wrong path is the path of cowardice. The path of courage can never be wrong. Netaji’s was a path of courage, bringing independence nearer. Bankim Chandra gave us Bande Mataram, which became the marching song of the freedom struggle. We adopted Rabindranath Tagore’s Jana Gana Mana as the national anthem on becoming free. But today, our biggest national slogan is Jai Hind. This slogan can be heard from NEFA, Nagaland and Kashmir in the north right down to the deep south. This slogan was given to us by Netaji. It reminds us of him and the ideals he placed before us. Equally important is the need in every Indian heart of an intense love of the country. This was the love that inspired Netaji.
In this context, I remember Ajit Doval saying India would never have been partitioned had Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose been alive; Netaji showed audacity at various stages of his life and dared to challenge Gandhi; Gandhi was at the prime of his political career. Then he resigned, and when he came out of Congress, he started his struggle afresh. I am not saying good or bad, but there are very few parallels between Indian history and the world history of people who dared to sail against the current, which was not an easy current.
There are number of books on Netaji but which appealed to me the most “ Ami Netaji Ke Dekhechi ( I have seen Netaji ) by Narayan Sanyal. To raise funds for the Azad Hind Government, Netaji auctioned the garland offered to him. Several millionaires offered lakhs of money. But one young Sikh businessman surpassed them when he staked everything for the garland. He gave his house, his jewellery, his caravan of trucks, his every penny lying in his Bank; by providing everything he had and by rendering him penniless, he bought the garland and begged Netaji to include him as part of the Indian National Army. Netaji gladly did so. I read it while I was at my school, I could not control my tears, I wept profusely. My grandmother, who came to my rescue, consoled me.
Millionaires were not far behind, as demonstrated by Habib, who donated his crores of legacy and earned the highest civilian award - Sevak-e-Hind, from Netaji. An older woman who lived on the streets begging offered the modest amount that she had made, her everything, to Netaji for the freedom of a country she would never visit. This latter incident brought tears to the eyes of Netaji, who was in a dilemma about whether to accept that gift, knowing very well that she was giving away her last means of survival. Ultimately, he honoured the older woman and got her sincere gift. Thus, millions of people in East and South East Asia contributed to India's fight for freedom. And yet, their resources were looted by the collaborators of British rule in connivance with an elite ruler of India who despised Netaji.
I reproduce the will of Vithalbhai Patel, elder brother of Vallabh Bhai Patel. It may be evident how Vallabhbhai Patel's evil mind played a vicious role only to deprive Netaji.
Adopted from the anecdote of N.C Mitra - Subhas Chandra Bose - The Crisis. On 2nd October 1933, Vithalbhai Patel, elder brother of Ballabhbhai Patel, made his Will in Switzerland. He had appointed Mr. Govardhanbhai Patel and Dr. Purshottamdas Patel to be the executors. After disposal of the four minor gifts, his entire assets were to be handed over to Mr. Subhas Chandra Bose, to be spent by him or his nominee for the political upliftment of India, preferably for the cause of publicity on behalf of India in other countries. In his Will, he also desired that in case he died in Europe, Subhas Chandra Bose should take charge of his body and make necessary arrangements for sending it to Bombay for cremation on the Choupatty sands alongside the place where Lokmanya Tilak's body was cremated. Vithalbhai Patel died in October 1933, and Subhas Chandra Bose fulfilled his desire regarding his cremation.
The Will of Vithalbhai Patel probate was obtained from the High Court of Bombay in September 1934. The payment to Subhas Chandra Bose was never made. The executors contented that a scheme had to be made and trustees should be appointed with the approval of the executors before the fund could be paid to Subhas Chandra Bose. They suggested names that would seem outrageous - like M.A. Jinnah, for being the trustee. The contention was unjustified and uncalled for, and the implied intention was malafide. The executors knew that Subhas would never agree to the proposal for the sheer indignity of it. Subhas Chandra Bose rightly said that a scheme would be formed once the funds reach him, and in view of the clear directions in the Will, the question of appointment of trustees did not arise. He however said that he would, when necessary, appoint a consultative committee to assist Subhas in carrying out the directions of Vithalbhai Patel. The executors were working with the clear and explicit approval of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. The executors, when asked directly whether their contention stemmed from their lack of confidence in Subhas's integrity, now directly opposed the bequest, saying that it was invalid in law. The executors put the matter in court on 29th January, 1939, just before the Presidential Election and Tripuri Congress session, thus revealing their hidden agenda. Justice Wadia, a British stooge of Bombay High Court, held the legacy to be void and gave the amount to the heirs of Vithalbhai Patel, viz., the family of the Sardar Patel. The matter went up to the appellate authority, but the Chief Justice confirmed the judgement of the original court in September 1939. In October 1940, Vallabhbhai Patel, on behalf of the heirs of Vithalbhai Patel, sent a cheque of Rs 1 lakh representing the amount bequeathed, to Maulana Abul Kalam Azad for acceptance by the Working Committee and for appointing a committee consisting of himself, Jamnalal Bajaj, Bhulabhai Desai and the President of the Congress, to spend the amount as the committee would think fit. The letter written by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad in accepting the fund suggested that the contentions were explicitly to address the anxiety that the funds were applied for the purpose intended. The moot question here is, was this anxiety justified, or does it point to a hidden sinister agenda of the Congress leaders, specially Vallabhbhai Patel who has now become the apple of the eye of some to deprive Netaji Subhas.
Rejoinder: I had in my possessions that day also “Dreams of Youth” and “In Quest of the Now.”. But I can’t locate it. The only book of Netaji that I have is “The Mission of Life”, and it always remains by my bedside. This book originally belonged to the Sonamura Public Library, and the price was Rupees Seven only . I took the book from the library and never returned it. I paid the Library Rs. Seven. Now an idea is dwindling in my mind whether to return the book to the Sonamura Public Library or the Government of Tripura. I am undecided. Anybody in India or abroad can take the book from me on the condition that he or she would return it immediately after reading it. Mark Twain built his Library by simply stealing of books wherever he could lay his hand.
Netaji Bose had been a dreamer of dreams, but what made him immeasurably great was his dedication to realising his dreams. These are the dreams of a man of character forged in the furnace of endless suffering.
(Tripurainfo)