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Our aim is to create an online archive of all information related to Subhas Chandra Bose.
If you have any unpublished document, photograph or audio-visual material, or even out of print books/magazines,we request you to share it with us, so that we can share it with everyone through this site.
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| MN believes that all of Netaji's works are national property, and information on him should be easily available at the lowest cost, if not for free. You are free to use any material from this site with proper acknowledgement. At the same time, MN respects the copyright of authors of original works and would not intentionally violate their copyright or any part of the Indian Copyright Act. If you think you have noticed any infringement, please do let us know. |
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Emotions run high over demolition of heritage
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Shillong (PTI): The century-old Opera Theatre here, which once reverberated to the stirring speech of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and sounds of Alauddin Khan's magical sitar, is now counting its last days. Though a new building will take its place, emotions are running high over the proposed demolition of the British-built building at Police Bazar, located in the heart of the city. Carved out in wood and occupying an area of 7025 sq feet allotted by the then deputy commissioner of the erstwhile Khasi-Jaintia state, the building was conceived in 1900 by a group of drama enthusiasts who sought a place for recreation and leisure. Subsequently, it became the centre of art in this hill city witnessing a host of activities over the years ranging from national table tennis competition to musical shows, political events and dramas. "The hall was the nucleus of all cultural activities.
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Seminar on ancient India, Bengal held in Rajshahi
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'The history of thousand years of ancient India, Maghada and Bengal holds the richest history in every aspect not comparable with history of any other country. Mahbubul Alam, Editor of the Daily Independent, said this at a seminar on 'Presentation of 7000 years of History of India-/Bengal' in Rajshahi on Friday last. Daily Independent, Rajshahi Bureau, organised the said seminar. He further said "This is the historic day not only for Rajshahi University but also for the Bengal as well as for the world, because this type of informative, historic and analytical seminar on this topic had never been held at any place". In the seminar RU Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Abdus Sobhan was present as the chief guest while Prof. Muhammad Nurullah, Pro Vice Chancellor of RU, was present as special guest with Director of IBS Prof. Mahbubar Rahman presiding over the seminar. The key note paper of the seminar was presented by noted medics turn historian, researcher Dr. Mohammed A Mannan M.D on the topic "History of ancient India, Maghada and Bengal in 100 minutes with special dedication to Netaji Shubhash Chandra Basu, a great Indian Hero, and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the greatest Bangalee of all times". In the key note paper, he stated that Netaji Shubash Chandra Basu and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman kept great role to devise the new era of India and Bengal history in their respective time. He added that Historical information about the Bengal region is available only from the Gupta period (320-520 AD). The Guptas ruled from Magadh (modern Bihar) considered to be the golden age of India. After the decline of the Guptas, the kingdom of Gour in Bengal came into prominence. The first known ruler of independent Bengal was Shashanka (ruled 606 AD). Dr. Mohammed A. Mannan MD, who is Washington based internationally reputed Physician said, the greatest hero of all the ages Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was an emblem of courage and inspiration to the people of the country. He said that they had many great leaders before but Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was incomparable and unequivocal leader. He said, his speech delivered on 7th March is one of the greatest speeches in 2500 years. Regarding the War of Liberation under the leadership of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, doctor Mohammed A. Mannan said, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman showed us a dream of liberation. His contribution for the nation was incalculable and unimaginable. Referring to all out co-operation during war of independence given by India, Dr.Mohammed A. Mannan MD said, "We can not forget the role of West Bengal, India and Indira Gandhi during our striving hard for freedom", Prof. Abdus Sobhan, the Vice Chancellor of RU said, "The next generation can know the true history of Bangla and contribution of the great leader Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Netaji Shubhash Chandra Basu from the elaboration of Dr. Mannan." In the period wise slide show, Dr. Mannan also presented the photos of ancient leaders and rare documents of India, Maghada and Bengal and narrated historical aspects of these photos Nearly 200 university teachers, researchers, historians and media persons participated the seminar.
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Patna: Ram Ekbal Warsi lives in a utopian world where most politicians would fear to tread. “I am still on the mission to liberate India from the clutches of corruption and poverty,” said the former soldier of Netaji’s Indian National Army, not oblivious of the fact that most politicians now contest elections to “make money”. The octogenarian and former Piro MLA in Rohtas does not accept the pensions that he is entitled to as a freedom fighter or as a legislator. “Accepting pension for trying to liberate one’s home is a sin. And taking pension for serving people, as their elected representative, is a bigger sin,” Warsi said. Driven out of home for his “impractical” way of living, he carries on his “mission to liberate India” from the clutches of corruption and poverty from his ramshackle home. “Netaji said that real freedom lies in people’s liberation from poverty.” Reverentially referred to as the “Gandhi of Piro”, Warsi left his job as a manual labourer in Rohtas Group of Industries in 1938 and jumped into the freedom movement. He joined the INA in 1943 when Netaji visited Dehri, Warsi’s hometown. It is not that Warsi does not have food to eat. Still revered, he finds neighbours more than willing to provide him a square meal. But, he accepts the invitation on a rigid precondition that he will eat at the home of the one who will allow the old man to wash the utensils of the whole family. “It is a crime to accept any free service or food,” Warsi reasoned. In his late eighties, the man is far from the retirement age. He brings out what he describes as a newspaper which he writes. Activists circulate it by photocopying its pages. In its latest issue, the newspaper has made just one request to the politicians, Prime Minister and President — to cut down on their salaries and not accept pension. In 1969, Warsi contested from Piro on a Socialist Party ticket and won. His co-villager, Kamlesh Kumar, also a scribe with a vernacular daily, recalled that Warsi had campaigned on a bicycle requesting people to cast a vote and give him a rupee each to which the voters obliged. “But I found the Assembly full of representatives who were corrupt,” Warsi says. He never contested polls after 1969. It is not that the leaders had not approached him for contesting polls. Aware that Warsi — given his acceptance in the region might be a sure winner — Lalu Prasad sent his former cabinet colleague Kanti Singh to convince Warsi. “Chunav ladne mein paisa kharch hota hai. Paisa par chunao main nahi lad sakta (Contesting polls incurs expense. I do not want to contest the poll subjected to money),” Warsi tersely replied then. Sources close to Nitish Kumar revealed that the chief minister too wished Warsi to contest the polls from his party. But he knew that the veteran freedom fighter would refuse his overture. At present, Warsi lives in a ramshackle structure in Mathurapuri colony in Rohtas’s Dalmianagar. His impoverished family have refused to take care of him. His two sons — Shailendra and Arbind — are unemployed and are barely able to get two square meals a day. “Dadaji, please accept the pensions that you entitled to so that I can study,” his grandson Guddu, 13, a Class VIII student, recently wrote and requested Warsi. The extraordinary man wished the grandson all success, but remained firm on his stand.
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98-year old served Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose
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Mr. Ram Mukerjee, father of Mr. Roman Mukerjee of Ottawa, is 98 years old and is filled with the India nationalist spirit. During the war and over four years, he served under Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in Berlin where the India National Army did propaganda and recruitment plus seek support from Germany. This support from Germany was a convenient alliance with a common enemy at that time, Great Britain. Senior Mukerjee married a Slovak, whilst he was in training in Bata International. He returned to India from the current Czech Republic which was his European family home base when India gained independence. Junior Mukerjee, Roman, spent his formative school years in India to then came on fellowship to McGill, married and settled down. Upon his mother's passing away, senior Mukerjee came to Canada. “I am Indo-Slovak, my wife is Jewish and I have two adopted aboriginal daughters one Inuit and the other Mayan from Honduras”, says Roman. From his first marriage he has two biological mixed race daughter and son. “By definition, we are a multicultural family” says Roman. Ram Mukerjee was awarded recognition by the India Canada Association of Ottawa for his services for independent India and by the India High Commission. Interestingly, “his Bengali community did not give him this formal recognition for his devout services for the freedom of India from which all Indians, including Bengalis in Canada have benefited”, says Roman. When asked what is the secret of his long and healthy life, the senior Mukerjee jokes: “It is Scotch whisky, every day!”
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RELATED STORY FROM REDIFF.COM
August 5, 2001
http://www.rediff.com/us/2001/aug/05can.htm
90-year-old freedom fighter to revisit Czech Bata factory
Ajit Jain in Toronto
Sixty-eight years after he first started working in the Bata Shoe factory in then Czechoslovakia, a 90-year-old Indian freedom fighter is set to return to the factory again. Rameshwar Mukherjee, who is in Canada to visit his son Roman in Ottawa, will revisit the Bata factory in the Czech city of Zlin this November - a trip that will be sponsored by the Toronto-based Batas. When Thomas Bata learnt of Mukherjee's long association with the Bata house, he invited the nonagenarian to meet both him and Sonia Bata in Toronto. Soon the trip to Zlin materialized. Mukherjee used to work in the Czech factory when, in 1941, he took a break and left for Berlin to be a part of Subhash Chandra Bose's Azad Hind (Free India) government-in-exile. He told rediff.com about his association with Netaji, as Bose was popularly known, and the Bata factory, now in the Czech Republic, where he worked between 1933-1946. Mukherjee first saw Bose in December 1928 during the Indian National Congress session in Calcutta that was presided over by Motilal Nehru. In 1933, he met Bose again at the Asiatic Students' Conference in Rome. Netaji, on his way to Vienna for treatment, had stopped to attend the conference. It was at the conference that Bose picked young Mukherjee, who hails from Uttarpara near Calcutta, and told him, "Don't let the West spoil you. You should return to India one day." When Bose was selecting Indians for his Azad Hind government in Berlin in 1941, he sent a car with a German police escort to bring Mukherjee from Zlin. Then Bata president conceded to Netaji's request to release Mukherjee, who was a part of the Azad Hind government-in-exile between 1941-1943. During that period, Mukherjee monitored the world press to keep leaders informed about what was happening in India and elsewhere. Azad Hind government volunteers in Europe comprised intellectuals, many of them students staying in Germany, Austria and France. "I and other young Indian men from all over Europe responded to Netaji's call to help in India's freedom struggle and came to work for him," Mukherjee said. "Though the attitude of the Germans towards Indians was friendly, the (Adolf) Hitler government was plainly racist," said Mukherjee. He saw Netaji for the last time in 1942 when the latter left Berlin for Japan. In 1943, Mukherjee returned to Zlin to resume his work at the Bata factory. The Nazis fell in 1945. "Suddenly one day, a group of allied army officials came to my house, searched it and seized papers, diaries, photographs," he said. Roman, who was present at the Toronto meeting with the Batas, said: "The Batas were very magnanimous, very generous and charming in receiving us and talked about the good old days when my father worked in Zlin, where I was born."
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Mumbai aamchi and Bombay duck
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Is it a crime to refer to one of India’s finest cities as Bombay instead of Mumbai? Certainly not. But it is certainly a crime to threaten people with violence if they refer to the city as Bombay. I was born, brought up and educated in Bombay and apart from English the other national language which I speak is Marathi. I have a hill station home in Mahabaleswar, have visited Pratapgarh more than once because Shivaji is my hero. If one calls the city Bombay my pride as a Maharashtrian is not hurt because my pride in the city stems from its preeminence and cosmopolitan character and not from use of the name, Bombay or Mumbai. Significantly there has been no threat of violence against persons who continue to mention Bangalore or Calcutta. Karan Johar’s yielding to Raj Thackery’s threats has disturbing implications. It gives undeserved recognition and prominence to an extra-constitutional authority. It is an abject surrender to bigotry and blackmail, and is a lamentable instance of commercial expediency. A film producer is most interested in the success of his movie rather than upholding freedom of expression and the rule of law. To be fair to Johar one compelling reason for his behaviour could be lack of confidence in law enforcement authorities to give him necessary protection against violence by goondas masquerading as Maharashtrian patriotic. That is the real tragedy. It is also a sorry reflection on the rule of law in some parts of our country. The chief minister of Maharashtra’s grievance that Johar should have approached him is specious. It is extremely unlikely that in view of the oncoming elections the chief minister would have posted adequate police force at the theatre and given him effective security. To many like myself Mumbai aamchi is more appealing than Bombay aamchi. For a Sunday breakfast to some Bombay duck sounds better than Mumbai duck. It is ultimately a matter of choice and not of compulsion. Let us concentrate on making our beloved city greater rather than squabbling over names and issuing threats smacking of fascism. Commendable Judicial Independence in Zimbabwe: Jestina Mukoko, a human rights activist, was abducted, detained, and tortured by persons admitted by Minister Mutasa and Attorney General Tomana of Zimbabwe to be ‘state agents’. Ms Mukoko was charged earlier this year with the standard charge of conspiring to overthrow the Mugabe regime. An application was made on her behalf for a permanent stay of prosecution. One of the applicants was Jeremy Gauntlet, a distinguished South African lawyer. In an order delivered recently Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku of the Supreme Court of Zimbabwe, sitting as a Constitutional Court, held that Zimbabwe’s security agents had infringed Mukoko’s constitutional rights to liberty, protection from torture and inhuman and degrading treatment and granted stay of prosecution. This is a heartening instance of judicial vindication of human rights in a country whose regime is notoriously repressive. This commendable ruling has the potential of providing protection to other human rights activists and opposition politicians facing similar criminal prosecutions.
Pre-censorship of Nehru-Edwina Movie: At long last the film Nehru-Edwina has been okayed by the government. It is reported that the ministry had called for a copy of the film’s script and asked the producers to tone down some intimate scenes featuring Nehru and Edwina. If true this is deplorable pre-censorship. And pray what are intimate scenes? Holding hands, or lying in each other’s arms or kissing and embracing? Such scenes depict deep mutual affection and do not necessarily have sexual implications. If Nehru, a warm-blooded Kashmiri, were passionately fond of Edwina, does that diminish his stature as a great national leader? No mature, balanced person would think so except those who are obsessed with sex and discern it in every physical act or gesture. In the past publication of letters by Netaji Subash Chandra Bose to his close friend Emile Schenold evoked vociferous protests.
Are we living in the puritanical reign of Oliver Cornwell? For God’s sake grow up.
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NETAJI VERSUS PANDITJI
- What if Subhas Chandra Bose had returned after the war?
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I have been reading Philip Roth’s The Plot against America, a magnificent novel by a magnificent novelist. This sets up an intriguing counter-factual: what if, in the American presidential election of 1940, the celebrated aviator, Charles Lindbergh, had stood against the incumbent, Franklin Delano Roosevelt? And what if he had won? Proceeding on the assumption that this is indeed what happened, the novelist sketches a portrait of what America would have looked like under a Lindbergh presidency. The story is told — as so often with Roth —from the perspective of a little Jewish boy growing up in the town of Newark, New Jersey. The novel moves deftly between the life of a single family and the life of the nation as a whole. Personal anxieties are juxtaposed with political transformations, as Lindbergh — in this imagined ‘history’ — makes a pact with Hitler, keeps America out of the war, and induces feelings of paranoia among the Jews of the eastern seaboard.
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Roth’s plot encouraged me to think of comparable counter-factuals in the Indian case. I hope, in future columns, to try out a few hypothetical scenarios, to imagine what our country would have looked like if this or that individual had lived longer or made a different political choice. Let me begin here with a question which doubtless has often been asked by Indians, and not all of them Bengali. What if Subhas Chandra Bose had returned home sometime after the conclusion of the World War II?
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It is believed that Bose died in an aircrash over the island of Formosa (as Taiwan was then known) on August 18, 1945. What if the plane had not crashed? Earlier in the same month, atom bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, prompting the Japanese to surrender to the Allies. Had Bose not taken that plane or had it safely landed, what would he have done? Surely, he would have come back to the country for whose freedom from British rule he had dedicated his life. Perhaps he would not have returned straightaway, choosing to seek temporary refuge in a non-Western country, such as Russia or China. But sooner or later, he would have wended his way back home.
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By the late summer of 1945, the British were in no mood to prolong their stay in India. They were exhausted and drained by the war — besides, a Labour government committed to Indian independence had replaced the regime of the arch-imperialist, Winston Churchill. The viceroy, Lord Wavell, had brought the Congress and the Muslim League to the hill town of Simla to discuss the modalities and means of the transfer of power. The question that was now on the minds of the politically alert was — when precisely would the British quit the subcontinent, and when they did, would they leave behind a single nation, or two?
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After the defeat of Japan, many members of the Indian National Army did return home. Ordinary soldiers were allowed to return to their villages, but some senior officers were accused by the raj of being deserters, since they had left the service of the British Indian army to join the enemy. The trial was conducted in the precincts of the Red Fort, and attracted much attention, not least because leading Congressmen, including Jawaharlal Nehru, had volunteered to defend them.
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What if Bose himself had come back in 1945 or 1946? The British could not have charged him with desertion, since he never was part of their army. Would they have accused him then of ‘treason’? That, for instance, was the charge levelled against John Amery, who had fought on the Axis side despite being the son of a senior British politician. The younger Amery was hanged for betraying his country — could the same have happened to Bose? This is unlikely, for, as a colonial subject, Bose was emphatically not British. (At the same time, he wasn’t legally ‘Indian’ either, since India did not then exist as a nation.)
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Had Bose returned to India at the conclusion of World War II he would have placed the British in a bind. The rulers had at first wished to make an example of the INA officers — to sentence them to long prison terms or even to deportation for life. But a massive public outcry forced a retreat. In the end, the officers and soldiers were released. However, the British persuaded Nehru and other nationalist leaders to disallow former INA men from joining (or rejoining) the regular Indian army.
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Would the British have tried Bose? Unlikely, for Bose was a patriot who already commanded the admiration of millions of his compatriots. A trial would have merely increased his popular appeal. Perhaps he would have been allowed to quietly re-enter politics. Would he then have rejoined his old party, the Congress, or would he have sought instead to renew his newer party, the Forward Bloc? The decision would have depended as much on personal equations as on political calculations. Perhaps Mahatma Gandhi would have effected a reconciliation, persuading Bose to work alongside Nehru and Vallabhbhai Patel in dealing with the British and the Muslim League. On the other hand, Bose might have not have forgiven the slights and wounds of 1939, when he was forced to give up the presidency of the Congress and left with no alternative but to leave the party itself.
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The return of Bose is unlikely, however, to have materially affected the transfer of power itself. The British would have still left India in 1947, and Partition would still have happened. Now comes perhaps the most intriguing question — what, in an independent India, would have been the politics and programme of Subhas Chandra Bose?
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Even if, in our hypothetical scenario, Bose had returned to India and rejoined the Congress, it is unlikely that he could have remained long in that party after Independence. He was too proud and independent-minded to have conceded the top spot to Jawaharlal Nehru. What then might he have done? He could have started — or re-started —his own party, or he might have joined with other former Congressmen in nurturing a left-wing alternative to the ruling party. Such an alternative was in fact forged in the 1950s, when Acharya Kripalani, Jayaprakash Narayan, and Rammanohar Lohia came together to form a new party of socialists whose raison d’être was that they were more egalitarian than the Congress as well as more patriotic than the Soviet-inspired Communist Party of India.
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In history, as it actually happened, the socialists could not make a dent in the Congress hegemony. In history, as it might have happened, a Bose-led Socialist Party would have mounted a serious challenge to Nehru and his colleagues. The legacy of the freedom struggle would still have carried the Congress to victory in the first general elections, and perhaps even the second. But after that the voter would have begun to look for alternatives. Now Subhas Chandra Bose had greater countrywide appeal than Kripalani, Lohia, et al. A party led by him might, by 1957, and definitely by 1962, have given the Congress a real run for its money. The fact that Bose was a full eight years younger than Nehru would have also worked to his advantage.
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Whether Bose would have made a better prime minister than Nehru we do not know. What we can say is that had his plane not crashed in August 1945, the history of our country would possibly have been very different, and certainly more interesting.
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Leadership Isn't About Leaders
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Subhas Chandra Bose was one of the prominent voices in the Indian independence movement in the 1930s and '40s. He was an aggressive nationalist, usually photographed in his military outfit, and he believed India could secure its independence only by violence. He saw the outbreak of World War II as an opportunity to take military advantage of British weakness, and he traveled to the Soviet Union, Germany and Japan seeking alliances to attack the British in India. With Japanese assistance, he managed to reorganize and then lead an outfit called the Indian National Army, made up largely of Indian expatriates from different parts of Southeast Asia. "If I have to shake hands with the devil for India's independence, I would do that," he once said. At the same time another man promulgated views diametrically opposed to Bose's. He pioneered resistance to tyranny in the form of totally nonviolent civil disobedience. This man, Mohandas K. Gandhi, lived modestly and wore not a military uniform but the traditional Indian dhoti and shawl, woven with yarn he had hand-spun (which led Winston Churchill to call him the "half naked fakir"). He ate simple vegetarian food and undertook long fasts as a means of both self-purification and social protest. Obviously, on the face of it, Bose was promoting a hardheaded, pragmatic assault against British imperialism, while Gandhi was living in a glass house of idealism, hoping to change the world through what looked a lot like extreme passivity. Who else could have thought that fasting could bring the world's mightiest imperial power to its knees? Yet, Gandhi, affectionately referred to as Bapu, or Father, captured the imagination of practically every Indian. His countrymen rallied behind him with enthusiasm, while Bose's political views and alliances failed to attract them. Why? Because leadership has nothing to do with leaders as such. That's the implication of the work of Alex Haslam, a professor of social and organizational psychology at the University of Exeter. Haslam says that great leaders emerge not because of any special qualities that they possess but because they are exceptionally good at aligning themselves with the groups they stand at the head of. Thus effective leadership is more about followers--about understanding their values and opinions and holding productive dialogues with them--than about any kind of top-down authority. Haslam writes that effective leaders not only fit in extremely well with their groups but also shape their groups' identities in ways that make their own agendas and policies appear to be expressions of those groups' wishes. Hence, leaders reside not at the top of the pyramid but right in the middle. In fact, he even suggests that leaders must constantly strive to keep themselves in the middle, rather than above, if they are to maintain credibility among their followers. So why did Indians embrace Gandhi and not Bose, despite Bose's much more practical-sounding strategy? Probably because Gandhi recognized that the struggle was about a nation that took pride in the fact that it had never voluntarily attacked another land, a nation that had cradled great nonviolent religions--Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism. India's populace far more easily aligned with the values Gandhi propagated than with violent nationalism. A people who mostly lived in dire poverty could much more easily relate to a "half-naked fakir" than to a suave, tough, relentless military man. They latched onto Gandhi's call for fasting and prayer to unbalance the British because they knew very well the psychology behind it. As Haslam would put it, they understood Gandhi to be "one of us," not "one of them." Sangeeth not only are you right about this but it leads me to think that "Leadership" could therefore be said to be a form of "Stewardship" where the Leader is chosen to represent and look after. All of which could help explain the failure of many high-potential leaders. They may have all the strengths that a leader is traditionally believed to need, yet at the same time fail to reflect the sentiments of their people. That could be enough to make success impossible for anyone.
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Sometimes history changes course mid-air
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If Beethoven had been killed in a plane crash at the age of 22, it would have changed the history of music... and of aviation. - Tom Stoppard
Every air crash doesn't change the history of a nation or a people, but in India, where the political class sees institutions and processes - the backbone of democracy - as irritants, tragedies in the air often leave us with conspiracy theories and questions that refuse to go away. The biggest question mark of them all has always hung over the August 18, 1945 air crash that killed Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. What if that plane hadn't crashed, Indians continue to wonder. As it happened, 'Sally' heavy bomber (some people believe it was a Ki-57 'Topsy') dived onto a runway in Formosa (Taiwan). When it was recovered, Bose's body was found charred beyond recognition. Eyewitnesses saw Bose dying. His ashes are kept in a temple in Tokyo. But many Indians still refuse to believe Netaji died in that crash. Numerous reported sightings of Bose have followed: in a Soviet prison, a Chitrakoot ashram, a hut by the Sai river in Rae Bareli. It springs from the belief that our history would have been different had Netaji marched into Delhi at the head of his INA troops.
The accident of an air crash always leaves doubts and questions hanging, flapping around like the debris of a wrecked plane.
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Researcher slams Pakistani diplomat’s comments on Netaji
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Kolkata (IANS): An organisation of researchers working on Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s life and ideals Tuesday termed as a “factual fallacy” Pakistani former foreign secretary Shahryar Khan’s comments that there was no doubt the revolutionary died in a plane crash in Taiwan in 1945.“Even the Taiwanese government said there were no reports of any plane crash on Aug 18, 1945, the date on which some people have claimed all these years that the accident occurred,” Netaji Chetna Mancha (NCM) general secretary Jayanta Chowdhury said in a statement here. Chowdhury said Indian National Army (INA) Brigadier Habib-ur Rehman, the only associate of Netaji on that fateful flight, said in 1953 that there was no plane crash in Taiwan that day. “As per plans laid down by Netaji, Rehman had time and again spoken about the plane crash to mislead the British”. Chowdhury cited top secret British documents for his claim that Bose had gone underground. Writing in the Friday Times, Shahryar Khan said: “I have no reason to doubt Habib-ur-Rehman’s story of Bose’s death, and I believe it ought to put to rest many of the theories (and conspiracy theories) regarding the death of the charismatic Indian nationalist leader.” Bose, one of the heroes of India’s struggle for independence from British rule, fled from India and with help from Japan led the INA in battle against the British in northeast India and Myanmar. The reports of his ‘death’ in the plane crash have been disputed by many, and the Indian government had established three commissions to unearth the truth. Chowdhury had deposed before the Manoj Mukherjee Commission, the most recent of the three.
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Netaji Subhas died in plane crash: Pak official
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Islamabad: Pakistan's former foreign secretary Shahryar Khan says he has "no reason to doubt" that Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose died in a plane crash in 1945. "I have no reason to doubt Habib-ur-Rehman's story of Bose's death, and I believe it ought to put to rest many of the theories (and conspiracy theories) regarding the death of the charismatic Indian nationalist leader," Khan wrote in the Friday Times quoting Habib-ur-Rehman, a former Brigadier of the Indian National Army who was with Bose on the ill-fated aircraft. During a trip to Sinkiang in 1967, Rehman told Khan that he was in the aircraft with Bose which took off from Taipei (now Taiwan). "The aircraft crashed. Habib-ur-Rehman told me that while he himself survived the crash and rushed to the side of his leader, Bose was close to death," Khan wrote. "According to him, Bose died because his clothing caught fire from the flames of the burning aircraft. He was taken to a nearby hospital but died from his burns," he said. Khan, who was in-charge of the China desk in Pakistan's foreign ministry in 1967, was leading a delegation to that country to encourage trade between the two countries. Rehman was part of his delegation as a representative of the administration of the Northern Areas in Pakistan. During that trip, Rehman would stay indoors in the evenings and talk to Khan. It was during one of these conversations that Rehman told Khan about the death of Bose. With the Japanese losing the war in 1945, Bose tried to reach Japan to make another appeal for assistance. He took off from Taipei but the aircraft crashed. After the fall of Japan, Rehman was repatriated to India. Following the partition of India in 1947, Rehman chose to settle in Pakistan. On his retirement from government service, he joined politics. Rehman died in December 1978.
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History, mystery and artistry
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Ravi Shankar Etteth combines facts from the days of the INA with thriller elements. Biswadip Mitra speaks to him
The history involving the Indian National Army (INA) under Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose has been fascinating not just for the Bengalees, but for all those Indians who don’t suffer from parochial mindset. Ravi Shankar Etteth’s recent novel The Gold of Their Regrets isn’t about the history of the INA, but it touches the peripheries of that valiant phase of India’s freedom struggle. Beginning with Netaji’s reported last flight in August of 1945 before his mysterious disappearance, Etteth cobbles history with an imaginary cache of Nazi regime’s gold and the murder of few fictional characters who had betrayed the INA Commander and his fierce bodyguard Bezbaruah to usurp the gold and later lead their lives in free India. The combination of history, myth and fiction keeps the reader going. The novel sees the murders by an unknown assassin whose identity is initially kept a secret but is gradually revealed. So, is the novel a mystery or a thriller, I ask the author. “It’s a human story,” Etteth says, affirming that he is “not a structured writer”. “I don’t define a fiction as this and that,” he adds. How does he balance between realism and imagination then? “It’s all of them combined,” Etteth replies. “All my experiences come into play along with my imaginative self,” he says, adding, “I have the plot in the mind when I begin to write. But as it goes on, it seems that someone else takes over and the story evolves.” But, surely Etteth had a story in his mind and for that he not only read the history of the INA thoroughly, but also travelled to all the places he has set the novel in — from Kashmir to Kerala, and the jungles of Burma that were once the theatres of battles between the INA and the British forces. “It took me about a year to do all the research,” he says. “I made sure that despite being a fiction, all the historical events mentioned and the places described, remain authentic.” Having said that, Etteth admits that the “gold part in the story is not correct”. In the novel, Etteth brings back the characters of Jay Samorin who is an investigator, and his lover Anna Khan who has been a feared ‘terrorist hunter’ and police officer. Together, they try to track the murderer and in the process the readers get to know about the martial art kalari, bit of South and Central Asia’s history, the sinister plots of militants in Kashmir and the role of Indians who fought for Mussolini under the banner of Battaglione Azad Hindoustan. With these, Etteth creates the character of Tulsi who has been living through the ages and passes on the strength of qui — the essence of life force — a concept that Etteth claims to have existed in China and even in India. “Tulsi isn’t a fantasy. She is just another lady who inspires others and intervenes for the good cause,” the writer explains. “But, I will leave it at that,” he says. Like Tusli, who the writer defines as “strong”, the characters of Samorin, Anna and the murderer are “symbols of strength” too. Adding flavour to the actions of these people are the marked elements of purity and morality. “But frankly, I didn’t write to offer a deep or hidden meaning. And I also did not want to make any political statement,” he explains. I wonder why then the apology that he has sought in the Author’s Note, in case he has offended anyone with the references of the INA. “There’s nothing offensive I know, still to be on the safe side, I made it clear that it’s just a work of fiction and not a statement on any one,” Etteth explains. The story sees Samorin and Anna parting ways. Why couldn’t they stay together, I ask. “Well, I got bored with their relationship,” Etteth says with a smile. “Moreover, Samorin was unfaithful to Anna, so I thought it will be better,” he adds. So, Samorin and Anna will not be around for sometime till Etteth decides to bring them back again. In the meantime, we can wait for his next novel that revolves round “an unfinished Quaran and the wonderful art of calligraphy”
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THE recent cultural furore isn’t just over Gandhi’s sandals or glasses. It’s also over Prince Charles’ love letters to a Canadian woman, written
30 years ago, being put for sale online! The big question is should personal memorabilia of great leaders and icons be put up for auction? Interestingly, The Chicago Tribune asks, what would Gandhi have done, if he would have seen his modest items being on sale for an obscene prize? Even though liquor baron Vijay Mallya has paid $1.8 million for the Mahatma’s possessions, fact is, there are personal belongings of Gandhi in India that are in a pathetic state of neglect. Says O P Aggarwal, director INTACH and ICCI (Indian Council of Conservation Institute), “Why aren’t people bothered about preserving his possessions in India? We’ve set up a Gandhi museum in Lucknow. We found his belongings – dhoti, Kasturba’s sari, kurtas he wove himself, letters written by him – scattered all over India. To me, the sale of his personal stuff is preposterous.” Personal belongings of great national leaders, icons and royalty may not be of historical importance, but they give us great insight into their lives and relationships. “It’s interesting to see some of Dr Rajendra Prasad’s personal stuff conserved in Patna. For instance, we’ve taken care of his belongings like his Bharat Ratna award, clothes, bank passbook (which shows only a Rs 5,000 entry, when he died), and some of his books. Not only that, we’ve also worked on restoring Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Birth Place Museum in Cuttack. The museum was the residence of Netaji’s father, and we restored some personal memorabilia there,” adds Aggarwal. Meanwhile, it’s crucial to track how Gandhiji’s personal stuff left the country in the first place. Says conservation architect, Ritesh Nanda, “Every bid in London has articles from Indian royalty. We don’t even have the Badshahnama, Shah Jahan’s diary. Personal belongings of historic figures have a cultural dimension.” Only recently, there was a sale of the collection of Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Berge items. Says Christie’s spokesperson, Hannah Schmidt, “A sale by public auction offers one of the most transparent platforms for transfer of works of art. In June 2008, Christie’s sold Charles Dickens’ writing desk and chair, at which the author penned Great Expectations. It was sold for $847,004.” In June 2006 in London, Christie’s put up jewellery from the private collection of Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon. Pieces fetched up to 150 times their original estimates. Says Schmidt, “In the memorabilia market, provenance is everything. Objects sold can be worth nothing in their own right, but their provenance adds tremendous value. For example, in 2004 Christie’s sold a simple 1960s hippy-style necklace which had no value on its own but was owned by legendary singer John Lenon.” Recently, former US President, John F. Kennedy’s doddles were put up for auction, along with his passports and Omega wristwatch. Last year, Hollywood icon Marilyn Monroe’s personal belongings went under the hammer for the first time in almost 46 years. So, what’s the state of personal memorabilia of great moghul kings and queens? Says Sunanda Srivastava of Archaeological Survey of India, “We can only preserve personal belongings that are more than 100 years old. In Delhi’s Red Fort, we’ve preserved Mumtaz Mahal’s clothes, jewellery and cutlery.” But is it okay to bid for personal memorabilia of the dead? Gita Kapur, feng shui expert, answers, “Collecting a dead person’s items is bad feng shui. Each item will carry the energy of the predecessor. I warn people who buy antiques to ‘space clear’ the item with wet cloth and sea salt.” Think twice before you bid again. It’s not just money, but sentiments involved as well.
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Museum to Indians' contribution to Singapore
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Singapore: The contribution of the Indian diaspora to the Singapore growth story will be the focus of a new landmark museum that is being set up in the city-state, according to a senior minister here. The Indian Heritage Centre, to be funded almost entirely by the Singapore government, will trace the history of early Indians who came to Singapore as traders, soldiers and plantation workers more than two centuries ago, and will open a window to the diversity of the Indian diaspora in the island republic. Despite the ongoing recession, the Singapore government will provide 95 percent of the funding for the multi-million dollar museum to be built in the city's Little India district, Senior Minister for Foreign Affairs Balaji Sadasivan said. The remaining five percent will be contributed by the Indian community in Singapore so that they too will be stakeholders in the enterprise, Sadasivan said. This centre will present a record of the heritage of those who came to Singapore, settled here, were assimilated and have become part of Singapore. "The story of the Indians (in Singapore) is one of hardships and struggle against all odds to build a life here," Sadasivan told IANS in an interview. From the Nattukottai Chettiyar traders and moneylenders from Tamil Nadu, Sikh soldiers, rubber plantation workers and Gujarati businessmen, Indian immigrants who reached Singapore's shores over the last two centuries have assimilated and prospered, many of them assuming important roles in Singaporean society, in politics and as entrepreneurs. It is their story - an integral part of the Singapore success story - that the heritage centre will present to visitors. The Singapore government has earmarked a 2,000-square-metre plot in Little India, appointed a high-powered steering committee headed by Sadasivan to oversee the project, and named other committees for fund-raising and constructing the building. A third committee, comprising leading South Asia experts, professional curators and museum specialists, will direct the conceptualisation and content of the centre. According to Sadasivan, the Indian centre is part of Singapore's constant efforts to remain at the cutting edge as one of the most liveable cities in the world. "In the competition between cities, what matters are factors such as the quality of the air, the ambience, how green the city is, its parks, cultural institutions and museums," he says. He discounts the impact of the economic downturn that has hit Singapore, saying rather than in boom times when costs are high, "a recession is the best time to invest in infrastructure.""This is the time the government is going to invest in infrastructure, when construction costs are low. So, although we are in a recession, we have not stopped investing in our city," Sadasivan told IANS. When the centre opens to the public in 2012, the Singapore government will foot 99 percent of its operational costs, he adds. Many Indians who migrated did so with the intention that they would eventually return to their homeland. But, says Sadasivan, many of them ended up settling here and their children have grown up away from India. "We hope the centre will also educate the next generation about their roots and let them know what their cultural heritage is," he says. The aim is to expose people to the rich, deep-rooted and diverse nature of India's cultural heritage. "Not just Indian Singaporeans but others too will understand and appreciate India's rich cultural heritage. This will allow for cross-cultural understanding," says the minister, adding that it would also "add to people-to-people interaction that we hope will have the greatest impact, the greatest value". Indian tourists will see similarities with traditions and rituals that they practise back home, but with new influences. "Essentially they will see that Indian culture has survived and is thriving in a different environment." Singapore's experience with the Chinese and Malay centres is that these institutions have resulted in greater appreciation of Asian culture which these migrants carried with them and how these have blended and evolved. Singapore has a decade-long record of cooperation with Indian museums and cultural institutions. Last year, the island's prestigious Asian Cultural Museum held an extensively-curated exhibition called "On the Nalanda Trail" on ancient India's links through Buddhism with China, Japan and the Southeast Asian region. The new Heritage Centre will draw on India for help although what form of assistance they would seek has not been defined. "Everybody gains by understanding how our cultures are inter-related," said the minister. The centre will also have a section on Subhas Chandra Bose and the role that Singapore played in India's freedom struggle. A few members from Netaji's Indian National Army (INA) are still living in Singapore and an aural history section presenting their eyewitness accounts could also be on the cards. Another historical landmark, Farrer Park, from where Netaji gave his rallying speech to the INA, is a mere 100 metres from the site where the Heritage Centre will be located, Sadasivan pointed out.
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Museum on erstwhile Central Prison
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CHENNAI: The paraphernalia from the erstwhile Central Prison will be preserved for posterity, though the building itself is up for demolition to make way, mainly, for the proposed Metro rail project. Work would soon be commissioned on a museum in the Puzhal prison, where old equipment used by past prisoners would be kept for public display. The idea, mooted by Director General of Police (Prisons) R.Natraj, is an attempt to preserve jail equipment of historical importance. Mr.Natraj told The Hindu that a similar initiative earlier of converting into a museum the cell where Poet Bharathi was imprisoned in Cuddalore Central prison was well received. The museum will interest antique-lovers and history buffs alike, he said. Among the items on display would be old photographs of famous prisoners such as Veer Savarkar, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and C.N.Annadurai. The equipment used in the prison industry, earthenware and aluminium vessels used by prisoners and entry registers with signatures of well-known prisoners would also be kept on display. Some of the machines used for carpentry have their made-in-London seals intact. “The study of these prison equipment in contrast to the ones used now show how prison life itself has transformed over time,” Mr.Natraj said. “The Prison department is also making arrangements to display photocopies of famous diaries written in prison, including Arignar Anna’s book 6342,” he said. Heritage conservationist P.T.Krishnan suggested that the memory of the prison be preserved where it stands now by turning a small portion of the prison complex into a museum. “The old prison and the new Metro station can co-exist thus,” he suggested. “Not many may venture as far as Puzhal to see the museum, he added.
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After 172 years, Madras Central Prison sent to the gallows
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Chennai: The trip to Kalapani used to begin from here and illustrious guests have included Subhash Chandra Bose, Jayalalithaa and Velupillai Prabhakaran. But having witnessed three centuries, the historic Madras Central Prison will now make way for the Chennai Metro Rail and an annexe of the Government General Hospital, taking with it a rich, if somewhat notorious, heritage. Thousands have flocked to explore the dingy recesses of the prison ever since the State Prisons Department declared it open to visitors until it is demolished. As vendors mill about selling snacks and cigarettes, the morbidly curious have a field day. Digital cameras and cellphones click constantly, as men, women and children capture pictures of the cells that once held some of the most revered as well as the most feared personalities in the country. A look at the jail’s diary since 1837 reads like a who’s who of the famous and infamous. During the early days of the struggle for independence, it housed freedom fighters such as Subhash Chandra Bose and Veer Savarkar.
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India, Pak, Bangladesh should form confederation
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KANPUR: Let India, Pakistan and Bangladesh form a loose confederation on the lines of European Union to solve several problems of
the sub-continent. Informing citizens of all the three countries over the benefit of the confederation, activists of Bangladesh-Bharat-Pakistan-People's Forum( BBPFP) an organisation which is working towards it were in the city on Tuesday. For this they have started a journey of activists from the three countries. Panning several states, the journey started from Moirang in Manipur on 8th of this month and will have a grand meeting in Delhi on coming 26. The journey will culminate in historically important park of Jalianawala Bagh in Punjab. Informing about the aims of the movement, Mehboob Alam who came from Bangladesh said, "Nobody wins in a war. All the three countries have been in a perpetual state of war and lost precious human lives and their economies have bled. Let us end this cycle of hatred and violence." Moirang has an emotional significance for them. Manwati Arya, noted INA activist, and a supporter of the movement flagged off the journey in the city said, "Moirang was the first place in India where Netaji (Subash Chandra Bose) had raised the Indian flag after liberating India from the control of Britishers in 1944." Arya further added that Netaji bitterly opposed two-nation theory and he said that this would pave way for further divisions. The activist of BBPFP feels that the seed of distrust sown by rulers of India and Pakistan is benefitting the third party, instead of involved nations. Ram Kishore Kushwaha, an activist involved with the movement was impressed with the cordial reception he recieved in Pakistan on his visit to nation explained, "If an Indian goes to Pakistan he is issued visa only for three cities of Pakistan and same is the case with a Pakistani, when he visits India but why a US citizen is allowed to visit all places in both countries." The issue of benefiting from mutual trade was also their prominent concern. Niranjan Bharti another activist said, "The trade is suffering so much because of animosity between us. The price The Dawn newspaper is Rs 18 while the same category newspaper sells in India for Rs 3. They can learn from us. Together India and Bangladesh can be biggest producers of jute and same is the case with India and Pakistan in case of sugar. We are not being able to take gas from Iran because of cross-border problems. "So net result is zero because we are involved in a race instead of benefits of helping each other" Bharti emphasised.
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India's heritage abroad in need of saviour
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Times of India, 27 Feb 2009
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Lucknow/Indias-heritage-abroad-in-need-of-saviour/articleshow/4198101.cms
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Lucknow: Throughout the country good efforts are being made by the central and state governments to preserve and promote our heritage assets.
Properties/heritage landmarks connected with India's history, culture, freedom struggle are also found abroad. Unfortunately little has been done to save them and restore them there, largely due to utter ignorance about them here. On February 15, 1942, the Japanese forces under Gen Yamashita occupied Singapore and took 85,000 POWs from the allied forces. At least 40,000 of them were Indian soldiers. On February 17, 1942 Capt Mohan Singh (14 Pun Inf Bn) along with Maj Fujiwara made the announcement of the formation of the Azad Hind Fauj (INA-JIFFS) at Farrer Park, Singapore to liberate India. After Rash Behari Bose along with Col Niranjan Singh Gill, Col Hibibur Rehman, Raja Mahendra Pratap fully organised the INA and its administrative structure, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose accepted its chairmanship on July 4, 1943 and gave his famous `Chalo Dilli' or `Dilli Chalo' call from Farrer Park on July 5 the same year. The Lathy Hall (behind the park), later Town Hall, now part of the Supreme Court complex, was the office of the INA. On October 21, 1943, the interim government of India was formed here. This area was witness to several parades led by Capt Ram Singh to the famous Kadam, Kadam Barhaye Jaa.
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In July 1945, Netaji commissioned a memorial to the unknown Indian soldiers of the INA who laid down their lives fighting the British. In September, 1945, after the British reoccupied Singapore, they demolished the monument. Today, to commemorate those events of the INA there is a small bronze plaque, in poor condition, put-up by the local Heritage Board on the Padang Road side of the huge open area there (and a little away from the World War memorial). I was there on January 11, 2009 and was very sorry to see that the Indian government had done nothing to restore the monument erected by Netaji Bose to commemorate this stirring saga of valour in India's freedom struggle, despite the fact that our political leaders of all parties do not hesitate to throw up Netaji's name to add glamour to their political lineage. The First Day cover of Netaji Bose's commemorative stamp, released long after the memorial was demolished by the British, is also a good proof of the imaginary world our leaders live in.
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Nainital's Lt Col James Edward Corbett (Jim Corbett) was a legendary conservationist, social worker, prolific writer and `shikari' of man-eaters. He is among the best known Indians in the entire English speaking world. In 1947, personal problems forced him to migrate to Nyeri (Kenya) where he stayed in Paxtu, (the outhouse of the world famous hotel Outspan) from 1947 till his death in 1955. His heart remains in India and in Paxtu he wrote this famous shikar memories My India, Jungle Lore, Temple Tiger, Man-eater of Rudraprayag and Tree Tops (His Man-eaters of Kumaon of the World Classic series was written in Kaladhugi). Earlier Lord Baden Powell who had served as a cavalry officer in India stayed in the same cottage from 1938 to 1941. On Corbett's death in 1955, he was buried in the Nyeri Anglican Church on Baden Powell Road, Nyeri. His grave I visited in 2006-07, is in a pathetic condition. Paxtu too was in a state of neglect. This is indeed very sad.
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Lala Hardayal founded the Gadar Party to win American support in 1912-13. The Gadar Ashram in San Francisco is in ruins. Harindra Nath Chattopadhyay (brother of Sarojini Naidu) worked in Germany to gather European support for Indian independence. His samadhi is in Berlin and in ruins. There must be other places too connected with India's heritage and history. The ministry of external affairs along with the ministry of culture should involve Indian high commissions/embassies to list such places/spots/structure within a prescribed time limit. Thereafter suitable monuments should be built by the government of India at such places, in consultation with appropriate authority of the concerned states. This work and then maintenance can easily be done by our diplomatic offices abroad. This will add to the prestige of India and pride of Indians.
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A trip down History: Moirang-Loktak in Manipur
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“The Indian tricolour was hoisted here for the first time on the sacred soil of India by the Indian National Army on the 14th April, 1944,”
proudly announces a plaque outside the INA War Museum at Moirang. By all accounts, Moirang is a small town — 42 km from Manipur’s capital Imphal. Which is why I didn’t take time to locate the museum — an impressive building, identified with a big statue of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose at the entrance. Incidentally, this is a new statute as the earlier one was destroyed by militants in the early nineties. The maintenance of the museum is rather modest and if there is a load-shedding, it is difficult to even walk around the two halls. Yet, it contains some priceless treasures which immediately highlight the glorious history of the INA and its enterprising leader. Beginning from the ‘Great Escape’ of Netaji, which has been portrayed vividly on a map, it goes into great detail with regard to the INA’s administrative set-up, currency that it
printed, decorations, letters written by Netaji and others. Rummaging through the bygone era is quite interesting — even the uninitiated could easily absorb how ill-equipped the fledgling army was, as the small arms and ammunition used by them appear to be out of date even for that era. It definitely leaves you admiring the courage and patriotism of the INA who fought some well-contested battles in Manipur after entering through Burma, which is now known as Myanmar. In its pursuit, the INA only had a dream inspired by its tall leader.
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A bodyguard recalls his time with Netaji
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As one of his personal bodyguards, Captain Shobharam Tokas would always follow Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose wherever he went, taking care to remain a few steps behind and never looked him straight in the eyes. Till today, at the ripe old age of 89, Captain Tokas refuses to accept the 'death' of Netaji in a mystery plane crash over Taiwan on Aug 18, 1945. 'That is a big 'dhoka' (deception). There was no plane crash. Netaji did not die in a plane crash, but went to Manchuria and from there to Russia,' Tokas told IANS here.
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According to Tokas, Captain Habibur Rahman, Netaji's adjutant who was also on the plane that reportedly crashed at Taihaku airport in Taiwan, 'escaped without a scratch to his uniform, but Netaji was burnt to ashes in the crash'. 'How is it possible for one to escape a plane crash without a scratch,' asks Tokas.
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He said that cadets of the Indian National Army (INA), the military force that Netaji formed to fight the occupying British, had gone to Taiwan to inspect the crash site and the 'body' of the freedom fighter, but were not allowed. 'The Tokyo cadets were not allowed to even go near,' he said. Recalling his days as bodyguard, Tokas said: 'When Netaji came in front of me, I never looked straight into his eyes, and would give a salute.' Tokas had initially joined the British Indian forces as sergeant at the age of 23 in 1942. He did a course on intelligence and later joined the INA and was made Netaji's personal bodyguard.
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Netaji had a very sharp memory, says Tokas. 'He would call me by my name.' Recalling Netaji's last words to members of the INA or Azad Hind Fauj, he said, 'When Netaji left us, he said he was going to an undisclosed place. 'Your sacrifices shall not go in vain', he told us.' He also recalled how the INA troops while fighting the British army in the northeast underwent great hardships, without food and medicines. 'Our clothes were in tatters, and we had nothing to eat, so we would boil banana stems for food. But our spirits were strong.'
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He said there are around seven-eight INA members living in Delhi. 'Most are bedridden, and suffering from some ailment or the other.' Tokas too is not well and has been advised by his doctor to take it easy.
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He started getting government aid as freedom fighter only from 1980. 'Before that, it was only the freedom fighters of the Congress party who were entitled to government aid and recognition,' he added. Tokas maintains that the government 'does not like taking Netaji's name' and are trying to 'suppress' facts about his immense contribution to the freedom movement.
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How does he spend his time? 'I lie on the charpoy (wooden cot) the whole day, and sometimes go and meet people.' He also loves to spend time with his grandchildren and great grandchildren. He has two sons.
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Gomoh, Jan. 23: Railway minister Lalu Prasad today paid a befitting tribute to Netaji by renaming Gomoh railway station, 35km from Dhanbad, as Subhas Chandra Bose Junction.Addressing a large gathering here, the Union minister hailed Subhas Bose as one of the greatest leaders of the freedom movement. Had it not been for Netaji’s Azad Hind Fauj, today’s generation would have never had savoured freedom, he said. “By renaming this station as Subhas Chandra Bose Junction, the country is paying a small tribute to a great national hero, who sacrificed his life to give us Independence. During the last few years of his life, he had been to Gomoh,” the RJD leader said. Though Lalu, who arrived by train, kept his audience waiting for almost two hours, not many complained. In his rustic style, he heaped praises on Netaji, Chandrashekhar Azad, Sukhdev and others, and won roaring applause.
He met senior railway officials, but did not divulge much on what he discussed with them. The minister was given a rousing welcome by the students of Kendriya Vidyalaya and members of Bharat Scouts and Guides. Impressed, Lalu even gave away token awards to the participants of a cultural programme organised in his honour. On the sidelines of today’s function, the RJD chief virtually kicked off an election campaign in support of the UPA government. He said that in the past five years the government had proved its mettle on national and international fronts. “It has earned India the tag of a responsible nation.” Showering praise on the performance of the UPA government as well as on his own ministry, he said: “No government in the past had done so much to help the poor and maintain the secular fabric of the country, where everybody is safe, secure and feels proud to be an Indian. “During the NDA rule, the Indian Railways was called a white elephant and there were proposals to to privatise it and layoff employees. It is needless to say what I have done for the railways. After taking over the ministry, I showed a profit of Rs 10,000 crore in the very first year. I assure you a profit of Rs 100,000 crore by the end of this fiscal before Lok Sabha elections,” he said. “When other nations are feeling the pinch of slowdown, I assure you I will give jobs to thousands. This is possible due meticulous planning and team work,” he said. Lalu’s hurricane trip to Gomoh lasted a little more than an hour. He left for Bihar on a special train. Be it attacks on Mumbai, Delhi or other places, nation stood united keeping its secular image intact and the UPA government provided right direction which is appreciated world wide, he said. After Mumbai attacks, the Opposition was talking about launch surgical strikes on terrorist training camps in pockets of Pakistan and PoK, but kept our cool and decided to wage a diplomatic war on Pakistan, said Prasad. “The world is heading for a big change and the election of Obama as the President of the US is also symbol of change. India is also for a big change and its population has now turned into an asset with vast human resources which impressed me when I went to Japan recently. The Indians are respected worldwide for their merit and hardwork,” he said.
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Netaji’s ideals still relevant
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KOLKATA: Historians have yet to accord Netaji the position he deserves, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said here on Friday on the occasion of the 112th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. “Netaji’s ideals are still relevant today. He has left an indelible mark on the political thought and consciousness of the country and researchers were finding new meanings and inspiration from his writings…His vision was of a socialist and secular independent India,” Mr. Bhattacharjee said, after paying floral tributes to Netaji at his statue. “The world today is being rocked by terrorism; capitalism is pushing it from one crisis to another” the Chief Minister said. “Terrorism has no religion,” he said, pointing out that it is unfortunate that some politicians are blaming the Muslims for the Mumbai terror attacks; but the minority community was not responsible for the Malegaon blasts. Mr. Bhattacharjee said exploitation by big capital and the resulting economic crisis had spread across the world. Capitalism will remain capitalism, he said, sceptical whether the change in the U.S. presidency will change matters. The State government will provide assistance to the Netaji Institute for Asian Studies in the city so that more research is done on his life and writings and people get a better understanding of his thoughts and ideals, the Chief Minister said. Italian Ambassador Alessandro Quaroni, whose father, the late Pietro Quaroni, had given Netaji a false passport in the name of Orlando Mazzotta in Kabul during the great escape of 1941, delivered the Netaji Oration 2009 of the Netaji Research Bureau “The Kabul Connection: Subhas Chandra Bose, Pietro Quaroni and Indo-Afghan-Italian Relations” at the 100-year-old Netaji Bhavan on the occasion. Based on his father’s private papers and records from the Italian archives Ambassador Quaroni spoke of Netaji’s adventure in Afghanistan. Under the impression that Netaji might travel from Afghanistan through the Middle East to Europe, the British had ordered his assassination in Turkey. Netaji, however, went to Germany via the Soviet Union under the name of Orlando Mazzotta. Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi released the new paperback edition of Volume 3 of Netaji’s collected works titled “In Burmese Prisons.” He paid tribute to Netaji who is an “undying inspiration for our country.”
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Netaji all-time favourite leader
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MOHALI: It is now an established fact that National Security Guards (NSG) commandos are the biggest saviour of the country during a crisis situation, but you may be in for a surprise as a person, believed to have been died over 50 years back, still holds relevance and could have changed the fate of the country, if alive. We are talking about none other than great freedom struggler and founder of Azad Hind Fauj ' Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. At a time when people talk about giving the reins of nation to young leadership, a survey conducted by TOI in Chandigarh-Mohali and Panchkula has established that people still repose their faith in Netaji, who could have steered the country to new heights, had he got the chance. On January 23, as the country observed his 112th birth anniversary, TOI conducted a sample survey among 200 people in tri-city that included students, housewives, employees, senior citizens and senior bureaucrats. Respondents were given five names including NSG commandos, former president APJ Abdul Kalam, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Rahul Gandhi and US president Barack Obama and to give their preference as to who could have the calibre to turn the country's fate around. It may be heartening to find that people reposed their faith in Netaji and put NSG commandos, who were recently voted top, on second slot. Highest 60 people voted for Netaji, followed by 56 for NSG commandos, Rahul Gandhi was placed on third slot with 36 votes followed by APJ Abdul Kalam (28) and Barack Obama with 20 votes. Many believed that Netaji, who infused a sense of nationalism among people, played a key role in India's independence. Terming Bose as one of the greatest revolutionary leaders, VP Saini said, 'Netaji was a far-sighted leader and sowed the concept of independent India. He achieved absolute communal harmony in INA through the common salutation of Jai Hind.' 'There are two important lessons today's youth should learn from Netaji. Firstly, serving the country should be the first duty, rather than just running after lucrative jobs. Secondly, the influence of western countries should not shroud our thinking process,' said Jagmohan Singh, nephew of revolutionary Bhagat Singh.
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Netaji remembered on birth anniversary
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LUCKNOW: Glowing tributes were paid to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose on the occasion of his 113th birth anniversary here on Friday. Shaheed Smriti Samaroh Samiti, UP in association with Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Smarak Sansthan organised a function at Subhash Crossing near Begum Hazrat Mahal Park. Justice Khem Karan, retired judge of Allahabad HC was the chief guest, while former Lucknow mayor SC Rai presided over the function. Justice Khem Karan said that Netaji possessed a charismatic personality who shook the foundation of British government in India. He exhorted the youth to follow the ideals of sacrifice and courage in their daily life. Similarly, at another function organised at Seva Sadan here, as many as 65 senior freedom fighters and their dependents paid rich tributes to the leader of Azad Hind Fauj. Jagat Mohan Lal, a senior freedom fighter, who presided over the function threw light on the personality and works of Netaji. He said that Netaji's message of national integration, sacrifice and communal harmony was relevant in the present times.
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Tributes paid to Bose on 112th birth anniversary
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Ambala: Functions were held in Ambala, Naraingarh and Barara today to celebrate the 112th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, who played a vital role in India’s struggle for freedom. Vikas Parishad president and ex-MLA Anil Vij joined hundreds of supporters at Netaji Subhas Park and garlanded his statue to commemorate the occasion. Vij expressed regret that post-independence, governments had not given the leader due regard and urged the people to tread on the path of patriotism. In other celebrations, Haryana Coordinator Dalip Chawla paid tributes to the freedom fighter at a function organised by the Congress in Ambala City. SDM Devinder Kaushik garlanded a statue at Netaji Subhash Bose Chowk at the Ambala Cantonment, where around hundred students donated blood at GMN College. A remembrance function, presided over by Parliamentary Secretary Dr Krishna Pandit, at Model School in Ambala.
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Advani does a U-turn on Netaji
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NEW DELHI, Jan. 23: Nearly a decade after the Vajpayee-led NDA government set up the Mukherjee Commission in 1999 to look into Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s “death”, the BJP today did a U-turn on the issue saying there was no need to go into the “debate” over his death anymore. The comments by the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, Mr LK Advani, could not have come at a more inappropriate occasion ~ the commemorative lecture function organised by the INA Trust to mark the 112th birth anniversary of Netaji at the Ficci auditorium here today. The Mukherjee Commission was set up to inquire into the circumstances related to the departure of Bose from Bangkok in August 1945, his reported death in an air crash and subsequent developments. The commission, in its report tabled in the Lok Sabha in May 2006, rejected the contention that Bose had died in a plane crash and held that the ashes at Renkoji temple in Tokyo were not his (Netaji’s). The UPA government in its action taken report had given no reasons for rejecting the commission’s findings. Today Mr Advani said, “There is no need to go into that debate (on Netaji’s death) now. What is beyond doubt is that Netaji lived life heroically, and he died heroically, fighting for the cause of India’s liberation from foreign rule.” Mr Advani’s reported comments have created a stir. The BJP has been consistently taking on the Congress and the UPA government over its alleged non-cooperation with the Mukherjee Commission to enable it to get to the bottom of the mystery behind Netaji’s disappearance. The commission observed that “some files/documents have not been produced by the government in spite of repeated reminders”, which could have been of “great assistance” in “answering” the terms of reference.
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Netaji's birth anniversary observed
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PATNA: Glowing tributes were paid to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on his birth anniversary in the state capital on
Friday. Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee (BPCC) organised a function at its state headquarters Sadaqat Ashram, where a host of Congress leaders paid floral tributes to him. The state unit of All India People's Forward Bloc also organised a function to mark the occasion. Party leaders took out a procession which terminated near Gandhi Maidan. The biotechnology department of A N College organised a seminar on "Relevance of Netaji in War Against Terrorism". Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad also organised a function at A N College to mark the occasion. Meanwhile, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Vishwavidyalaya Sangharsh Samiti demanded setting up of a university named after Netaji. Several other organisations, including AIDSO and Manvadhikar Sanrakshan Pratisthan, also organised a function on the occasion.
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Colourful events mark Netaji's birth anniversary
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VARANASI: A number of functions were organised at different places to pay tributes to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose on the occasion of his birth anniversary on Friday. While school children carried out a march in different localities to mark the occasion, the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Yuvashakti Sangathan organised a programme at Malviya Shiksha Niketan to highlight the personality of Bose. A colourful function was organised by the Vishal Bharat Sansthan in Lallapura area, where sweets were distributed among children. Congress workers also celebrated the occasion in Lehratara area. Meanwhile, the Ramkrishna Mission Sewashram will hold a grand function in Luxa on January 25.
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IITians demand homage to extremist leader Netaji's b'anniv
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KANPUR: Subash Chandra Bose deserves more respect and his contribution towards Indian freedom struggle is matchless. This sentiment was echoed during the Bharat Punarnirman Dal's- a political outfit started by IITians- function on the birth anniversary of Subash Chandra Bose, fondly known as Netaji. On the occasion, they cleaned and garlanded his statue at Mariyampur Crossing. Omendra Bharat, state president of the party, said: "It is strange that people remember Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri and other moderate leaders, but they have completely forgotten the extremist leaders." He demanded that Netaji's picture should also be given a place on the Indian currency note along with Gandhiji's. Blaming the successive governments, he said Congress leaders deliberately declared the birthdays of many moderate leaders as national holiday, but no steps were taken to remember the commitments (honour) to Bhagat Singh, Chandra Shekhar Azad and other extremist leaders. The gathering maintained that politicians should rise above petty politics and come forward to give due respect to the revolutionary leaders.
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Tripura celebrates Netaji's birthday
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Agartala (PTI): The 112th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose was observed with pomp and gaiety in Tripura on Friday. More than 35 colourful tableaux were taken out by various schools here to mark the day. State Finance Minister, Badal Chowdhury, unfurled the national flag at Netaji ground here and appealed to all sections of the people to follow the examples set by Netaji. Meanwhile, the party set up by Netaji, Forward Bloc appealed to the Centre to declare January 23 as "Patriotism Day", party source said.
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Netaji died in Taihoku, no need for more research: Italy envoy
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Kolkata (PTI): As doubts prevail over Subhas Chandra Bose's mysterious disappearance, Italy's Ambassador in India Alessandro Quaroni, whose parents were close to Netaji, on Friday said he saw no point in further research claiming that the leader had died in 1945 in an air crash at Taihoku."I personally do not see the point of research because unfortunately, the person Netaji died, but his message lived on and still remains," Quaroni told reporters after delivering the 'Netaji Oration' at the leader's ancestral house here. Stating that an Australian historian had conducted 'the most extensive research' in establishing the exact circumstances of Netaji's death, Quaroni said, "I think inspite of the legend that (Subhas) Chandra Bose has not died, probably his death really happened in August '45." Following a public outcry against the government's view that Netaji died in the Taihoku air crash, it set up three enquiry commissions -- the Shah Nawaz Commission, the Khosla Commission and the Justice Manoj Kumar Mukherjee Commission -- to look into the matter. While Shah Nawaz and Khosla agreed that Netaji was, indeed, killed in the Taihoku air crash, the Mukherjee Commission, however, concluded that Netaji was actually alive when the crash is said to have taken place. Quaroni replied in the negative when asked whether his parents were in possession of any document indicating Netaji's death in the Taihoku crash. "But I don't know if there is any Japanese report. After all, there is a possibility of a plane crash. At that time Taiwan, where the crash occured, was under Japanese dominion. So if there is any written proof or record of the circumstances, that should be in the Japanese records," he said. Alessandro Quaroni's father Pietro Quaroni, who was the then Italian Ambassador to Afghanistan, had given Netaji a false passport in the name of Orlando Mazzotta in Kabul during the leader's great escape in 1941 from the very house in Kolkata which now houses the Netaji Research Bureau. "What is important is that the core message from (Subhas)Chandra Bose gathers momentum. Even his temporary rivalry with Nehru and Gandhi subsided because the two of them recognised that he had, after all, the right view that it would not be possible to obtain India's independence through peaceful ways," Alessandro Quaroni said. Earlier, delivering the Netaji Oration, 2009 on 'The Kabul Connection: Subhas Chandra Bose, Pietro Quaroni and Indo-Italian Relations,' the Italian envoy dwelt at length about his parents relationship with Netaji. Quaroni said while his father Pietro had always tried to procure help in Netaji's mission from the axis forces, his mother acted as the secret messenger keeping contact with Netaji at his hiding place in Kabul. Believing Netaji might travel from Afghanistan through the middle east to Europe, the British had ordered his assassination in Turkey. Bose, however, travelled via the Soviet Union to Germany using the name and the passport of Orlando Mazzotta which Pietro Quaroni had arranged for him.
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Netaji's anniversary: MPs pay tributes
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Parliamentarians on Friday paid floral tributes to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose in Parliament House on his 112th birth anniversary. Besides Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee, Leader of Lok Sabha Pranab Mukherjee, Leader of Opposition L K Advani and Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs V Narayansamy paid tributes. A booklet containing a profile of Netaji was brought out on the occasion and presented to the dignitaries, a Lok Sabha Secretariat release said. A portrait of Netaji was unveiled on this day in 1978 by then President N Sanjeeva Reddy in the Central Hall of Parliament.
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Thousands pay tributes to Netaji in Orissa
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Bhubaneswar (IANS): Thousands of people in Orissa paid tributes to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, one of the most influential leaders of India's freedom movement, on his 112th birth anniversary Friday. Statues of Netaji were garlanded across the state. A large number of people also visited Janakinath Bhavan in Cuttack, where he was born in 1987. The house has now been turned into a museum. "Thousands of people, including a large number schoolchildren, visited the museum," Jyoti Prakash Das, manager of the museum, told IANS. The 150-year-old two-storeyed yellowish building at Oriya Bazar in Cuttack, about 26 km from here, was named after Netaji's father Janakinath Bose. It houses an 18-room gallery. “For the first time, this year we have displayed dozens of rare letters that Netaji wrote to his parents from different places like Vienna, Geneva, Shillong, Rangoon Jail, Mandalay Jail and Presidency Jail,” Das said. “We have displayed some rare furniture and photographs of the Bose family in original frames,” he added. “We also opened a new gallery this year on his prison life. The gallery has been designed as a jail cell of the pre-independence period. We have also displayed the iron cot used by him. It is embossed with the name of Johnson Company and its insignia of a rifle,” Das said. Netaji is believed to have died in an air crash in August 1945.
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Netaji's birth anniv celebrated
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VARANASI: On the eve of the birth anniversary of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, a group of children carried out Jai Hind Yatra under the banner of Vishal Bharat Sansthan, from Shastri Park to Azad Hind Park, on Thursday. The march was flagged off by Rajeev Dwivedi, reader, Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapeeth (MGKV). After offering tributes to the statue of Netaji they moved to Bharat Mata Mandir where a meeting was held. Meanwhile, the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Yuva Shakti Sangathan will also organise a function at Malviya Shiksha Niketan, Sankatmochan, to commemorate the birth anniversary on Friday.
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Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Remembered
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Politicians, district officials, and students in Patna on Friday observed the birth anniversary of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose by organizing a number of events and paying tributes to the freedom fighter at his statue near Gandhi Maidan. Governor R. L. Bhatia, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi and a number of Bihar leaders paid floral tributes to the nation's hero who would have turned 113 years old on Friday. The Governor also took salute from the members of the armed services at a parade. Patna High Court Justice Rajendra Prasad, at a function organized by the All India Forward Bloc at the MLA Club, said that the youths of today had much to learn from the sacrifices of the dynamic leader who gave up his career and life to serve the nation despite having been selected in the coveted Indian Civil Services. Several other outfits and political parties including the Congress Party, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), AIDSO, and Manvadhikar Sanrakshan Pratisthan also held functions to honor the freedom fighter. Food and Consumers Minister Narendra Singh at a function organized at the Abhiyanta Bhawan also paid warm tributes to the leader whose body was never found after his plane disappeared over Taiwan on August 18, 1945, two years before India could attain freedom from the British rule. Meanwhile, the BioTech department of the A. N. College organized a mile-long human chain to promote the ideals of Netaji saying India needed a leader of the caliber of Subhash Chandra Bose to deal with rising cases of terrorism in India. The students also organized a seminar on terrorism and criticized the Central government for not taking tough stance against the terrorists involved in the attack of Parliament and the recent assault on Mumbai that left nearly 200 people dead. "Our leaders need to learn a lesson or two from Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose who, unlike today's politicians, was a true leader and would not have tolerated sustained attacks on the Indian soil by a rogue neighbor whose only goal is to create economic and communal chaos in the nation," Manish Kanth of BioTech Department said adding India's failure to respond swiftly and sternly to counter terrorism unleashed by Pakistan was being seen as its weakness.
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Netaji Subhash remembered
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GUWAHATI, Jan 23 – Along with the rest of the country, the State also fondly remembered the great freedom fighter and courageous leader Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose on his 112th birth anniversary today. Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, while speaking at a function organized by the Greater Assam Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Celebration Committee, said that Netaji continues to be the icon for the patriotic people of India. “He is still living in the hearts of people and his contribution to the Indian freedom struggle is a glaring example of his courage, exuberance and leadership traits. In other words, he had a great impact on the masses. The stories of his valour still inspire the people of the country,” said Gogoi. The Chief Minister further added that though the country’s freedom struggle is over, there are still some problems including unemployment, illiteracy, under development and terrorism and the examples of our great leaders would guide us in fighting out those problems. He also distributed hearing-aids and wheelchairs, donated by Kartik Sena Foundation, to the physically challenged people. Pitambar Dev Goswami, the Satradhikar of Auniati Sattra, while speaking on the occasion said that India now needs a leader like Netaji, who can lead the country in difficult times. Speaking briefly on his life and works, he emphasized that Bose exhibited the qualities of a great general, a good politician and also an enlightened commoner, which are rare in an individual. “His words were the ultimate conviction for the lakhs of people, who were not hesitant to sacrifice their lives at his call. Today also, we are seeking a leader with a clear and tough stand to bailout the country in this hour of crisis,” he added. Presiding over the meeting, Captain Robin Bordoloi, legislator and son of Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi highlighted the role played by the Netaji to save Assam from going to the clutches of Pakistan. “He helped Lokapriya Bordoloi in forming his government defeating Md Shadulla. The people of Assam also, irrespective of caste, creed or tribe, voted for him in the presidential election of the Congress, held at Tripuri in Madhya Pradesh in 1939. In that election Bose won against Pattabhi Sita Ramaiya, a candidate for the same, supported by Mahatma Gandhi,” he added. Four eminent personalities, Nrityacharya Jatin Goswami, researcher and journalist Rupam Baruah, Dr Jamini Phukan and social activist Aruna Mukherjee were felicitated at the function. The Netaji Statue Development Committee of Pandu College Gate organized various competitions on the occasion.
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Netaji prison letters on display
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Cuttack, Jan. 22: Letters written by Netaji to his father from prisons will become public tomorrow with a new gallery being thrown open at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Birthplace Museum here. The letters on display include dispatches from Presidency Jail, Mandalay Central Jail, Rangoon and Insein jails between December 1921 and April 1927. The correspondence with his father Janaki Nath shows that during these years Netaji’s “connection with outside world” was “practically cut off”. He was “not given any newspaper”. The new gallery with the “censored and released” letters has been modelled on a prison cell of his era. With “prison life” as the theme, the exhibits reflect the writing practice of Netaji and the bond he shared with his father. On December 12, 1921, Subhas wrote from Presidency Jail: “I am prepared for the worst and I feel it would be a great privilege to be allowed to suffer for a cause which to me is dear.” He was then “confident that swaraj is at hand”. While waiting for a definite diagnosis after undergoing different tests at Rangoon Central Jail on January 20, 1927, Subhas wrote: “The difficulty is that so far they have not been able to account for certain persistent symptoms — continued loss of weight, afternoon temperature, pain in the spine and night sweat.” “What is Cuttack like this summer?” Subhas asked about his birthplace as he wrote from Mandalay jail on June 13, 1925. Between January 26, 1926, and May 21, 1926, he wrote four letters to his father from Mandalay jail querying about other members of the Bose family. On December 12, 1926, he was at Rangoon Central Jail, but by April 13, 1927, he was shifted to Insein jail. “Apart from this new gallery, we are ready with three more to the existing eight ones. They will be inaugurated on his birth anniversary tomorrow,” museum curator J.P. Das said. “The iron cot used by Subhas Chandra Bose is a new attraction displayed at one of the galleries added this year,” Das said. “The cot is embossed with the name of Johnson Company and its insignia of a rifle.” Among other exhibits are furniture and some rare photographs (in original frames) of the Bose family.
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Haripura's 10-yr wait to see Netaji's statue to end soon
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SURAT: After a 10-year wait, 1,500-odd residents of Haripura village in Bardoli taluka would witness unveiling of the statue of charismatic freedom fighter Netaji Subhashchandra Bose. It is at this village where Netaji was elected president of Indian National Congress in 1938. Chief Minister Narendra Modi will unveil the statue on January 23, Netaji's birth anniversary.
Villagers said construction work on Netaji's statute was completed in 1999. Congress-ruled Surat district panchayat had sanctioned Rs 11.35 lakh for the statute in April 1997 but the road on the state highway leading to the statute site was washed away within a year. Apparently, as nobody from the panchayat bothered to repair the road, the unveiling of the statute got delayed, they said.
The Haripura convention has a great historical significance. It is here that Bose, then 39 years old, became the youngest INC president, passed resolutions condemning federal schemes, appointed an India Education Board and set up a Constitution committee. In view of the historical importance of the site, the district panchayat had decided to install a statue of Netaji at Haripura.
"We thank Chief Minister Narendra Modi for taking the initiative to repair the road leading to the statue site. This is the only memorial for the village that witnessed a historic event in 1938," said Jayanti Patel, a village elder.
Sources said Modi was informed about the plight of the only memorial of Netaji in Haripura village by the villagers as well as social activists. Modi directed the local administration to take up the repair work of the road as well as the platform.
"We had written many letters to the chief minister regarding the statute. The work was undertaken and today we are glad that the statute would be unveiled on January 23," said Praveen Patel, a villager.
Modi would unveil the statute and launch e-gram yojana from Bardoli town on Netaji's birth anniversary.
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CM releases film 'Netaji with the Nagas' |
January 18, 2009
Link - http://www.morungexpress.com/local/11931.html |
Kohima: A documentary film entitled "Netaji with the Nagas- the last camp in India" was released by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio here this morning. Produced by Nagaland Centre for Human Development & Information Technology (NCHD-IT), this 45 minutes documentary film is based on a book "Discovery of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Delhi Chalo last camp in Nagaland," written by Er. Vekho Swuro, who is the Executive Engineer of CAWD Nagaland.
On being asked whether the government has any plan to develop the said camp as a historical site, Rio said the government will study and do what is appropriate.
Er. Vekho Swuro looks forward from the department of art and culture in initiating further research, adding that material evidence was also there.He also maintained that the site would attract the tourists and historians when it is maintained properly.
The documentary is directed by Yashimala and produced by Er. Vekho Swuro., while P.T. Aienla Lemtor is the script writer and editor.
Parliamentary secretary for tourism, art & culture and law & justice Yitachu was also present on the occasion.
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And now, marriage haunts Netaji! |
16 January, 2009. Published in online India Today
http://indiatoday.digitaltoday.in/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=25491§ionid=22&issueid=31&Itemid=1 |
Controversy never seems to leave the legend. Almost 66 years after he had apparently written a letter to his elder brother, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose now finds himself in the middle of yet another row – the first being the mystery over his plane crash and subsequent death – this time, challenging the veracity of the letter announcing his marriage to Emily Schenkel in Berlin.
Netaji researchers Surojit Dasgupta and eight others have filed a PIL in court saying that the letter, printed as English translation in the seventh volume of the Collected Works of Netaji, brought out by the Netaji Research Bureau, was forged. The Bengali letter, according to Dasgupta and his lawyers, has not been found or traced anywhere, although Surajit said he had seen a copy "somewhere."
The best defence that his lawyers could give was that Netaji never wrote letters to his brothers in Bengali and always preferred English. "So why should the collected works print an English translation of the letter datelined Berlin when Netaji was already leaving for Japan by submarine? On that day, he was at Kiel port. There are records on that," said Mihir Bose, one of the counsels for Dasgupta and company.
It is strange that even after 64 years of his disappearance, Netaji continues to be an issue in Bengal and it is almost phenomenally significant that a law case questioning his marriage should be brought up in 2009! As Krishna Bose, Trinamool Congress leader and niece of Netaji said, "That man had no right to marry. He also has no right to die. I have heard about this case but since it is sub-judice, I shall not comment. But when Shyam Benegal made his feature film on Netaji, these same people had raised this issue since Benegal showed a large part of Netaji's romantic involvement with Emily." From Ms Bose's comment, it was apparent that she was not treating the case as a serious challenge. Ms Bose is the chairperson of the Netaji Research Bureau.
The counsels have even challenged the handwriting of Netaji saying that the photo copy printed elsewhere did not match that of Netaji. "It's a forgery. This was done to establish Netaji's marriage to Emily and discredit him."
Asked why any marriage could discredit a person of the stature of Netaji, Bose countered, "This was a ploy by Jawaharlal Nehru and others to make him look like a philanderer. Emily was not married to Netaji. He had larger, bigger and loftier aims, not to mention the passion to free his country. He could not have had time for marriage and romance."
He said that it was significant that the letter did not mention whom Netaji had married, where and how. Even the fact as to how it reached Sarat Bose, Netaji's elder brother, was not specified. "No envelope has been preserved and all we have now is the English translation of the letter."
He added that the generation now had a right to know the truth and not be misled by "conspiracies."
Incidentally, Emily along with her daughter had visited Kolkata in the early Seventies and it had been established beyond doubt that she had been married to Netaji. Why the issue of the leader's marriage is being raised now could be anybody's guess.
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Associate of Subash Chandra Bose passes away
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14 January, 2009.
Link - http://www.indopia.in/India-usa-uk-news/latest-news/477569/National/1/20/1 |
Dehra Dun. Col Preetam Singh, freedom fighter and a close associate of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, passed away at a private hospital near here. 95-year-old Col Singh breathed his last late last night. He was admitted to the hospital last week, his family sources said.He is survived by his only son Rupinder Singh.His cremation was held today with state honour at the bank of the river Song near here. Congress leaders including state In-charge of party affairs R K Dhawan and Pradesh Congress Committee president Yashpal Arya condoled the death of Singh. Describing him as a revolutionary, Dhawan said Col Singh dedicated his whole life to the service of motherland."He valiantly fought against the British rule as a soldier of INA for which he was imprisoned,"he said in a message. Arya said the country will always remain indebted to Col Singh, who sacrificed everything fighting for its freedom.
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Netaji's close aide dead, cremated today |
10 January, 2009. Published in Sakaaltimes.
Link - http://www.sakaaltimes.com/2009/01/10172112/Netajis-close-aide-dead-crem.html |
FATEHGARH SAHIB: A close aide of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, freedom fighter Sardara Singh, 93, who died yesterday, was cremated with full state honours at his native Bora village. He is survived by four sons and four daughters. A contingent of Punjab Police reversed arms as a mark of respect to the deceased. Fatehgarh Sahib SDM Gurpal Singh, SGPC Executive member Karnail Singh Panjoli, Fatehgarh Sahib Gurdwara Head Granthi Harpal Singh were among those who attended the cremation ceremony. Paying rich tributes to the departed freedom fighter, Panjoli said Sardara Singh was very close to the Netaji. Sardara Singh, who had joined army in 1938 had defied the British regulation to wear a cap as head gear and was sent to jail. He later joined the Azad Hind Fauz and was fondly called 'Jai Hind' by his friends.
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