The Government of India has decided to celebrate the birthday of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, on 23rd January, as 'Parakram Diwas' every year. This announcement came from the Ministry of Culture on tJanuary 19, four days ahead of Netaji’s 124th birth anniversary.
Early life
Revered and addressed as Netaji, Subhas Chandra Bose, was born on January 23, 1897, Cuttack, Orissa [now Odisha], India. Netaji led the Indian revolutionary movement in the independence movement against British rule of India. He also led an Indian national force from abroad against the Western powers during World War II. He was a contemporary of Mohandas K. Gandhi, at times an ally and at other times an adversary. Bose was known in particular for his militant approach to independence and for his push for socialist policies.
Education
Subhas Chandra Bose studied in Calcutta (Kolkata) at the Presidency College and the Scottish Churches College. His parents then sent him to the University of Cambridge in England to prepare for the Indian Civil Service. He passed the civil service examination but resigned his candidacy and returned to India after hearing of nationalist turmoil there.
Netaji’s non-cooperation movement
Bose joined the non-cooperation movement started by Mohandas K. Gandhi, who had made the Indian National Congress a powerful nonviolent organization. Bose was advised by Gandhi to work under Chitta Ranjan Das, a politician in Bengal. There Bose became a youth educator, journalist, and commandant of the Bengal Congress volunteers.
Rash Behari Bose
Rash Behari Bose escaped from India in 1915 and lived in Japan as an escapee. In 1943, he handed over the charge of Azad Hind Fauj to Subhas Chandra Bose. A revolutionary leader, who contributed a great deal in India's fight for independence from the clutches of the Britishers, Rash Behari Bose was born on May 25, 1886, and died on January 21, in the year 1945. He was one of the key organisers of Gadar revolution that aimed to attack the British army from the inside. It helped in activating an uprising in India. He also played a crucial role in organising the Indian National Army (Azad Hind Fauj).
Bose’s Ireland connection
Anuj Dhar, Author of “Conundrum: Subhas Bose’s Life after Death” and “Your Prime Minister is Dead” has been vocal about his stance and reverence towards Bose on social media and various other occasions. “Without a national holiday like on October 2, it would mean nothing. Netaji freed India, not a state sanctioned hoax of ahimsa. Learn to honour your liberator,” he tweeted recently.
Also critiquing the erstwhile government, he posted, “"Some kind of an intelligent guess by some reporter" -- Explanation by Prime Minister #JawaharlalNehru on the charge that the details about #SubhasChandraBose death inquiry were deliberately leaked to media.” Dhar and Chandrachud Ghose, Co-author of ‘Conundrum: Subhas Bose’s Life After Death’. History, economics, politics. Founder member-MissionNetaji held a virtual event where they discussed the enigma of Bose for over two hours from Ireland. Ghose is working on Netaji’s biography.
Between 1933 and 1936, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose spent a lot of time in Europe. “His Irish experiences during this time haven’t received as much attention as they perhaps should have, given that they significantly influenced his later career. He visited many cities in Europe in those three years, the stated purpose being ‘medical treatment’,” The Wire reported. It is said that Bose drew a lot of inspiration from the Irish experience and came to believe that only Irish style militant action would secure India its freedom. This led to the founding of the Indian National Army.
Mysterious death
Subhas Chandra Bose reportedly died in a Japanese hospital in Taiwan from burn injuries on August 18, 1945, as a result of a plane crash while fleeing Southeast Asia, days after World War II ended with the surrender of Japan (which had been supporting Bose and his liberation army).
Modi’s promise and a daughter’s appeal
PM Narendra Modi kept his promise to Netaji’s Family and all files on Subhas Chandra Bose were declassified. The Government of India had decided to declassify the files relating to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and make them accessible to the public. The first lot of 33 files which were declassified were handed over by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) to National Archives of India on 4 December 2015. Placed now with the national custodian, are all records relating to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and the Azad Hind Fauj.
In 2018, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s daughter Anita Bose-Pfaff appealed to the governments of India and Japan for bringing her father’s mortal remains back home. According to her, Netaji died in an air crash in Taiwan on August 18, 1945 and his remains have been preserved at Tokyo’s Renkoji temple since September 1945.
“On the 73rd anniversary of my father’s passing away, I renew my appeal to the governments of India and Japan to facilitate a transfer of his mortal remains from Japan to India for a final disposal,” she had said.
“It was my father’s ambition to return to a free India. This was unfortunately not fulfilled. Therefore, it would be appropriate if at least his remains touch the soil of Independent India. My father was a devout Hindu. Thus, it is perhaps befitting as per custom to immerse at least part of his remains in the river Ganga,” she added.
Netaji’s Grandnephew, Chandra Kumar Bose said that "NDA govt under the leadership of Narendra Modi made the commitment to the nation that he would declassify all the files pertaining to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and he would unravel the mystery of his disappearance on 18 August 1945. So today the people of the nation and family members of Netaji want closure because there is a controversy whether he died in the air crash or he survived the air crash."
"The Congress government has always suppressed the truth, my father Amiya Nath Bose who was in Lok Sabha had taken up the issue with Pandit Nehru, Indira Gandhi for releasing all the papers but no one bothered. For the first time, Narendra Modi responded positively and he started the process of declassification. We are happy about releasing all the files by the NDA govt but not satisfied because there is no closure.”
"I am hopeful because PM Modi is very committed but the entire government machinery has to be on the very same page otherwise it is not possible. We want all the ministers, be it Culture, Defence all have to coordinate properly and reach to the closure," said Chandra Kumar Bose.
The Overseas Centre of Cost Accountants in London, UK in its virtual inauguration event on Saturday, 23rd January 2021 from 11 am to 1 pm GMT, will celebrate the 125th birth anniversary of Subhas Chandra Bose. The event will be attended by Prof Lord Kamlesh Patel, OBE, Baron of Bradford, Mr Kavin McCole, MD, UKIBC, Mr Nick Low, British Deputy High Commissioner at Kolkata and other dignitaries in UK and India as well as the President, Vice President and Secretary of the Institute.
