Article: Subhas Chandra Bose – A hero or a misplaced tyrant? (https://www.business-standard.com/article/opinion/subhas-chandra-bose-a-hero-or-a-misplaced-tyrant-115092100137_1.html)
Glancing right over the attempt to shore in sympathy with the declaration that the article might earn him death threats, my rebuttal is meant to strike at the heart of the article factually.
Indian National Army and Netaji’s Contribution to the Freedom Struggle
Mr. Sharma wonders upon whether Netaji Bose had any meaningful contributions to the Indian Freedom Struggle. He does acknowledge the fact that Netaji ‘tried to organise a military challenge to the British by gathering a handful of British-trained Indian soldiers’ under the banner of the Indian National Army but quickly says that ‘it was clearly a foolhardy thing to do’. He is gracious enough, however, to say that Netaji should not be judged on the basis of this.
Well, what’s the truth? Firstly, the Indian National Army was much more than an attempt to create a military challenge to the British. One of the main aims of the INA was to create rebellion within the Indian Army maintained by the British to cause a direct military challenge to their rule. So, while some of us may be tempted to forget the contribution of the 1946 Naval Mutiny to our freedom in 1947, and call it ‘a foolhardy attempt’, let us be truthful enough not to label it under ‘historical facts’.
Secondly, comprising of about 45,000 British-trained soldiers at its height, the INA was a turning point in the Indian Freedom Struggle.
PB Chakraborthy, while recounting his conversation with Lord Attlee, recollected: “In his reply Attlee cited several reasons, the principal among them being the erosion of loyalty to the British crown among the Indian army and Navy personnel as a result of the military activities of Netaji.”
Not only did the INA have a key role in shaping the Indian Freedom (especially in the creation of the First Provisional Government of India) with its existence, the very Red Fort Trials meant to disband the INA created a fervour and were a catalyst for mass mobilisation and rebellion in many areas such as in Calcutta (now, Kolkata).
Netaji’s Association with Fascist Regimes
The author is quick to jump to the conclusion that Netaji ‘was clearly influenced by leaders like Benito Mussolini, Adolf Hitler and the Japanese leadership of the day’ for which he cites BBC as his source. How unbiased a sources BBC is, is a question that I shall not ponder upon, seeing that the same has been done in the British Parliament itself. The author further questions if Netaji wanted to follow Hitler’s example.
However, what the author glaringly misses out on telling his readers is the absolute disgust Netaji had for the Nazis. Kitty Kurti, a friend of Netaji from Cambridge, wrote in her book titled ‘Subhas Chandra Bose as I Knew Him’ that Bose did not attempt to hide from her his deep contempt for the Nazis. However, he also cited India’s exploitation by British imperialism and explained why he had to do business with the Nazis. “It is dreadful but it must be done. India must gain her independence, cost what it may.”
So, yes, as selfish as the author may make it sound (‘it was clear this was a man who would shake hands with the devil to get him what he wants’), we can clearly surmise that Netaji knew what the country needed and had no qualms doing what was needed to achieve that.
Similarly for the Japanese, while Netaji loved the Japanese people and their culture, he was disillusioned with their leadership. However, he was also clear about what the nation needed in terms of external support. Many go further and claim that the Japanese had plans to invade and rule India after liberating it from under the British Rule as Netaji wanted. However, not only have documents to prove the same been not been produced with such claims, but also all testimonies of the Japanese leaders (such as under the Khosla and Mukherjee Commissions) point away from such claims.
Netaji’s Character in Doubt
The author portrays Netaji as a power-hungry dictatorial politician in various places in the article.
‘He had no misgivings about who he was associating with as long as he became the leader of a free India.’
Or
‘…there are other reports suggesting that he wanted a ruthless dictatorship in India for 20 years after it gains independence from the British.’
The first point is something that is probably extrapolated from the fact that Netaji had declared himself, as the Commander of the INA, the PM, the Head of State and the minister for war and foreign affairs. That he wanted to stay in power or wanted to be the dictator in question is completely unclear.
The second point refers to the report printed by the Singapore Daily, The Sunday Express. However, this has been taken completely out of context. The text of the speech is as follows:
“So long as there is a third party, i.e. the British, these dissensions will not end. These will go on growing. They will disappear only when an iron dictator rules over India for 20 years. For a few years at least, after the end of British rule in India, there must be a dictatorship…”
This clearly shows that the dictatorship proposed by Bose is one that is not permanent in nature but one that he felt was the need of the time due to dissensions within the country. What these dissensions led to can clearly be observed in any map containing political-geographical boundaries today. That he felt any constitution drawn up would not work in such a state of the country was echoed by many leaders. Even Dr. Ambedkar has had his doubts and suggested that the Presidential system might work better in India than the Parliamentary System.
Netaji’s Disappearance
That the author, while praising the Congress for not taking conclusive steps that could prove Netaji was alive so as to let the ‘skeletons in his closet’ remain there, indulges in conjecture that he was indeed alive and let the country burn instead of stepping out and helping it, is most ironic and duplicitous to me.
That any person of such a national significance, who has had such a profound impact, and had been one of the leading voices for our freedom should simply disappear and the government of the country (the said ‘Congress’ party and its allies) remains casually unbothered by it at best, and obstructs the path to the truth at worst, is mind-boggling as it is without people praising them for it. Any country that cannot value its heroes does not deserve them. As far as skeletons in the closet go, I think this article has tackled most, if not all, of them. It would also serve as a good reminder that the Congress party being praised here for being benevolent, for not exposing Netaji’s dictatorial side, did not have a dearth of skeletons in its closet; after all, PM Nehru did not become the Prime Minister of the country the first time around on the basis of votes secured by him.
Conclusion
That humans are humans, and not without their failings is a forgone conclusion. All freedom fighters that we respect today had some failings or the other. That, however, does not mean that their contribution to the Freedom Struggle must not suddenly be forgotten. It would do all of us well to remember to be grateful for their contributions. That such articles are published every Netaji Jayanti (and that of other freedom struggle figures), in certain sections and outlets of electronic media, reflects either the historical amnesia of the history textbooks that afflicts our society, where freedom is associated with the names of just two to three individuals or a much deeper agenda which we must guard against.
A Shubh Netaji Bose Jayanti to everyone!