Subhas Chandra Bose — "Netaji", the respected leader — gave up a place in the Indian Civil Service to join the freedom struggle, was twice president of the Congress, and then escaped from British house arrest to lead the Azad Hind Fauj (Indian National Army) against British rule in the Second World War. His courage and his slogan "Jai Hind" became part of the nation's identity.
Life
- 1897Born in Cuttack on 23 January.
- 1920–21Passes the Indian Civil Service examination in England and resigns to join the national movement.
- 1920s–30sWorks with C. R. Das in Bengal; repeatedly imprisoned.
- 1938–39President of the Congress at Haripura (1938) and Tripuri (1939); resigns after differences with Gandhi and founds the Forward Bloc.
- 1941Escapes from house arrest in Calcutta and reaches Germany.
- 1943Takes command of the Indian National Army in Singapore and proclaims the Provisional Government of Free India (21 October).
- 1944The INA fights alongside Japanese forces in Imphal and Kohima.
- 1945Reported to have died after an air crash in Taipei on 18 August.
Ideas
Bose was shaped in youth by Swami Vivekananda and Sri Ramakrishna and kept a deep personal spirituality, carrying a Gita and a rosary. Politically he believed India would win freedom only through strength and sacrifice, and he favoured a strong, planned, socialist state after independence. His INA deliberately united Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs and included a women's regiment named after Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi.
Give me blood, and I will give you freedom!
Criticism and debate
Bose's decision to seek help from Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan is criticised by many historians; his admirers argue that he saw them only as means to India's freedom and kept the INA free of their ideologies. The circumstances of his death remain disputed: two inquiries (1956 and 1970) accepted the air crash, while the Mukherjee Commission (2005) rejected it, and the government did not accept that commission's finding.
Legacy
The INA trials of 1945–46 stirred national feeling and contributed to the end of British rule. Netaji's birthday, 23 January, is observed as Parakram Diwas, and his statue stands under the canopy at India Gate in New Delhi.
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Frequently asked questions
What is Parakram Diwas?
The observance of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's birth anniversary on 23 January.
Who founded the Azad Hind Fauj?
The Indian National Army was first formed in 1942 under Mohan Singh and revived and led by Subhas Chandra Bose from 1943.
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Read nextLakshmibai Kelkar "Mausiji"Sources & copyright status
- Report of the Netaji Inquiry Committee (Shah Nawaz Committee, 1956); Khosla Commission (1970); Justice Mukherjee Commission (2005) — government records
- Sugata Bose, His Majesty's Opponent (2011) — biography; facts only
- Historical facts: not subject to copyright.
- Commentary and translations on this page: original to The Hindu Book. © The Hindu Book, all rights reserved.
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