Why was Asiatic Society of Calcutta stopped from accessing the Russian archives?

7/25/2019 Why was Asiatic Society of Calcutta stopped from accessing the Russian archives?

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2/210

FICE

POLITIC AL SECTION

Minis t ry of Home Af fa i r s ha ve r e que s t e d fo r i n f or m a t i on

on the f ol l ow in g R aj ya S ab h a S t ar r e d Q u es t i on 17)y. N o. 21 98

by Sh ri K. R. Ma lkani , MP due fo r an swe r on 6.3.1996 r eg ard ingd i s a ppe a r a nc e / de a t h of N e t aj i S ubha s h Cha nd r a B os e.

(a )

(b)

Whether Government is a wa re t ha t t he c i r c u m s t a n c eof the d i sa p p ea r an c e/ d ea t h of Su bh ash C h an d r a Bose

ha ve not be e n a u t he n t i c a l l y se t t led to th i s day ;

Whether Government w ou l d p r e ss t he G o ve r n me n t of U. K. , U. S. A. , T ai wa n a nd J a pa n t o m a ke t he conf iden t ia lfi nd in gs of t h ei r r e 4p e ct i v e in qu ir ies i nt o t he sub jec t ,

publ ic .

(c) Wh et her t he l a t e Mr . N eh r u ' s ' sec re t ' f i l e on the sub jec t ,con ta in in g m or e t ha n fo rt y d oc um en ts , at on e t imehel d by Mr. Moh a mm ad Yun us, will be r et r ie ve d and

m a de pub l i c ?

It a p p ea r s t h a t t he subject ma t te r of p ar a ' a' and p ar a' b ' of t he que s t i on c onc er ns M in i st r y of H om e A ff a i r s a nd M in i st r yof E xt er na l Affa ir s an d p ar a ' c' ma y per ha ps per ta in t o t hi s

off ice .

It is su bm it t ed t ha t the i n fo rm at i on r el at in g t o thefi l e a s s t a t e d i n p a r a ' c ' is i n su ffi ci en t a nd u n cl e ar . It wou ld not

be poss i bl e t o fu rnish i n for m at i on in t he a bs c en c e of s p ec i fi cde ta i l s on the f i le re fe red to i n p a r a ' c ' of the ques t ion . Submi t ted ,

Please .

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4/210

requested to respond to Shri Bijan Ghosh on PM's behalf.

PAL, SECT P &

a y No (127-

INTERNAL

Shri Bijan Ghosh, Advocate of the Supreme Court had

written to PM (Flag 50/C) asking for the removal of the name of Netaji

Subash Chandra Bose from the list of war criminals. We had sought

MEA's advice in the matter and this has now been received and is at Flag

FIR.

2. The position is that the UN does not maintain any list of war

criminals but it does maintain records of the UN War Crimes Commission.

It is not known whether Netaji's name figures in this list or not. In any

case, according to MEA, the list is more in the nature of an archive rather

than an actionable list. There is thus, no benefit in even seeking to

establish whether Netaji's name features in such a list. MEA therefore

advise that no further action should be taken by us.

3. The above advice may be accepted and MEA may be

- l a ;

awicli,

(P.P. Shukla)

JS (P)19 Dec 98

44v -L. 44,41-1,M_ kviae

41 -n -t Af Mt-

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5/210

CORRESPONDENCE


6/210

!death of

MOST IMMEDIATEPARLIAkENT MATta

OUT TODAY

No.I/13013/34/96-IS(D.III)GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS

New DelhiDated:23.2.96

OFFICE MEMORANDUM

Please find enclosed a copy of Rajya SabhaStarred Question Dy. No.2198 due for answer on 6.3.96regarding disappearance/Notaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

It is requested that necessary information forframing reply to the question alongwith matters foranswering possible supplementaries by M.M., may please befurnished to this Ministry latest by 29.2.96

Deputy Secretary(IS.I)

1. DIE(Shri 11C.P. Singh, Jt. Director)North Block, New Delhi

2. Cabinet Secretariat(Shri S. Ramani,Jt, Secretary,Research & Analysis Wing),CGO Complex, New Delhi.

3. Ministry of External Affairs(Shri Ram Mohan, Jt. Secretary(LAC & Coord.). South Block,New Delhi.

Minister's Office

(Shri Arun Mathur, Director)South Block,New Delhi.


7/210

2t0 I! W W I SABILA0,74

cwEslIcnv FOR ORAL ANSWER

ParREF fi97

STARRED

QUESTION BRANCH

S.Q. Dy. No.. . . .

4 0 2 1 9 8Date

Place/ 11f

Dateff r.i. 19-2.-1996

Malkani Ni.P./4il7,4wrzt

SECP.ETARY-GENERALMVRN4,

YA SABHA, NEW DE LH OM 1T, f ft

, @ q t r i T i * V ; f 1 ,

er Rule 39 of the Rules of Pr ocedur e an d Con duct of Business,' I give notice of the followinv

rr 444 #rrci.-r #-4E11. Nziril 3 9 staira, fricif9f717 sum iikal

or or.tt . t a i Wa o r i t r r 0 1 '4 V i 6-3v-1996 ....................... Nar wit I

r of preferencefsiltlitiTM 141

Minister o f . . . .. . .. . . .. . . .. . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . Af f . . . . .. . . .. . . .. . . . .. . . .. . . .. . . . .. . . .. . . .. . .he p leased to s ta le :

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 441 -4-311 e ; T fc :

VM

Yours faithfullyP1ql4,

G s '---Wienib-eit/64(-11

Division No./141414 _206 .

a. 'Whether Government is aware that the circumstances of thedisappearance/death of Subhas Chandra Bose have not beenauthentically settled to this day;

b. whether Goverment would press the Governments of U.K.,U.S.A., Taiwan and Japan to make the confidextial findingsof their respective inquiries into the subject, public;

c. Whether the late mr. Nehru's 'secret' file on the subject,containing more than forty documents, at one time heldby Mr. Vohammed Yunus, will be retrieved and made public


8/210

,4

\ O

sliTT *it EFTORZt

PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE

0114

0 Fut lio onNEW DELHI - 110 011

This has reference to MHA OMNo.1/13013/34/96-IS(D.111) dated 23.2.1996regarding Rajya Sabha Starred Question No.2198 due

for answer on 6.3.1996 regarding Netaji Subhas

Chandra Bose.

2. We have no information on the subject othe r

than what would be available with MHA/MEA/Cabinet

Secretariat.

(ARUN MATHUR)

4/),, DIRECTOR

( c.

Shri A.K. Paitandy, Deputy Secretary(IS.I), MHA

PM0 UO No. qq,--)(1) 0 6 --NC February 29, 1996

t - i t l

hot-t s


9/210

V: .flE--rt rYi/9c

v-t31(1

MOST IMMEDIATE

OFFICE OF THE MINISTER OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS

Mrs. Emilie Schenkl Bose, widow of Netaji Subash Chandra

Bose passed away last n ight in Augsburg, Germany. She was 85.

The funeral is expected to t ake place on 18 March at Stadtbergen.

PM may kindly consider deputing Shri Madhav Singh Solanki

to represent Congress Party and Shri Debi Prosad Pal, Minister of

State for Finance to represent Government of India at the funeral.

PRIME MINISTER

(

(PRANAB MUKHERTEE)

13 March 1996

1714/3


10/210

MOST IMMEDIATE

OFFICE OF THE MINISTER OF EXTER NAL AFFAIRS

Mrs. Emilie Schenkl Bose, widow of Netaji Subash Chandra

Bose passed away last night in Augsburg, Germany. She was 85.

The funeral is expected to take place on 18 March at Stadtbergen.

PM may kindly consider deputing Shri Madhav Singh Solanki

to represent Congress Party and Shri Debi Prosad Pal, Minister of

State for Finance to represent Government of India at the funeral.

(PRANAB MUKHERJEE)

13 March 1996

PRIME MINISTER


11/210

4a) JAIL

111

4 013)

Ai\

\\.\

Pankaj Saran

Deputy Secretary

/\)

My dear Sir,

ake IRI

3RIR 41 thigicitt

RM1-110 011PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE

NEW DELHI -110 011

March 14, 1996

Ple as e fi nd e nc los ed a sea led c over ad dres se d to

Prof. Anita Pfaff containing a letter from Prime

Minister. An open copy of the letter is also enclosed.

It is requested if the cover could kindly be delivered

to Prof. Pfaff at the earliest.

Yours sincerely,

(Pank j Saran)

Shri S.K. Lambah,

Ambassador of India,

Bonn.

Copy to Foreign Secretary, MEA with a copy of PM's

letter.


12/210

w44,474,4-srti-r9. 11-l t

PRIME MINISTER

Ne w De l h i

March 13 , 1996

Dear P ro fe s sor P f a f f ,

I h av e l ea r nt wi th g r ea t s or r ow t he news of

the p a s s i n g away of Mrs . E m i l i e Schenkl-Bose . She

wa s on e of t h e p er s o ns wh o wa s c loses t t o Neta j i , an d

with her demise we h a ve l o s t a l ink wi th h i s tory .

She e spoused Ne ta j i ' s n o bl e c au s e a s he r own

an d f i rmly s t o o d b y h im t h rough al l the v ic i ss i tudes of

the s ac red s t ruggle fo r t he li be ra ti on of h i s

mothe r land .

P l e as e a c ce p t m y deepes t condolences on th i s

t rag ic loss .

Yours s incere ly ,

( v[P.V. Naras imha Rao]

Profe s sor A n i t a P fa f f HALDENWEG 23

86391-STADTBERGEN


13/210

cltI r f tn

DI/ 0 6

4 --x- 5

talko-m-r-DAI

OFFICE OF MINISTER OF STATE FOR FINANCE

(BANKING & INSURANCE)

As informed by Shri Pranab Kumar Mukherjee,

Minister for External Affairs, I have been deputed

to attend the funeral of the widow of late Netaji

Subhas Chandra Bose who has died in Germany. I have

already spoken to the Foreign Secretary, Shri

Salman Haidar in this connection who has assured me

that he will be coordinating the arrangements with

our Ambassador in Germany. I will be taking Shri

Satish Loomba, my Private Secretary for

facilitating me in various matters for this trip. I

am finalising my departure plans shortly and am

likely to leave for Germany on 16.3.1996 for the

solemn and sad occasion. I shall be returning back

via London to be able to attend to some other

outstanding matters for a day or two.

PM may very kindly approve the above.

(Debiprosad Pal)

Minister of State for Finance (BEd)

Hon ible P rime Minister


14/210

OFFICE OF MOS FINANCE(B&I)

The indicated tour programme was proposed by

the Hon'ble Minister of State for Finance before

leaving for Calcutta yesterday evening. He called me

up to say that he will not be visiting London owing

to pre -occupations here and inste ad will return to

India directly on 19th March, 1996 after the

funeral. The programme for London may, therfore,

kindly be treated as cancelled.

ts-c54_ Ni )

4.-4L

PS TO PM

N

(SATIaa=LOOMBA)

PS to MOS Finance

14.3.1996


15/210

MOST IMMEDIATE


PM has approved that Shri Debiprosad Pal, Minister

of State for Finance (B&I) would at tend the funeral of

Mrs Emilie Schenkl-Bose in Germany on March 18, 1996.

L.

PM has also appro ved that/Minister of State may be

accompanied by his Private Secretary.

We would be grateful if this would kindly be

conveyed to our Ambassador in Bonn so that the

necessary arrangements could be made at the earliest.

(Sujata Mehta)

Director

Director (FS0)/Joint Secretary (EW), MEA

PM() U0 No. ViC/ 10 etW/6 ;CC dated 14.3.1996

Copy to : PS to MOS for Finance (B&I).

4A,N14.3

C?,(i1(3

(Sujata Mehta)

Director


16/210

1 0 14 1

CRASH

No Bon 'Amb' 96-

AMBASSADOR OF INDIAAD EN AL IERALL FE 26 2 26 4

53113 BONN

1EL S4 05 11 3 - 05 11 4

FAX' 51 os i s

TELEX FISC,P Lie

CRASH CRASH

-

Ma rc h 11. 1996

From Indernha_y:A Bonn

To Fore n New

Delhi PR 99i2

FORF1GN SECRETARY FROM LAMRAH

RFPFATED

APS TO EAM Fax 301-1463

(EW) Fax 101-4416

JS (PM0) fax 301-6857

-SC'TION

617,'N'Y

Sit.aOperat .

Mrs Emilie Schenkl-Bose, widow of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose

and mother of Mrs. Anita Pfaff' passed away last night. She was 85.

Her 85 birtyhday was on December 26, The funeral plans are being

worked out by the family It is expected to take place on Monday

March 18 at Stadibergen.

UON4 icLAN( Satinder K 1 ambah)


17/210

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19/210

284 Brothers Against the Raj

investigate European politics and watched European politicians at work to

see , what this might teach him vis--vis the British. He looked into

municipal experiments in European cities, so that he might getideas about

the improvement of Calcutta) '1Some thought his view was shortsighted,

for it led, him to care little for the fate of other countries and peoples. He

was concerned deeply however for the fate and welfare of his friends."'

To helt4 facilitate commercial relations between India and European

countries, h worked with a Mr Otto Faltis and, as he wrote to Mrs Vetter,

. . . tog her we drew up a practical plan for bringing our two countries

together. e was to work at this end and I my

return. We were notgoing to do actual business. We would only help

business and other relations between our two countries. Later on. if we

wanted to dowhich we woul(J. onsider anew.'"Bose went on to ask t ,c aboutadvice of the Vetters the rel iabi li ty of Mr\

Faltis and the practicability of the scheme. The planned association was

established as the Indian\Central-European Society, with .some funds

supplied by Mr Faltis. The society was connected to the Vienna Chamber

of Commerce and helped make contact between European and Indian\

business firms.') ,

In addition to his interest in Austrian business contacts and the working

of the socialist municipality of VI ' na, Bose did watch the machinationset

closely. He wrote several articles on A stria, including one entitled 'The

Aust ria n Ri ddle, ' pu blished in the spri of 1934 . I n this art icl e, h e

mentioned that he had attended many politic I and religious -cum -political

demonstrations in Vienna during 1933 and 1 34, among them a socialist

rally, an Austrian Nazi meeting, a celebration o the 250th anniversary of

a victory over the Turks at which the para-mility Heimwehr marched,

and a CatholicCongress for all German-speaking tatholics in September

1933.121

From his Modern Reviewarticle, it seems that Bose was fascinated by

skills at political maneuvering and the figure he admired most on the

Austr ian scene was Herr E ngelbert Doll fuss. the h ad of the Aus trian

government. He watched with admiration as Dollt ,ss turned on the

Austrian Nazis and then the Socialists, in turn, and cont ined them, with

the help of the Heimwehr. Bose wrote,

Last year I was of the opinion that the Austrian Govemme were acting

contrary to the laws ofpolitical strategy by carrying on the s'tiggle on a

double front and that if they wanted to succeed, they should ma up with

one of the two opposing parties. I must confess that as a student of istory.

Ambassador ofIndia in Bondage

largely to the political sagacity displayedb

twelve months he has always acted in

shown any weakness in dealing wit

guilty of premature rashness in,4ction."2

Bose did not greatly lament the suspension ofparliamentary democracy in

Austria by Dollfuss. He eval died thepolitical parties and demonstrations

more by his assessment the virility, enthusiasm, and discipline they

showed than in terms any more enduringhuman values.'24He did seem

sorry that the Sod- ists had been pushed from the political scene and that

the govemme ad taken over the Vienna municipal government from

not showing more foresight.'"Bose de- y understood that the Austrian Nazishad infiltrated the govern-

ment . d were still powerful, but he underestimated their potential for

one group in the Austrian

bKazi Party assassinated Dollfuss.

When Bose returned to Vienna in June 1934, he had secured a contract

from the British publisher Lawrence Wishart to write a book on Indian

politics with a deadline later in the year, and he looked for a secretary, a

trustworthy person who could help him with the preparation of the book.

Through an Indian doctor in Vienna, Dr Mathur, Bose wa.s introduced to

OP Her paternal grandfather was a

shoemaker, her father a veterinarian. Her father was not eager for her to

have a formal education, but late in the First World War, he permitted her

to attend primary school and then begin secondary school. Displeased that

she was not learning grammar well, he sent her to a nunneryfor four years

to continue her education. She thought briefly of becoming a nun, but

dropped the idea. She attended two more schools for a year each and

completed her education when she was about twenty.'

By then it was the depression and she spent some time without ajob.1111

1111 4M1.1. 1111 111 1111 1111 1111 11111. 0 10 . 11111111111116eknew English well and could take shorthand_ She also had the necessary

typing skills. Miss Schenk!,a short, attractive, and li vely person, was one

whom Bose could trust. He was concerned with this because he was under

constant surveillance by the British Embassy, not only in Vienna. but

wherever he went in Europe.

For about three months. Bose worked daily on this book which was to

be published as The Indian Struggle 1920-1934. Usually he dictated to

Miss Schenkl and she then typed outthe test,or, infrequently, he wrote in

12,.14-

- 01 ,1r n 0 )

285

I never expected that they (the Government) woukk6e so successful in

overthrowing both the oppositionist parties. The credit for this belongs

4ierrDollfuss. During the last

fulness of time. He has never

'is political enemies nor has he been


20/210

286 Brothers Against the Raj Ambass ador o f India in Bondage287

longhand and she retyped the manuscript. Occasionally, he interrupted his

work on the long book to write short articles for newspapers or magazines.

He gathered some books and articles in his rooms in Vienna and did not do

any extensive library research on this work. She also translated articles

from German for him, for, though he was studying German, he was not yet

adept.'26

While he lived in Vienna, Bose never ate beef or smoked or drank. He

devoted some of his time to meditation, seeking privacy for this. At first

he lived in a hotel, but he shifted to rented rooms and usually had an extra

room for Indian acquaintances, students, or his nephew Asoke. Without

the usual contingent of servants. Bose had to do more things for himself in

Europe. Among other things, he proved to be, according to Asoke, an

excellent cook of Indian dishes, particularly chicken preparations and

luchis.'"

The Indian Struggle is Bose's effort to give his version of the recent

political history of India. It is concerned especially with the changing

strategies of the Congress and the Raj. It does bring in a brief account of

the historical background, but does not attempt any searching social or

economic analysis of the nationalist movement. It contains sharply etched

views of the top leadership of the nationalist movement. It is important not

only as Bose's view but also for its impact later on nationalist leaders who

were finally able to read it. Interspersed with the political narrative are

many vignettes of Bose's personal experiences in the movement, in prison,

and interacting with Indian and European figures.

The book contained praise as well as sharp criticism of Gandhi. Bose

saw Gandhi as the head of an older, reformist group of nationalists, backed

by wealthy capitalists. He saw a dichotomy partly between the haves and

the have-nots among Indian nationalists: It was as if he were indirectlyborrowing Marxist categories, identifying his political allies and himself

with the masses of Indians, and seeing Gandhi, who he admitted was

accepted by the masses as their leader, as the head of the oppressive forces.

He viewed Gandhi, the Gandhian high command, and the Government of

India as restraints on the radical and militant nationalist forces with which

he identified. These radical forces had a 'rebel mentality,' rejecting the

authority of the government, but also questioning the authority and

wisdoin of the dominant leadership of the nationalist movement.'

One feature of the Congress to which Bose most objected was the lack

of criticism of Gandhi. through his various twists and turns. Bose wrote:

Besides the influence which the f irst three leaders [C.R.Das.Motilid Nehru.

and Lajpar Railhad in their own provinces, their importance was also due

to the fact that they were the three outstanding intellectual stalwarts of the

4

Congress. Many of the blunders committed by the Mahatma as a political

leader could have been avoided if they had been in a position to advise him.

Since the death of these three giants. the leadership of the Congress had

fallen to a low intellectual level. The Congress Working Committee today

have character and courage, patriotism and sacrifice. But most of them have

there are few among them who have the capacity to think for themselves or

the desire to speak out against the Mahatma when he is likely to take a wrong

Although they undoubtedly supported Gandhi through thick and thin, was

i t accurate or pol it ica ll y astute to label such as Maulana Azad,

C. Rajagopalachari, and Sardar Patel as operating at a low intellectual

level"?Bose did try to come to terms with Gandhi's hold on the masses, which

none had been able to challenge or break. Bose wrote.As we have already seen, a large and inf luential section of t he intelligents ia

was against him, but this opposition was gradually worn down through the

enthusiastic support given by the masses. Consciously or unconsciously,

the Mahatma fully exploited the mass psychology of the people. jus t as

Lenin d id the same th ing in Russia. Mussol ini in I taly and Hit ler in

Germany. But in doing so. the Mahatma was using a weapon which was sure

to recoil on his head. He was exploiting many of the weak traits in the

character of his countrymen which had accounted for India's downfall to a

large extent. After all, what has brought about India's downfall in the

material and political sphere? It is her inordinate belief in fate and in the

backwardness in the science of modern warfare, the peaceful contentment

engendered by her latter-day philosophy and adherence to Ahimsa (N on-

violence) carried to the most absurd length. In 1920. when the Congressbegan to preach the political doctrine of non -co-operation, a large numbe

. of Congressmen who had accepted the Mahatma not merely as a Politica

Messiah.

So Bose saw himself on the side of reason, science, and modern values

even though he was privately very religious. Later in his book. Bose

condemned numerous blunders of the Mahatma, especially Gandhi's lack

of planning for the second Round Table Conference. At the root o

Gandhi's errors was confusion between the Mahatma's two roles as

v- 1 political leader and world preacher. Perhaps Bose never thought to

consider that Gandhi's very success may have resulted in part from the

Mahatma's effective fusion of religion and politics, or that his ow

popularity in Bengal may have been related to a religious aura tha


21/210

,NITI .SH KUMAR,M.P.

-out (Lok Sabha)

CHAIRMAN

ANDING COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE

st ti

toren Ala

Respected Pr ime Min is te r ,

Off. : 118, Parliament House AnnexNew Delhi - 110001Phone : 3034785

Res. : B-5, M.S. Flats,

Baba Kharak Singh Marg,

New Delhi - -110001Phones : 3755448, 3718486

March 6 , 1996

I have r ecei ve d t he enclosed l e t t e r o fProf . Samar Guha, Ex-M.P, regarding d isappearanceo f Neta j i Subhas Chandra Bose. I am se nd ing t hesame t o you with a request for necessary act ioni n the mat ter .

Wi th k ind regards,

Shri P.V. Na ras imha Rao ,Prime Minister o f Ind ia ,NEW DELHI

ReceiptSection

Dy. No..

Oak

Yours s incere ly ,

( NITISH KUMAR )


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D e a r

7 t of & m a t P u 4-aF o r m e r M E M B E R O F P A R L I A M E N T

C h a i r m a nP r i v i l e g e C o m m i t t e e

( L o k S a b h a )

Shri Nitish Kumar,

8/2, CENTRAL PARK

CALCUTTA -700062

Ph.one:72-1600

14 Feb 1996

i t i s t h o year o f th e beginning o f t he celebration of Birth

C e n t e n a r y of N e t a j i S ub h as C h a n d ra Bose, who has been universally

hailed by our countryman as

freedom struggle. But it is

for last 50 years the Govt.

the greatest revolutionary hero of our

a matter of extreme national regret that

of India's political manauvering

succeeded to k e e p th e a n s w e r o f the q u e s t i o 6 , - w h a t r e a l l y h a p p e n e d

t o N e t a j i - a s d e l ib e r a te ly h u s h e d up.

Th e Govt. of Morarji Basal took up the issue of Disappearance

of Netaji Subhas C ha nd ra Bo se t o d i s appr ov e b o t h the Reports of the

Shah Nawaz Committee and Khosla Commission by making a statement on

the floor o f L o k Sabha i n 1 9 7 8 . H is G ov t . was thinking o f h o l d i n g

a H i g h L e v e l I n v e s t i g a t i v e I n q u i r y t o f i n a l l y r e s o l v e the mystery

about Disappearance of Netaji since Aug 18, 1945.

Thereafter, the Govt. of Shri V.P.Singh and the Govt. of

Shri Chandra Sekhar, on being asked by the President of India,

Shri R.Venkatraman, decided t o t ak e u p the issue of h o l d i n g

I n v e s t i g a t i v e I nquiry a b o u t N e t a j i . B u t due to unexpected political

changes it could not be implemented by any of the three Govts.

Before his retirement,

reowested the present Prime

up the matter of high level

President of India, Shri R.Venkatraman,

Minister, Shri P.V.Narasimha Rao to take

Investigative I n q u i r y to finally settle

the issue of Disappearance of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. But these

requests still remained unresponded.

The Asiatic Society of Calcutta found many vital clues in Russia

to positively believe that N e t a j i S ub h as C h a nd r a Base succeeded to

escape to Russia under the cover of a make-believe Tokyo report of

his aircresh death at Taihoku (Taipei) on Aug 18, 1945. But very

unfortunately, being counselled by the Govt. of India,

Govt. refused to give free access to the Research Team

Society to go through their preserved archives to find

the Russian

of the Asiatic

out documents

and other relevant reports about Netaji's presence in Russia after

fall of Japan in the last Great War. This Team found a very important

article published i n ' E c h o Planety' o f Mos cow i n 1 9 9 2 , w r i t t e n b y a


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Russian Scholar, V inogradov, which reported that Subhas Chandra Bose

was l iving i n the city o f OMSK i n the area o f I rkhusk i n Siberia s inc

his entry into Russia.

I would earnest ly request you t o raise the matter i n theParl iament dur ing i ts ensu ing Sess ion i n the fo rm o f a Call-Attention o r any other appropriate Mot ion t o protest againstthe calculated re luctance o f the Govt . o f India t o wr i te to theGovt . o f Russia for permitt ing the Asiatic Society 's ResearchTeam to continue i ts research work in Russian Archives forf inding documents and other reports on Netaji i n Russia.

I wou ld also urge yo u t o take a l l ef fect ive s teps to maket he G o vt . o f India ag re e t o immediate ly request the Govt . o f

Russia t o enable the Research Team of the Asiat ic Society t ocomplete i ts r esearch . work on Netaji i n the Russian Archivesspecial ly i n the Archives o f the KGB, Commintern and the former Presidents o f Soviet# Russia .

I would further appeal t o you t o take up t he issue ofNetaji 's Disappearance i n your coming Elect ion Campaign byhighlighting the matter i n your Elect ion Manifesto.

I do believe that your party wi l l certainly feel i t as a great

patriotic duty to take up wi th the G ov t. t he issue o f f inally settl in

th e question, - what real ly happened to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.With good w ishes ,

5hri Nitish KumarM.P

New Delhi

Yours sincerely,

( SAM AR GUHA )

PS: I am enclosing the two papers for ready reference to the issueo f Netsji 's Disappearance.


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v())

4,7/3

r

o

Is

7t -TM

PRIME MINISTER

Dear Shri Nitish Kumar,

New Del hiMarch 14, 1996

I ha ve r ec ei ve d your \l et t e r of Ma rch 6, 19 96

enc losing a le t te r f rom Professor Samar Guha regarding

Net aji Subha s Chandr a Bos e.

With regards,

Shri Nitish Kumar, MPVill. H akikatpurP.O. BakhtiarpurPatna (Bihar)

Yours sincerely,

(P.V. Nara simha Rao)


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7a:A

7t -TM

PRIME MINISTER

New DelhiMarch 14, 1996

Dear Shri Nitish Kumar,

I have received your le t ter of March 6, 1996

enclosing a le tter from Professor Samar Guha regarding

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

With regards,

Shri Nitish Kuma r, MPViii. HakikatpurP.O. BakhtiarpurPatna (Bihar)

No. 915/11/C/6/96-Pol

Yours sincerely,

Na rasimha Rao)

dated: 22.3.19%

Copy alongwith a copy of the letter under referenceforwarded to Secretary, Department of Cukure for action

as appropriate.

(Pankaj Saran)Deputy Secretary

e-

oyc


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E. BALANANDAN,MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT

\JYA SABHA)

Off: 12 ,Windsor Place ,NEW DELHI -11000 1.

LEADER,CPI(M) GROUP PHONE: 333430 6

No , EB/ /F-1/96 Date:- ,L3 .3.96.Dear thri Narasimha Rao,

I am enclosing herewith a letter dated 7th March,1996 addressed t o Shri Saypei Sibtey Razi, Union Ministero f State for Home Affa irs , from Shri Samar Guha, Ex,Member of Pa rl iament a n d a veteran Parl iamentarian o fthe yester years on the quest ion o f e lquiry into themysterious disappearance of Netaj i Subhash Chandra Bose.I t appears Shri Razi has ruled out any f l irther enquiryinto the matter, Shri Samar Guha has drawn attention

of Mr. . Razi towards the commitments made by two earl ierGovemmeits headed by late Morarji Desa i and ShriChandrasekhar respectively about possible re - investigationinto the disappearance of Subhash Chandra Bho se.I would request y ou t o see that the matter is not closeda s appears from Mr.. Razi ' s s tatenent i n vie , o f verystrong sentiments s t i l l prevailing among the peopleabout Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose ' s disappearance.

With regards,

, i 4 71 -4 4- 4

Yours s incerely,

Bhcl:. a /a. ( E. SWAN AN

Shr i P .V. Naras imha Rao,Prime Minister of India,NEW DELHI-1100kt.

r

t/1 Dy .


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0 / C.5-12712a t g t i k l

F o r m e r

M E M B E R O F P A R L I A M E N T

C h a i r m a n

P r i v i l e g e C o m m i t t e e

( L o k S a b h a )

D e a r S a y e d S i b t e y R a z i ,

8/2, CENTRAL PARK

CALCUTTA -700 032

Phone: 72-1600

7 Ma r c h 1 99 6

SPEED PO

I f i n d i n the U N I R e p o r t f r o m D e lh i that yo u h a v e t o l d R aj y a

S ab ha o n M a r c h 6 , 1 99 6 t h a t the G o v t . w i l l n o t hol d a n y f u r t h e r i nqui

t o res ol v e t ! , e issu e o f d i s a p p e a r a n c e o f Ne ta j i Su b h a s C h an d r a B o se

a s yo u a r g u e that th e G o v t . h a d d on e t h o r o u g h i nvest i gat i ons i n to

t he m a t t e r b y hol di ng t wo i n q u i r i e s - o n e b y Sh a h N aw az I nqui ry

C o m m i t t e e a n d the o t h e r b y K h o s l a J u d i c i a l C o m m i s s i o n .

I am a fra i d that your c o n c e r n e d of f i c e r s f ai l e d t o p o s t yo u w i ththe fact o f th e s t a t e m e n t made b y Morarj i De sa i , t he P r i m e Minister o

I n d i a i n 1 9 7 8 , o n th e f l o o r o f L o k Sa bh a o n S e p t 3 . I n hi s s t e t e m e n t

P r i m e Minister Mo ra rj i D e s a i said

" S h a h Na wa z C o m m i t t e e a n d K h o s l a C o m m i s s i o n he l d t her e p o r t o f N e t a j i S u b h a s C h a n d r a B o s e ' s d e a t h a s true. S i n c et h e n r easonabl e d o u b t s h a ve b e e n c a s t o n t h e co rre ctn e ssr e a c h e d i n the t w o r e p o r t s a n d v a r i o u s i m p o r t a n t c o n t r a d i c -t i o n s e n d th o se rec ords , G o v t . f i n d i t d i f f i c u l t t o a c c e p tt hat the e a r l i e r co n clu sio n s ar e d e c i s i v e . "

Mo ra rj i D esai wa s m a k i n g a mo ve f or a n I nvest i gat i ve I nqui ry ( noa 'public i nqui ry') b y g o i n g t h r o u g h a l l the d o c u m e n t s c o n n e c t e d w i th

the v a r i o u s i n q u i r i r i e s ma de b y the G o v t s . o f USA, UK, T a i w a n a n d l a t

b y the G o v t . o f In d i a . B u t b e f o r e a n y f i n a l deci si on g o u ld b e t a k e n

f or i n s t i t u ti n g a c o m m i t t e e fo r a f r e s h I nvest i gat i ve In q u i ry, th e

G ov t . o f Mo ra rj i D e s a i was h e d t o resi gn.

I w o u l d d r a w y a u x a t te n t i o n t h a t o n b e i n g a d v i s e d b y the t h e n

P r e s i d e n t o f India, Shri R . V enk at r am an, t h e G o v t . o f S hri V . P . S i n g h a

t he G ov t . o f S hri C h a n d r a S e k h e r a g r e e d t o hol d f r e s h I n v e s t i g a t i v eI nqui ry t o res ol v e the c ont i nui ng q u e st io n o f d i s a p p e a r a n c e o f N e t a j i

S u b h a s C h a n d r a B o s e .

M i n i s t e r o f e x t e r n a l A ffai r s o f t he G o v t . o f S hri C h a n d r a S e k h a r

i n f o r m e d me i n wri t i n g i n a l e t t e r :

" N o . 4 8 9 / D M / 9 1 D e p u t y M i ni gt er f or E x t ernal Affa i rs

I NDI A

D e a r Prof. S a m a r j e e , M a r c h 2 6 , 1 9 9 11 . K i ndl y r e f e r t o y o u r l e t t e r o f 2 6 t h Fe b 1 99 1 a d d r e s s e d t o Sh r iD evi La l c o nc e r ni n g h i g h l e v e l i nv e s ti g at i on i n to ' s e c r e t d o c u m e n t s '


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(7) ,t c y CJamat ,Cubc2

F o r m e r M E M B E R O F PARL IAMENT

C h a i r m a nP r i v i l e g e C o m m i t t e e

( L e k S a b h a )

8 / 2 , ( 1 . 1`111tA I P A R K

CALCU1TA-700 032

Phone : 72- MO

- 2-

on th e d i s a p p e a r a n c e o f N e t a j i S ub h as C h a n d r a B o s e .

2 . I w o u l d l i k e t o a s s u r e y o u that t h i s M i n i s t r y h a s a l r e a d yi n i t i a t e d f o l l o w- u p a c t i o n i n t h i s r e g a r d . We ar e a w a i t i n g resultst o our i n q u i r i e s .

3 . We s h a l l k e e p yo u i n f o r m e d o f a n y f u r t h e r d e v e l o p m e n t s .

W i t h k i n d r e g ar d s ,Y o u r s sincerely,

ed/- D i g v i j a y S i n g h "

But unfortunately, b e c a u s e o f s u d d e n r e s i g n a t i o n o f t h e G o v t . ofh r i C h a n e r a S e k h a r th e mo ve o n a h i g h l e v e l i n q u i r y a b o u t d i s a p p e a r a n c e

f N e t a j i could no t p r o c e e d t o w a r d s i t s f u l f i l m e n t.

The then P r e s i d e n t o f India, Shri R. V e n ka t ra m a n , co n t i n u e d hi s e f f o r t

o r h o l d i n g a f r e s h I n v e s t i g a t i v e I n q u i r y on th e i s s u e o f d i sa p p e a r a n ce

f N e t a j i , when S h r i P . V . N a r e s i m h a Rao t o o k u p t he o f f i c e o f t h e P r i m e

M i n i s t e r o f India.

I n a l e t te r the t h e n P r e s i d e n t i n f o r m e d me s

" D e a r Shri Samar Gu h a , May 29, 1 9 9 2

I am i n receipt o f yo u r l e t t e r d t. M a y . 2 q . I s h a l l p u r su et he ma t t er wi t h t h e P r i m e M i n i s t e r .

W i t h k i n d r e g a r d s ,Y o u r s s incerely,

sd/- R . V e n k a t r a m a n "

I n v i e w o f a l l t h e se d o c u m e n t s a n d facts I ho pe t h a t t he p r e s e n t G o v t

w i l l f e e l o b l i g e d , i o p u r s u a n c e o f th e move the pr e v i ou s G o v t s . , t o h o l d

f r e s h Investigative I n q u i r y t o f i n a l l y r e s o l v e th 3 s e n s i t i v e i s s u e a b ohe m y s t e r y s hrouding t h e f a t e o f Netej i S ub ha s C ha n dr a B os e - t he g r e a t e

e v o l u t i o n a r y h e r o o f t he s t r u g g l e f or I n d i a n L iber ation.

W i t n r e g a r d e ,

u y e d 5 5 b te y R a z iM i n i s t e r o f Sta te

ome A f f a i r s

0 1 N o r t h B l o c , ND 1

Y o u r s s incerely,

( SAMAR GUHA )


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/9147

(J\i)

t)17

44-,41.-1,1

T t i4 rPRIME MINISTER

Neu) DelhiAp tit 2, 1996

Dem Shti Ba ia. nandan ,

1 have ,tecaved y out t et tet o6 Match 23, 1996 encto6ing

a. copy o6 te t te t 6 tom Plo6 . Samat Ga la tegalding enqui,ty

into the disappeatance o6 Netafi Subhco Chandta Bose.

With tegatc16,

Shsi E. Batanandan, MP12,Windso t Mae

New Delhi

Y0(116 6 i n c e t e l y ,

rIPA). Nata.6imha Rao]


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0 4: f W I*

PRIME MINISTER

New DelhiAptil 2, 1996

'Peat Shli Balanandan,

I have teceived yout tettet o6 Match 23, 1996 enclo6ing

a copy o6 tett et titom Pto6. Samat .Guha tegatding enquiry

into the di6appeatance 06 Netaji Subha6 Chandta 8o 6e.

With tegatd6,

Yout6 bincetety,

e Aret, A(P.V. Nawaimha Rao]

Shia E. Balanandan, MP12, Wind6ot PlaceNew Delhi

No. 915/11/C/6/96-Pol dated: 22.4.19%

Copy with a copy of the letter under replyforwarded to Herne Secretary (Shri K. Padmanshhalah)

for action as appropriate.

IL3(Arun Mathur)

Direct or


31/210

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fr) )1.-%c4, i t I i i ir 44.e-f filtA

c4, /A x - h l I i / 4 9 ( r 7 7

70 . / 4 / {4 41 -4"V- e- 4'44 1A -N 4 1 /L a 4 L , f h)c A(.1,1449 -e_

bvk k 4 a, Ale

P-L- a / 4 4-1 /74s -

A.y/A,/.

PrnIr2

ASHIS C. RAY

AL

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ASHIS C. RAY

F-162 Malcha Marg

New Delhi - 110021.

8 March, 1996.

Shri K. A. Nambiar

Defence Secretary

Government of India

South Block

New Delhi.

Dear Shri Nambiar,

I have been trying very hard to pave the w ay for the remains of

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, lying at Tokyo's Renko-ji temple, to

be brought to India. This effort appea rs to be steadily bearing

fruit. I am indebted to the Government of India for the co-operation

and support that has been extended to me.

Recently, I was able to make public some previously classified

documents, which testified the Russian position that Netaji never

went to the Soviet Union in or after 1945; and Lherefore, further

endorsed the fact that he died as a result of a plane crash atTaihoku on 18 August, 1945.

Those who argue against the plane crash story, cite statements by

Lord Wavell (then British Viceroy of India) and an October 1945

British cabinet meeting which had "What to do with Bose?" on the

agenda as proof that the British government did not believe the

report of his death at Taihoku.

However, an investigation carried out by a team led by a Colonel

F. G. Figgess established that Netaji had indeed died of burns at

Taihoku. Col. Figgess was then attached to General MacArthur's

headquarters at Tokyo; and the inquiry was handled with an

American intelligence officer working under GHQ, SCAP (Supreme

Commander Allied Powers). I wonder if this report is in your files.

If so, and as it would only help to clear up an unfortunate confusion,

I should like to release the same to Indian media.

Your kind assistance would be most helpful.

Yours sincerely,

41,

Pl. 44,ti/444 xt/JfAifr.i,d(hp;.-ff.


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34/210

A/(9

C5a m a t g u

F o r m e r

M E M B E R O F P A R L I A M E N T

C h a i r m a n


( I .ok S a b h a )

H.DADeve GowdaH o n Y b l e P r i m e M i n i s t e r o f I n d i aS o u t h B l o cNew D e l h i 1 1 0 0 1 1

D e a r S h r i Deve G o w d a j i ,

n i f t l

8/2, CENTRAL PARK

CALCUTTA -700 03 7

Phon e: 72-1600

July 18, 1996

SPEED POST

I d e s i r e d t o meet y ou a t R a j Bhawan on the o c c a s s i o n o f y o u r f i r s t

v i s i t t o C a l c u t t a as t he P ri m e Minister. B u t o u r f r i e n d s i t .

I w o ul d h av e b e t t e r d i r e c t l y c o n t a c t e d t h e C hief S e c r e t a r y o f o u r S t a t e

G o v t . fo r a r r a n g i n g my m e e t i n g wit h y o u .

Y o u r C a l c u t t a v i s i t h a s c r e a t e d good i m p r e s s i o n i n t he m i n d s o f t he

W.B p e o p l e . T hey h a ve w a r ml y appr ec i at ed y o u r v i s i t t o Ne t a j i Bhawan and

g a r la n d i ng t he speci al p o r t r a i t o f Ne t a j i w h i : h r e c e iv e d w i d e p i c t o r i a l

p u b l i c i t y i n a l l C a l c u t t a d a i l i e s .

Though y o u r s p e e ch o n Ne t a j i has been appr ec i at ed, but i t h a s a lso

c r e a t e d some m i s u n d e r s t a n d i n g i n t h e m i n d s o f the W.B p e o p l e b ec a us e o f

your r e f e r e n c e t o N e t a j i g i v i n g an i m p r e s s i o n t hat as i f y o u a c c e p t e d t h e

u n c o n f i r m e d T o k y o R a d i o News a b o u t Ne t a j i ' s a l l e g e d a i r c r a s h d e a t h a tT a i h o k u ( pr esentl y T a i p e i o f T a i w a n ) o n Aug 18, 1 94 5 a s t r u e .

Th e ques t i on of N e t a j i ' s d i s a p p e a r a n c e s t i l l r e m a i n e d a m y s t e r i o u s

ques t i on with t he p e o p l e o f India. T h i s i s b e c a u s e :

i ) Ma h at ma G a n d h i , t i l l h e e m b ra c e d h i s M a r t y r d o m , c ont i nued t o

p u b l i c l y d i s b e l i e v e the report o f Ne t a j i ' s d e a t h i n t he a l l e g e d a i r c r a s h .

i i ) P andi t j aw har l al N e h r u s a i d i n w r i t i n g j u s t a f ew m o n th s b e f o r e

hi s deat h, that " . . . t h e r e i s no p r e c i s e a n d d i r e c t p r o o f o f N e t a j i Subhas

C h a n d r a Bo ' s d e a t h i n the a l i e n e d

ki i i ) I n 1 97 8 the t h e n P r i m e a M i ni ster o f I n d i a , M o r a r j i D e s a lt a n n o u n

4 i n t h e L ok Sabha :" S h a h N aw az C o m m i t t e e an d K h o s l a C o m m i s s i o n held t h e r e p o r t

o f N e t a j i Su b ha s C h a n d r a B o s e ' s d e a t h as t rue. S i n c e t h e n r e a so n ab l ed o u b t s h a v e b e en c a s t on t he c o r r e c t ne s s r e a c h e d i n th e t wo r e p o r t sand v a r i ou s i m p or t a nt c o n t r a d i c t i o n s i n t h e t e s t i m o n y o f t h e w it n es sh a ve b e en n o t i c e d . 5omu f u r t h e r c o n t e m p o r a r y o f f i c i a l d o c u m e n t a r yr e c o r d s h a v e a l s o become available. I n t h e l i g h t o f t h o s e d o u b t s an dc o n t r a d i c t i o n s a n d t h o s e r e c o r d s , G o v t . f ind i t d i f f i c u l t t o a c c e p tthat t he e a r l i a r c onc l us i ons a r e decisive."

T h i s i s th e l a t e s t p o s i t i o n o f t h e G o v t . o f I ndi a a b o u t t h e q u e s t i o n

d i s a p p e a r a n c e o f N e t a j i S ub ha s C h a n d r a B o s e .fe9?P c

2 /


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.g tof &mat gtd-aF o r m e r

M E M B E R O ' F P A R L I A M E N T

C h a i r m a n


( L o k S a b h a )

8/2, CE NT RAL PARK

CALCUTTA -700 032-

Phone : 72-1600

i v ) T he f o r m e r P r e s i d e n t o f I n d i a , S h r i R . V e n k a t r a m a n , a s k e d i n

writ ing t he t h re e s u c c e s s i v e P r i m e M i n i s t e r s , Shri V. P. Si n g h , Shri C h a n

S e kh a r a nd S h r i P . V . N a r a s i m h a R ao , on e a f t e r anot her , t o hold an

' I n v e s t i g a t i v e I n q u i r y' t o f i n a l i s e the s e n s i t i v e i s s u e o f ' d i s a p p e a r a n c

o f N e t a j i Su b h as C h a n d r a B os e'. Th o u g h th e G o vt . o f S h r i S i n g h a n d

Shri Ch a nd r a S e k ha r i n i t i a t e d p o s it iv e mo ve s i n t h i s r eg a rd , y e t t h e y

c o u l d ' t c o m p l e t e t he i r e f f o r ts , b e c a u s e o f s u dd e n f a l l o f t h e i r G o u t s .

U n f o r t u n a t e l y , a s S h r i P . V . N a r a s i m h a Ra o r e m a i n e d s i l e n t o v e r t h e i s s u eS h r i R . V e n k a t r a m a n w r o t e t o h i m a g a i n t o i n s t i t u t e a n I n v e s t i g a t i v e

I n q u i r y t o f i n a l l y s et tl e t he ques t ion o f d i s a p p e a r a n c e o f Netaji a f e w

d a y s b e f o re h i s r e t i r e m e n t . B u t S h r i Ra o d i d no t r e s p o n d .

v ) A c a s e r e t a r d i n g t he ques t ion o f d i s a p p e a r a n c e o f Netaji i s

p e n d i n g b e fo r e t he Supreme C o u r t c h a l l e n g i n g t he d e c i s i o n of th e G o v t . o

I n d i a t o a w a r d ' F o s t h u m u s B h a r a t R a t n a ' t o N e t a j i S ub h as C h a n d r a B o s e .

I ho pe y ou w i l l a s k your c o n c e r n e d S e c r e t a r y t o s e e k i n f o r m a t i o n

a b o u t t i e i s s u e o f d i s a p p e a r a n c e o f N e t a j i an d continued r e p r e s e n t a t i o n st o th e G o v t . t o h o l d an I n v e s t i g a t i v e In q u iry t o f i n a l l y s e t t l e t he

q u e s t i o n .

I d e s i r e t o avail s u i t a b l e o p p o r t u n i t y t o me e t y o u i n D e l h i t o p l a c

b e f o r e y o u a l l f a c t s , a b o u t t he i s s u e o f d i s a p p e a r a n c e o f N e t a j i Subhas

C ha n dr a B os e a nd o u r n a t i o n a l r e s p o n s i b i l i t y t o r e s o l v e i t .

W i t h warm r e g a r d s an d n a m a s k a r ,

Y o u r s s i n c e r e l y ,

( SAMAR GUHA )


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AETT9' i f WTETtFri


- 110 011

NEW DELHI - 110 011

Please find enclosed for action as appropriate acopy of letter da ted IS July, 1996 addressed to the Prime Ministerby Prof . Samar Guha, former MP regarding disappearance of Net aji Subhash Chandra Bose.

,1(Arun Mat hur)

Direct or

Home Secretary (Shri K. Padmanabhaiah)

PM0 U.O. No. 915/11/C/6/96-Pol dated: fA.1996

eA0 4-A."1

W


37/210

xz6

Dear Prof. Guha,

DRAFT

I have received your letter of July 18, 1996

regarding the disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.

With regards,

Yours sincerely,

PM

Prof. Samar Guha.

.9

1,\>to Rs)

Yours sincerely,

PM

Po( Zp(- 63)w 4 hrr9, 7- -- 'AI A L I

14 14".44- campfr,A4 Aqt .P"+#4

Or; ( M C k 1.1.5" PM Re.ori ua

1), )

V ? -)

Mr., low,

.v i l k It liO'L


38/210

\!5,. Miafikveicippci,

My dear Prime Minister,

Phone: 08194 /2255

'VINAY

' V P ExtensioCHITRADURGA-577 50

(Karnataka State22nd Oct lc96

Kindly find enclosed copy of my letter along- '

with its enclosure addressed to Sri Shankar Dayal

Sharmaji, President Of India. It speaks for i-%self.

I strongly feel that you should take interest

_personally in this matter to see that truth is

found out regarding Netajils death and published.

Thanking you with Narm

Yours si9ceFly,

((At,.rIO'AtTv7GAPPA)

Sri H.D. Deve Gowda,Prime Minister,Government of ,India,New Delhi.

V.Rem

DJ(

Data

' c")


39/210

;

22nd Oct 1996

My dear President,

I have received the enclosed copy of the letter

addressed to you. It refers to the death of Netaji

Subhas Chandra Bose and the mystery sorrounding it

as also the indifference and apathy towards the

subject by the government of India P l l these 50 year

and the farce of enquiries made in this behalf.

I agree with what is stated in the letter.

Let me not go in to the causes and peo le responsible

for this deplorable attitude of the

ment toards this great fighter for India's Freedom.

T have a suspicion thrlt this indifference shown

towards both Ketaji 3ubhns Chandra Bose and 1,ardar

Patel is motivated. That is enough.

But history requires that the Indian governments4ould have enqutries made as suggested in the last

portion of the letterland to approach the variols

grovernmetsIT strongly feel it is necessary and our

3uty is due towards one of the Greatest Freedom Fighter.

- I would he greatful for a reply,

With uegarde,

'r. Shankar Dayal Sharma,

resident of India,

)w Delhi.

,py to: Sri H.D. Deve Gowda, ,

r i -J M G M 11 .1 -l l.VJ. v 4 . 4 .1 /% 1 /0 . 9

Yours sincer:

(3.1,7I1TALIr7APPA)

A

.4 41'0It'eM 1) .6.11:ht 4 i f i s ) 4 e ) I f i tYmt

Sri I.K. (10,ral,

Minister fir Poririn Affairs

New Delhi. ,

t

, '14D.41-16 1141. 111-12biC1.112 01. .


40/210

\

To

Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma

President o f IndiaRastrapat i BhavanNow Delhi

Respected Pres ident ,

We are now on the threshold o f the Bir th Centenary o f

NeLaj l 5uL)ha& Lhandra U U L a l . Now 1u L i o L imo LhuL Lho poop lo koow,

what real ly ha p p en e d t o NeLaj l .

I T . M r BURNING QUESTION

For the las t f i f t ; years Indian peop le a re anxious t o Know

a l l about Netaj i 's enigmat ic d isappearance and destiny.

We sum up be low our puzzles over 'so ca l led ev idence' d ished

out for decades for publ ic consumption about reports o f a l leged

death o f Notaj i a nd we now d e pe nd o n your w isdom t o i n i t i a t e

t ransparent act ion t o reso lve the last ing conundrum.

INFORMATION AND EVIDENCE ON THE ISSUE OF N E T A J I ' S DISAPPEARANCE

I . On Augwf t 23 , 104,, Tokyo Radio announced that Subhas

Chandra Bo! ;e pori hed i n Ai r -crash a t Taihoku; his body ha d been

f lown t o Japan.

. A later broadcast by the same Radio announced that h is body

was cremated a t Ia ihoku. The two contradictory br o uc k; a st s, t hu s

ra ised a mist o f an ab i n i t i o suspic ion.

3 . I t i s publ ic ly known that Mahatma Gandhi , Pandi t Madan Mohan

Maluviya, Maulana A b u l K a la m A za d a n d e v e n Pandi t Jawhar la l Nehru

1


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(at that s tage . ) - did not t rent

6andhi j i and Malaviyaj i ha i l naked Wien fami ly i n Calcuttn "not Lo

perform Sradh Ceremony" .

The AICC i n i t s f i r s t Sess ion (af ter 1942) decl ined t o

.Adupt, an y obituary resolut ion on Netaj i .

thin Tokyo report. I n foot

4 . On January 2 , 1946 Gandhi j i made a public statement: " I

bel ieve Netaji i s a l ive. He i s h id ing somewhere".

Gandhi j i later met Habibur Rahman, but he never swerved f rom

his convict ion that Netaj i 's death, as repor ted, was no t t rue and

i t was a camouf lage.

I n 19 89 a d o cu me n t wau found i n the Pr inceton Universi ty,

USA. Accord ing t o this dociment o f 22nd July 1946, Mahatmaj i ha dneve r a l tered his bel ief i n Netnji be ing a l ive and i n Russia.

b . Iwo entr ies i n Lord Wave l l ' s ( then V iceroy o f India) 'Diary'

recorded that the V iceroy did not t rust the Tokyo Report o f

f lot io ' t . ; douth.

STUDIOUS SILENCE

U. The Government o f Japan did not o f f i c i a l l y conf i rm Netaj i 's

reported death i n 1945.

7 . Nor did the Govt . o f U.K o r the Govt . o f Wave l l i n India

issue any o f f i c i a l conf i rmat ion o f the a l leged event o f Netaj i 's

death.

8 . Four separate on - the -spot inquir ies a t Taihoku were carr ied

out immo( i iaLoly af ter the report o r the a l leged a ircrash death o f

Iho o wu ro by

; I ) (Innl. Mac Arthnr o f the U.S.Paci f ic Army;

b ) Adml . Mounth . IL Ion, Chief o f the ! . ; .E .Au lan A l l ied A rmy;

c ) HI i t i n Global counter Intel l igence - Combined Serv ices

Intel l igence Cent re (CSDIC) ; and ,

d ) Ma yo r o f Taipei (Taihoku) .


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The se .we re i n 19 45 with the a im o f f inding out actual facts abou t

ekkho reported inc ident .

9 . Al l t hes e A ge nc ie s submi t ted their report t o their

respect ive Governments/Author i t ies by the end o f 19.45. Most.

in t r igu ing ly , these reports and other f indings were never

publ ished i n the l a s t f i f t y years. What i s more baf f l ing , the

Govt . o f India had not asked for these repor ts - never seemed t o

w an t t o know about them - dur ing the same half a century.

10. T he i ma ge o f Netaj i as the unequalled f reedom f ighter has

always been supreme, i n the m inds o f the Indian people. Al l

parLioLiG peop le (A' India - breaking a l l barr iers o f caste , creed

l anguage and, re l ig ion, - .agree emot iona l ly on the supreme nat ional

Ld,a ture o r this maj ist ie revolut ionary f reedom f ighter .

Af ter India was f ree i n 1947 the people eager ly expected

that the Govt . would set up an independent inquiry , t o f ind ou t

the t ruth about Notaj i , However , for over a d e ca d e t i l l 1956 -

the Govt . o f India had chosen t o remain s i lent over th is

nat ional ly sensit ive issue.

11 . I n 1956 the Calcutta Ci t izens Forum set up an unof f ic ia lInquiry Commi t tee with Dr . Radhabinbode Pal, a noted Jur is t and

Ex -Judge o f Tokyo War Cr iminals T r i a l , as i t s Chairman.

I t appeared as i f t o scutt le th is non - o f f i c i a l move, the

then Pr ime Minister, Pandi t Nehru prompt ly formed an o f f i c i a l

Commi t tee under the Chai rmanship o f Shah Nawaz Khan t o ' inquire

I nto the al leged death o f Netaj i subhas Chandra Bose' .

12 . But th is Shah Nawaz Commit tee was cr ippled i n i t s very

b i r th , and that too, unfor tunately by Pandit j i h imsel f . This

Commi t tee was den ied any judic ia l power. Pandit j i did not al low

th is Commi t tee even t o v i s i t Ta ihoku i n Taiwan for an on - the -spot

investigation.

13. History records another s t range event . Whi le the Shah Nawaz


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In q u ir y was i n p r o ce ss, P r i m e M i n i s t e r N e h r u made a n u n e x p e c t e d

sta te m e n t i n t he P a r l i a m e n t :

. . . t h e f ac t o f Netaji S u b ha s C h a n d r a B o s e ' s d e a t h ,i s , I t h i nk , s et t le d b e y o n d d o u b t- .

I f the P r i m e M i ni s t er o f t h e c o u nt r y w as s o s ur e a b ou t t h e e v e nt ,

w h at m or e u se was ther e for an Inquiry i nt o i t s t r ut h ! A f t e r t h i ss t a t e m e n t o f N e h r u , t he Inquiry b y Shah Nawaz C o m m i t t e e t ur ned

w h o l l y i n f r u c t u o u s , a l m o s t b y m a n d a t e .

1 4. Th o at udioun u n c e r t a i n t y an d the v e i l c a n t by o f f ic ia ld o m ,

k ept the m i n d n o f a l l p a tr i ot i c p e op l e v e ry u n h a p p y fo r d e c a d e n .

t he p e op l e w an te d t o know t he r e a l i t y , t he t r u t h a n d d e s t i n y o f

t h e i r b e l o v e d l e a d e r , N e t a j i .

1 5 . T w e n t y s i x y e a r s h a d th e n e l a p s e d a f te r 1 9 4 5 . I n an

u n p r e c e d e n t e d m o v e , th e majority Members o f the P a r l i a m e n t

s u b m i t t e d a j o i n t M em o ra n du m t o t he G o ve rn me nt o f M r s . Indira

G a n d h i d e m an d in g a f r e s h ju d i c i a l i n qu i r y. Th e r e s u lts wa s t he

o n e - m a n inquiry C o m m i s s i o n , se t up i n 1 9 7 0 , with

G . D . K h o s l a a s i t s C h a i r m a n .

J u s t i c e

16 , T he o n e - ma n K h o s l a C o mm i s s i o n was a n exer ci se i n v i o l a t i o no f a l l ju d ic i al n o r m s . Th e C o m m i s s i o n ' s R e p o r t wa s f o u n d f u l l o f

finog e d f e d l holes an d i m p r o p r i e t i e s . I t was l a d e n w it h d el i be ra te

u n e t hi c a l a b e r r a ti o n s .

F i n a l l y ther e wa s the u n p r e c e d e n t e d A n t i c l i m a x :

J u s t i c e K h o s i n was f o u n d t o of fer a n u n c o n d i t i o n a l a p o l o g y

b e f o r e a Calcutta Cour t fo r his n u m e r o u s d e r o g a to r y r e m a r k s

a g a i n s t N e ta j i i n his Re p o r t.

The u p s h o t o f a l l t h e s w a s , - the K h o s l a C o m mi s s i o n ' s R e p o r t

l o s t a l l i t s c r e d i b i l i t y ; i t was a d i s c r e d i t e d mass o f h e a p s o f

p a p e r s. T h e r e wa s s e v e r e c r i t i c i s m o f the re por t in si de the

P a r l i a m e n t .

J u s t i c e K h o s l a was a c c u s e d o f p e r s o n a l m o t i v a t i o n for hi s

4


44/210

refusal t o accept the report o f the Inquiry- made by the Mayol

Taipei i n 1945 o n the a l leged event o f Neta j i ' s death i n , the

Taihoku a i rcrash when the Commission v is i ted Taipei (Taihoku) i n

Taiwan af ter 1970.

The Mayor o f Taipei 's Report was , crucial ; i t was a

contemporary invest igat ion; i t was a n inquiry on - the -spot ; andthe inquiry had involved no ted personalit ies o f Taihoku, who were

i n Ful l knowledge o f the s i tuat ion i n August 1945 .

The very fact that Just ice Khos la ch os e t o ignore t h i s v i ta l

Tnqpiry Report wa; e no ug h t o quest ion his impar t ia l i ty .

Nevertheless, thin Khos la Report was adopted by Parl iament

dur ing Em er ge nc y i n 19 75 wi thout any d iscussidn when most o f the

opposit ion Members o f Parl iament we re i n detent ion.

17. The issue o f Neta j i Inquiry was revived i n 1978. Morar j i

Desai , the then Pr ime Minister d i sapproved the Re po rt s , bo th o f

Shah Nawaz Commit tee a n d o f the Khos la Commission. I n a S ta tement

i n Lo k Sa bh a on Sept 3 , 19 78 , Morar j i Desa i declared, -

" . . . reasonable doubts h a ve b ee n cast on the correctness(of f inding) reached i n the two Reports and var ious

important contradic t ions i n

the test imony o f

thewi tnesses h a ve b e en not iced. Some further contemporaryrecords have a lso been made avai lable. I n the l i gh t o fthose rocords, the Govt. f inds i t d i f f i c u l t t o acceptthat the ear l ier conclusions are decisive."

18 . Morar j i Dosai Govt . f e l l soon; and the succeeding Govts .

preferred t o s en d the i ssue into another spel l o f obl iv ion. No

fol low up act ion on the Pr imu Min ister Morarj i 's ut tornnou i n

Parl iament wa s taken.

19 . The issue o f d isappearance o f Netaji was raked up afresh by

the then President, Shri R.Venkat raman, who wrbte t o Shri

V.P.Singh i n 1991: "to take up the matter" . I n compl iance, Shri

Singh asked his Minister for External Af fa i rs , Shri I .K.Gujral ,

t o proceed wi th the matter. However, before concre te s teps could

be taken, the Govt . o f Shri V.P.Singh had t o qu i t .


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2 0 . Th e P r e s i d e n t ( S h r i R . V e n k a t r a m a n ) r e n e w e d t he m a t t e r with

trs, next P r i m e Mi n i ste r, Shr i C h a n d r a S e k h a r . H i s M i ni s t er f o r

E x t e r n a l A f f a i r s p r o m p t l y i n i t i a t e d t o move f or a h i g h l ev el

i n v e s t i g a t i o n i n to t he i s s u e o f N e t a j i ' s d i s a p p e a r a n c e . He w r o t e

o n M a r c h 2 6 , 1991 :

. . . . t h i s M i n i s t r y h a s a l r e a d y i n i t i a t e d f o l lo w - u p a c t i o ni n re g a rd t o a h i g h l ev el i n v e s t i g a t i o n i n to 'secret d o c u -m e n t s ' o n d i s a p p e a r a n c e o f Netaji S ub ha s C h a n d r a Bo s e ..."

B ut th i s m o ve wa s s t a l l e d b ec au s e o f a ch an ge i n the G o v t . a t the

Ce n tr e

2 1 . I t i s l e a r n t t h a t , b e f o r e r e t i r e m e n t , P r e s i d e n t , s h r i

R . V e n k a t r a m a n h a d r e q u e s t e d P r i m e M i n i s t e r Shr i P .V .N a ra s i m h a

R a o , o n t w o o c c a s s i o n s ; , t o p u r s u e a c t i o n i n re g a rd t o the m a t t e r

o I t intaj iyh i n q u i r y -

We h a v e a n i m p r e s s i o n t h a t t he P r i m e M i ni s t er h a d no t b e e n

p o st e d w i t h t h e p r o g r e s s o f e v e n t s o f w h i c h we h a v e a t t e m p t e d an

o u tl i n e i n th e f o r e g o i n g p a r a g r a p h s . Al l f a c t s an d d e v e l o p m e n t s

o v e r fo u r d e c a d e s r e g a r d i n g t he moves on N e t a j i I n q u i r y w e r e

a p p a r e n t l y no t b ro u g h t t o P . M ' s a t te n t i o n . We s u r m i s e t h i s f r o m

t h e f a c t t h a t h e h a d d e c i d e d t o c o n f e r Bh a r a t R a t n a o n N e ta j i

w i t h th e w o r d " P o s t h u m o u s l y " a t t a c h e d t o the c i t a t i o n .

We b e l i e v e that y o u w o u l d h a v e a v o i d e d t he posit ive

a p p e l l a t i o n " P o s t h u m o u s l y " i f y o u h a d b e e n f u l l y p o ste d w i t h t h e

t h a t w h a t h a d ha pp en ed t o N o t a j f a t i l l r e m a i n e d u n s e t t l e d

a n d that a c a s e o n the i ssu e wa s p e n d i n g i n th e Supreme C o u r t .

2 2 . M o r a r j i D e s a i as P r i m e M in is te r h a d pref erred that a ni n v e s t i g a t i v e i n q u i r y S h o u l d b e c o n d u c t e d i n t o a l l d o c u m e n t s ,

r e c o r d s , i n f o r m a t i o n a n d e v i d e n c e s c o n ne c t ed with t he s i tuations

o f t he a l l eged d e a t h o f N e t a j i . He wa s no t i n f a v o u r o f a n o th e r

'public i n q u i ry' into th e i s s u e . Hi s r e a s o n s a g a i n s t a f u r t h e r

p u bl i c i nq u ir y w e r e :


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' M 1 the important Japanese personal i t ies l ike (a) F.M.

Tarauchi , Chief o f the Southern Command o f the Japanese

Army ; (b) Genl. Isoda, Head. o f the Hikar i -K ikan, a

Lia ison Organisat ion working be tween the Govt . o f Japan

and the Provisional Govt . o f Free India; (c) Col. Tada ,

a Specia l Off icer o f Tarauchf's Headquar ter ; and (d) the

chief o f the War t ime. Imperial Staff o f the Japanese

Army a t Tokyo - who had a l l boon crucial ly involved i n

execut ion o f Neta j i 's Plan o f , escape from South Fast

As ia - were by then dead.

23. I n fact, a l l the above contempor ary documents together wi th

the f indings o f the four Inquir ies made i n 1945 (already referredto) by the U.S.Paci f ic A rmy; Ad ml . Mountbatten; U.K.Counter

Intel l igence - CSDIC; and the Mayor o f Taipei - are ly ing i n the

archives o f the Covts . o f U.K., USA and Ta iwan. The a bov e four

Repor ts s t i l l remain .unpublished.

We hope i t should be possible for the Govt. o f India t o take

up ser iously wi th tho Gov ta . concerned for a factual knowledge o f

what - h ap po no d an d ; 3 0 r uso 1 vu tho mys t o r y wh I ch shrouds

disappearance o f Neta j i .

24. Furthermore, many intell igence Repor ts were found wi th the

Govt . o f Wavel l which p resumed Netaj i 's p resence i n Russ ia i n

1946 . These intel l igence repor ts o f 1946 f ind further

corroborat ion by the documents found i n the 1975 Brit ish

Publ icat ion o f "Transfer o f P ow er - 1942-477 .

A ' top secret ' repor t in . th is publ icat ion clearly shows that

the Govt . o f Wavo l l and the Govt . o f U.K. d id not bel ieve the

Tokyo Report o f Netn j i 's death i n the a l leged a ircrash a t

Taihoku. On the contrary, i t conc luded that

"Leave him (Bose) where he is , don' t as for his re lease.Bose might be welcomed i n Russia".

I t i s a lso known that, except Col . Hab ibur Rahman, a l l the


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high ranking Ja pa ne se and INA w i tnesses unanimously deposed"-- /

t, ore the Shah Nawaz Commit tee and the Khosla Commiss ion that

after surrender o f Japan i n 1945, . Netaj i 's dest inat ion was

Russia.

25 . Recently a te am o f Asiat ic Society Researchers v is i tedRus s ia . T hi s team c laims t o ha ve acquired some important

d o c u me n t s a nd suggest ive c lues about much m or e regarding the

quest ion o f NoLaj i Subha:3 Cha nd ra bose's onLry in to t iuv loL Huaola

a f te r fa l l o f Jap an i n 1945.

However, the Team of Scholars f rom the Asiat ic Society were

not extended access t o Russ ian arch ives . Curiously, these

archives are now o p en t o USA a n d other Eu ropean Scholars. But theRuss ian authori ty demanded that unless the Govt . o f India wrote

t o the Govt. o f Russia, the Indian team could not have entry into

t he Russ ian arch ives . This ra ises an obv ious suspic ion that the

Russian Archives Authori t ies were working under instruct ions.

26. Accordingly, important representat ives o f t he A si at ic .

Society, inc luding one member o f the research team, h ad been

advised by the Minister o f External Af fa i rs , Sr i Pranob Mukherjee

Lo s ee h im i n Delhi . Mr. Mukher jee was requested by the Authori ty

o f the Asiat ic Society t o write t o the Govt. o f Russ ia t o permit

the Indian Re search Team t o w o rk freely i n the Russian archives

with regard t o the Netaj i issue.

Adding one more enigma t o the ser ies o f cur ious events on

t he i ssue for l a s t f i f t y years , t he Minister o f External Affairs

has fa i led t o respond, so far , t o this request. I t i s need less t o

stress that the Inquiry and the request o f the sCholar ly team t o

our External Affairs Minister for access into the documents i n

Russ ia - ref lects the burning desire o f the Nat ion. I n the year

o f the B i r th Centenary o f Netaj i , - which a l l people and a l l

p o l i t i ca l part ies are dosir ing t o celebrate, the least that would

he 41,0 e,. ted o f yfmr . ( lovt . i n a pat r io t ic cooperat ion for


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succmssfu i inquiry about, Neta j i 's d isappearance.

?1, T i ' add anothfw nv idonce t o the misty s i tuation which has

been studiously nourished - we ment ion t he exi s tence o f the

"Secret F i le No. F.23(156) /51 -PM", maintained as a Special Secret

Fi le by Pandi t Nehru on the issue about Netaj i 's d isappearance.

This f i l e has been placed as exhibit i n the course o f proceedings.

o f the Khos la Commiss ion. Af ter Pandi t Nehru's. demise th is

"Secret F i le" was maintained by Md. Yu nus . There i s a Note

at tached with th is f i l e which shows that some 40-45 documents o f

t h i s f i l e have been "ei ther destroyed o r missing". The Inquiry

should a lso f ind out what prec ise ly happened t o these documents ,

thelr e),.a(:1, nature, and how they were "destroyed 0 1 missinu".

Final ly , o f course, the quest ion remains how o r why suchl .

documents were dustruyed o r how they were miss ing - and whether

this was done under instructions.

III. OUR SUBMISION

This i s the B i r th Centenary Ye ar o f N eta ji . A ll p at ri ot ic

peop le o f India are emot ional ly roused with enthus iasm. Ordinary

cit izens apart - there i s hardly any po l i t i ca l party which does

not hai l Netaj i as the greatest revolut ionary hero o f our f reedom

struggle.

We should consider i t as ou r sa cre d duty t o r es ol ve the

national issue o f the r ea l i t y o f the 'great leaders dest iny ' . I t

behoves your Gov t . t o work ser iously t o f ind out the t ru th about

Netaj i , t o le t our count rymen know what exact ly h a pp e ne d t o their

be loved leader.

We submit fu r the r , the . manner i n which the issue o f

Neta j i 's d isappearance h as b e en shelved o r camouf laged, does no t

add g lory t o our country o r c red ib i l i t y o f our Gov t .

We, therefore appea l t o you, t o set up immediate ly an

InvestigatiVe Inquiry.

And fo r this purpose, and the success and t ransparency o f


49/210

.t,Aich,inquiry, the Govt . should take the fo l lowing s teps :

a ) Wr i te t o the Govte. o f U.K., USA and T ai wa n t o

pubi luh the h i therto unpublhohoU i oput La Lite

inquirieu made i n 1945 by Adml. Mountbatten, CSDIC,

Gunl. Mac Arthur and the Mayor o f Taipei and a lso the

Govt . o f U.K t o g ive access t o the Invest igat ive team t o

the c lassi f ied documents preserved i n the archives o f

U.K. abou t Netaj i .

b ) Re que st the Govt . o f Russia t o extend equa l and f ree

access t o the f i les/papers . of KGB, Comintern,, Sov ie t

President and a l l other f i les i n their archives for

ro f l oorch work by An Society and othnr Indian toams.

c ) Md. YUHUS and others who look ed after Pandi t Nehru's

FM( ' ho.F. 156) /51-PM hould be asked t o del iver the

f i l e and invest igate what was the exact nature o f the

f i les/documents "destroyed o r miss ing"

The documents submi t ted t o the Shah Nawaz

Commit tee and Kho sla Commission should be re-examined by

the Invest igat ive Inquiry.

We would u rge on you t o endow this h igh level , Invest igat ive

Inquiry Committee with fu l l judic ial author i ty t o g o through and.

seek a l l documents for their rev iew and judgement on the issue -

facts, s i tuat ions, c i rcumstances and the real i ty - related t o the

"d i t ;appearance o f Netaj i Subhas Chandra Bose."

The Netaj i issue i s a scar on the rect i tude o f ouradministrat ion. People may be dumb but they are not wit less. They

are a l l watchinu the lukewarm t reatment - the lack o f candou r and

wi l l - meted out t o our nat ional hero and supreme patr iot Netaj i

Subhas Chandra Bose. Permi t us t o.br ing t o yo ur attention that i f

today we fa i l t o unearth the t ruth - a l l o f wh at exact ly happened

t o Netaj i after f a l l o f japan i n the last Great War, our


50/210

dountrymen, a n d o f cou rse ou r future generat ions, are bound t o

i t against us . They wil l be ent it led t o suspect mot ives,

read not mere ly incompetence, but also insincerity - wi th which

the Netaj i issue has been and i s being handled.

We appea l to your wisdom t o d isplay the required pol i t ical

wi l l t o get t o the bot tom o f the issue and do a nat ional serv ice

which w i l l uarn you O w grat i tude o f the nat ion and a record i n

hi t i tory i n l e t t e r s o f gold.

We fervent ly be l ieve, the count ry i s a t c ross-roads. A nd i t

iuht now and hnro that i t han thrown t o you and your Govt .

both an oppor tuni ty and a chal lenge. I f i n thia centenary year

your Govt . t o l l the country that i t means bus iness and not merelyl ipservice t o honour the Maha Kshatr iya o f the struggle for our

national l iberat ion - i t would ea rn the lasting respect o f the

whole nat ion.

With regards namJskar ,

Your t i s incere ly ,


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LAS)

:1/4-y ry l Owi k

(

ITROa .4444

PRIME MINISTER

Dear Shri Nijalingappaji,

New DelhiNovember 13, 1996

I have r eceived your l et t er of October 22, 1996

enclosing a copy of your le t ter addressed to the Pres ident

of India regarding the mystery around the dea th of Neta ji

Subhash Chandra Bose.

With regards,

Shri S. Nijalingappa

VP ExtensionChitradurga - 577 501

Karnataka

Yours sincerely,

[1-I.D. Deve Gowda]

( C/


52/210

to.444

TiqM 4-1

PRIME MINISTER

New Delhi

November 13, 1996

Dear Shri Nijalingappaji,

I have r eceived your l et t e r of October 22 , 1996

enclosing a copy of your le t ter addressed to the Pres ident

of India regard ing the mystery around the dea th of Neta ji

Subhash Chandra Bose.

With regards,

Yours sincerely,

Deve Gowda]

Shri S. Nijalingappa

VP ExtensionChitradurga - 577 501

Karnataka

No. 915/11/C/ 6/ 96-Po1 da t ed : 3 .12 .199

Copy Wit t a ,-.6py i a t t e r ..aider r ep ly

"forwarded to filmic .11ecretary for act i on aa nopropr ia te .

(Arun ivlatitur)Direc tor


53/210

To

Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma

His Excellency the President of IndiaRastrapati Bhavan

NEW DELHI.

Respected President ,

u

I )

4 1 . 1. ,

We are now on the th reshold of the Bir th Centenary of Nc.;ta j i

Subhas Chandra Bose. Now is the t ime that the people knew, - what

real ly happened to Netaj i .

i l . THE BURNING QUESTION

For the las t f i f t y yea rs Ind ian peop le a re anxious to know a ll

about Neta j i 's en igmat ic d isappearance and dest iny.

We sum up below our puzzles over 'so cal led evidence' dished

out for decad es f or publ ic consumpt ion about repor ts of al legeddeath of Neta j i and we now depend on your wisd om to in it iate

transparent act ion to resolve the last ing conundrum.

INFORMATION & EVIDENCE ON THE ISSUE OF NETAJI'S

DISAPPEARANCE

.1. On August 23, 1945, Tokyo Radio announced that Subhaa

C ha n dr a Bo se p e ri sh e d in A l rc r as h a t T ai ho ku ; h is b o dy h a d b ee n

f lown to Japan.

2 . A l at er bro ad ca st by th e s ame Rad io an no un ce d t ha t h is b od y

was c rema ted a t Ta ihoku . The two con t rad i c to ry b roadcas ts , thus

raised a mist of an ab init io suspicion.

3 . I t is pub l ic ly known tha t Mahatma Gandh i, Pandit Madan

Mohan Malaviya , Maulana Abut Ka la m Azad and oven Pandi t

/k Jawhar i a l Neh ru (a t tha t s tage ) - d i d no t t rus t th i s Tokyo repor t . In .. . . .. .. . .f t G dhi j i d M l l j i h d k d B f i l i C l t t " t t


54/210

- 2 -

The AICC in i ts f i rst Session (after 1942) decl ined to adopt any

obi tuary resolut ion on Netaj i .

4. On Januar y 2, 1946 Gandh i j i made a publ i c sta tem ent : " I

bel ieve Netaj i is a l iv e. He is h id ing somewhere" .

G an dh ij i l at er me t H ab ib ur R ah ma n, but he nev er swerv ed

from his conv ic t ion tha t Neta j i ' s death , as repor ted, was not t rue and

It was a camou f l age .

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