Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s Birth Anniversary

Syllabus subtopic: The Freedom Struggle — its various stages and important contributors/contributions from different parts of the country.

Prelims and Mains focus: about Subhash Chandra Bose and his contributions

Context: The President of India paid homage to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on his birth anniversary at Rashtrapati Bhavan today.

About Netaji and his contribution to India’s Freedom Struggle

 Subhas Chandra Bose, was born on January 23, 1897, in Cuttack, Odisha.  He was an Indian revolutionary prominent in the independence movement against British rule of India. He also led an Indian national force from abroad against the British 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.

 He was strongly influenced by Swami Vivekananda’s teachings and was known for his patriotic zeal as a student. He also adored Vivekananda as his spiritual Guru.

 In 1920 he passed the civil service examination, but in April 1921, after hearing of the nationalist turmoils in India, he resigned his candidacy and came back to India.

 He revived the Indian National Army, popularly known as ‘Azad Hind Fauj’ in 1943 which was initially formed in 1942 by Rash Behari Bose. Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose had visited London during pre- independence period to discuss the future of India, with the members of the Labor party.

 His sudden disappearance from Taiwan, led to surfacing of various theories, unfortunately none of which were investigated thoroughly by successive governments; leaving people in the dark about one of the most beloved leaders India has ever produced.

Association with Indian National Congress

 Initially, Subhash Chandra Bose worked under the leadership of Chittaranjan Das, an active member of the Congress in Calcutta. It was Chittaranjan Das, who along with Motilal Nehru, left Congress and founded the Swaraj Party in 1922. Bose regarded Chittaranjan Das as his political guru.

 He himself started the newspaper ‘Swaraj’, edited Das’ newspaper ‘Forward’ and worked as the CEO of Calcutta Municipal Corporation under Das’ stint as Mayor. Subhash Chandra Bose played an important role in enlightening the students, youths and labourers of Calcutta.

 In his fervent wait to see India as an independent, federal and republic nation, he emerged as a charismatic and firebrand youth icon. He was admired within the congress for his great ability in organization development. He served several stints in prison for his nationalist activities during this time.

Dispute with the Congress

 In 1928, during the Guwahati Session of the Congress, a difference of opinion surfaced between the old and new members of the Congress. The young leaders wanted a "complete self-rule and without any compromise’ while the senior leaders were in favour of the "dominion status for India within the British rule".

 The differences between moderate Gandhi and aggressive Subhash Chandra Bose swelled to irreconcilable proportions and Bose decided to resign from the party in 1939. He went on to form the Forward Bloc the same year.

 Although he voiced his dislike for the British often in his correspondences, he also expressed his admiration for their structured way of life. He met with the leaders of the British Labor Party and political thinkers including Clement Attlee, Harold Laski, J.B.S. Haldane, Arthur Greenwood, G.D.H. Cole, and Sir Stafford Cripps and discussed the possibilities that an independent India might hold.

Legacy

Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose has left deep impact on the psyche of his countrymen. His slogan, ‘Jai Hind’ is still used in reverence to the country. The International airport in Kolkata has been named Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport to commemorate the charismatic leader.