DOCSLIB.ORG

Subhas Chandra Bose and the Indian National Army: Renegades Or Liberators?

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Subhas Chandra Bose and the Indian National Army: Renegades Or Liberators? • First published by World War 11 Investigator, Vol. 1 No. 4, July 1988 17 Subhas Chandra Bose and the Indian National Army: Renegades or Liberators? he rain poured down as if it would never stop. Visibility was down to twenty T yards. The group of Indian officers and men of the 1114 Punjab Regiment, with their wounded British battalion commander, Lt-Col. L.V. Fitzpatrick, peered through the driving gusts. On 11 December 1941, the Japanese blitzkrieg had torn through their defences and scattered them into the sodden jungle of northern Malaya. After four nights without sleep they were at the end of their tether, starving, exhausted, soaked in tropical mud. They had hoped to break through the Japanese to their own lines, but a report had come through that the enemy was now well to the south. Two figures came towards them through the rain, one in Japanese uniform. He was Major Iwaichi Fujiwara, and he was not unexpected. One of Fitzpatrick's Sikh captains, Mohan Slngh, had already decided that surrender was the best option, and he had contacted a fellow Sikh, Giani Pritam Singh, whose presence on the Thai­ Burma border was known to him. Pritam Singh was a leader of the Independent League of India, an organisation of Indians in Thailand sworn to rid the sub­ continent of British rule. The movement had roots in the revolutionary Ghadr organisation of Indian rebels which helped the German cause in the First World War and had been instrumental in fomenting a mutiny among Indian troops in Singapore in 1916. There were many such organisations of dissident Indians in East Asia. The founder of one of them, Rash Behari Bose, attempted to assassinate the Viceroy of India, Lord Hardinge, in 1912 and then sought refuge in Japan. The Japanese were ambivalent about giving him asylum: they were still officially allied with Britain, and in the normal course of events should have handed him over; but Bose was taken under the wing of Mitsuru Toyama, head of the Amur River Society, which was dedicated to the expulsion of the European powers from the East. Toyama arranged for Bose to marry a Japanese and to be given Japanese citizenship. As the world went to war again in September 1939, Rash Behari Bose's organisation had spread its branches into Berlin, Tokyo, Shanghai and Bangkok. During the run-up to Pearl Harbour, Bangkok was a focus of espionage activities for both sides, and Pritam Singh made contact with the head ofJapanese espionage there, the military attache 277 WAR, CONFUCT AND SECURITY IN JAPAN AND ASIA-PACIFIC, 1941-52 Colonel Tamura. The Japanese saw in the Independent League of India an excellent instrument for arousing anti-British feeling in India and in the Indian communities in South-East Asia, and for sapping the morale of the Indian Army units who were manning the defences of Malaya and Singapore. To Bangkok, then, in the autumn of 1941, Japanese Imperial Headquarters, Section 8 (Intelligence) sent Major Iwaichi Fujiwara, a brilliant young field officer dedicated to the new order in East Asia and aflame with the passionate desire to sweep the British into the sea. After discussions with Pritam Singh at a series of secret rendezvous in Bangkok, Fujiwara came to an agreement with him: when the Japanese invaded Malaya, some of Pritam Singh's men would accompany Fujiwara and win over the Indian civilian population of Malaya and elements of the British Indian Army to the Japanese cause. He already had agents in the Malayan towns and villages where Indian troops were stationed. It was one of these, contacted by Mohan Singh, who brought Fujiwara to effect the surrender of the remnants of the 1114 Punjab Regiment. Fujiwara talked to the wounded battalion commander through an interpreter, 'You have done everything a soldier's honour requires of you. Your men are finished. They can never join up with your main party . Your responsibility as a British officer and as their commander is not to sacrifice them uselessly but to surrender. I promise you they will be well treated.' Colonel Fitzpatrick had expected rough treatment, not this appeal to soldierly honour. Weak from wounds and trusting to Mohan Singh's judgement, he handed over what was left of his battalion, the first sizeable group to surrender to the Japanese during the campaign in Malaya. It was 14 December, 1941, and the Punjabis were soon on their way to Japanese headquarters at Alor Star. It was the first, but by no means the last, of Fujiwara's successes. In every major action which followed, Fujiwara sent his infiltrators through the lines, sapping the will to fight of the half-trained and outfought Indian troops building up the nucleus of what was to become the 'Azad Hind Fauj', or 'India National Army', to fight against the British in East Asia. As the Japanese troops pushed on to Singapore, they became used to the odd sight of bearded Indians in jodhpurs riding unarmed round the battlefield, shepherding Indian prisoners back to the headquarters of the Independent League of India. Soon there were thousands of them, and even before Singapore was reached the nuisance value of such a force had become evident to the Japanese. On 5 February 1942, Fujiwara was ordered to send off a detachment northwards, with Pritam Singh, to repeat their success in Burma. When the end came in Singapore, on 15 February 1942, and 138,000 British, Indian and Australian troops surrendered to a numerically inferior force of three Japanese divisions, - 'the greatest military capitulation in our history', as Churchill called it - the Indians were handed over to the victorious Japanese in a brief ceremony at Farrer Park, where at least 45,000 Indian prisoners were addressed by Fujiwara and then by Mohan Singh. 'Japan is fighting for the freedom of Asia,' Fujiwara told them. 'You have been trodden down for centuries under the cruel heel of British Imperialism. Japan, your liberator and friend, is setting up a new order in Asia, of free and equal nations. The independence of India is essential to the independence of Asia and the peace of the world, and it is India's duty to free herself. Japan will do her utmost to help India.' Fujiwara then indicated Mohan Singh as the leader of the new Indian National Army which was to collaborate with the Japanese and free herself. The Indians were bewildered. It seemed as if they had not only been defeated and made prisoner, but had been abandoned by their British officers. If they joined the INA, they would at any rate avoid the unpleasant fate of remaining as POWs in 278 .
Load more

Recommended publications
  • 25 Handbook of Bibliography on Diaspora and Transnationalism.Pdf
    BIBLIOGRAPH Y A Hand-book on Diaspora and Transnationalism FIRST EDITION April 2013 Compiled By Monika Bisht Rakesh Ranjan Sadananda Sahoo Draft Copy for Reader’s Comments Global Research Forum on Diaspora and Transnationalism www.grfdt.org Bibleography Preface Large scale international mobility of the people since colonial times has been one of the most important historical phenomenon in the human history. This has impacted upon the social, cultural, political and economic landscape of the entire globe. Though academic interest goes back little early, the phenomenon got the world wide attention as late as 1990s. We have witnessed more proactive engagement of various organizations at national and international level such as UN bodies. There was also growing research interest in the areas. Large number of institutions got engaged in research on diaspora-international migration-refugee-transnationalism. Wide range of research and publications in these areas gave a new thrust to the entire issue and hence advancing further research. The recent emphasis on diaspora’s development role further accentuated the attention of policy makers towards diaspora. The most underemphasized perhaps, the role of diaspora and transnational actors in the overall development process through capacity building, resource mobilization, knowledge sharing etc. are growing areas of development debate in national as well as international forums. There have been policy initiatives at both national and international level to engage diaspora more meaningfully since last one decade. There is a need for more wholistic understanding of the enrite phenomena to facilitate researchers and stakeholders engaged in the various issues related to diaspora and transnationalism. Similarly, we find the areas such as social, political and cultural vis a vis diaspora also attracting more interest in recent times as forces of globalization intensified in multi direction.
    [Show full text]
  • Contributions of Lala Har Dayal As an Intellectual and Revolutionary
    CONTRIBUTIONS OF LALA HAR DAYAL AS AN INTELLECTUAL AND REVOLUTIONARY ABSTRACT THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE AWARD OF THE DEGREE OF ^ntiat ai pijtl000pi{g IN }^ ^ HISTORY By MATT GAOR CENTRE OF ADVANCED STUDY DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY ALIGARH MUSLIM UNIVERSITY ALIGARH (INDIA) 2007 ,,» '*^d<*'/. ' ABSTRACT India owes to Lala Har Dayal a great debt of gratitude. What he did intotality to his mother country is yet to be acknowledged properly. The paradox ridden Har Dayal - a moody idealist, intellectual, who felt an almost mystical empathy with the masses in India and America. He kept the National Independence flame burning not only in India but outside too. In 1905 he went to England for Academic pursuits. But after few years he had leave England for his revolutionary activities. He stayed in America and other European countries for 25 years and finally returned to England where he wrote three books. Har Dayal's stature was so great that its very difficult to put him under one mould. He was visionary who all through his life devoted to Boddhi sattava doctrine, rational interpretation of religions and sharing his erudite knowledge for the development of self culture. The proposed thesis seeks to examine the purpose of his returning to intellectual pursuits in England. Simultaneously the thesis also analyses the contemporary relevance of his works which had a common thread of humanism, rationalism and scientific temper. Relevance for his ideas is still alive as it was 50 years ago. He was true a patriotic who dreamed independence for his country. He was pioneer for developing science in laymen and scientific temper among youths.
    [Show full text]
  • Nationalism in India Lesson
    DC-1 SEM-2 Paper: Nationalism in India Lesson: Beginning of constitutionalism in India Lesson Developer: Anushka Singh Research scholar, Political Science, University of Delhi 1 Institute of Lifelog learning, University of Delhi Content: Introducing the chapter What is the idea of constitutionalism A brief history of the idea in the West and its introduction in the colony The early nationalists and Indian Councils Act of 1861 and 1892 More promises and fewer deliveries: Government of India Acts, 1909 and 1919 Post 1919 developments and India’s first attempt at constitution writing Government of India Act 1935 and the building blocks to a future constitution The road leading to the transfer of power The theory of constitutionalism at work Conclusion 2 Institute of Lifelog learning, University of Delhi Introduction: The idea of constitutionalism is part of the basic idea of liberalism based on the notion of individual’s right to liberty. Along with other liberal notions,constitutionalism also travelled to India through British colonialism. However, on the one hand, the ideology of liberalism guaranteed the liberal rightsbut one the other hand it denied the same basic right to the colony. The justification to why an advanced liberal nation like England must colonize the ‘not yet’ liberal nation like India was also found within the ideology of liberalism itself. The rationale was that British colonialism in India was like a ‘civilization mission’ to train the colony how to tread the path of liberty.1 However, soon the English educated Indian intellectual class realised the gap between the claim that British Rule made and the oppressive and exploitative reality of colonialism.Consequently,there started the movement towards autonomy and self-governance by Indians.
    [Show full text]
  • KADAMB DEPARTMENT of STUDY ABROAD PROGRAM COURSES SPECIAL INDIA COURSES Three Weeks and Ten Weeks Courses for Foreign Students A
    KADAMB DEPARTMENT OF STUDY ABROAD PROGRAM Gujarat University has become the growth engine of education in Gujarat. Today deprtment of Study Abroad Program caters to more than 120 countries and 400 students from USA, UK, Belgium, Spain, Japan, Yemeforeign n, Iraq, Afghanistan, Nepal, Bhutan and Egypt. The Ministries and Embassies of different countries as well as ICCR, Ed. CIL. (MHRD Sponsored agency to sponsor foreign and NRI/ PIO students), IIAS, USEIF have been sponsoring their incumbents to study at Gujarat University. A number of self financing foreign students have also chosen Gujarat University to advance their educational skills. COURSES SPECIAL INDIA COURSES Three Weeks and Ten Weeks Courses for Foreign Students and NRIs ● Studies in Gandhian Philosophy ● Studies in Tribal Culture of Gujarat ● Indian Languages ● Indian Poetics ● Yoga and Meditation ● Indian Rural Management Skills ● Classical and Folk Dances of India ● Indian folk music ● Indian Mythology ● Indian films ● Art of Rangoli ● Indian Cuisine ● Indian Literature ● Religions of India ● Traditions and Home stay in Indian background Courses in Foreign Languages With the increased demand of foreign languages across the globe, the university does not want to be left behind hence there are Certificate and Diploma courses for languages like ● French ● German● Spanish ● Russian● Japanese ● Persian● Arabic ● Chinese M.Phil : Indian Diaspora and Migration Studies Ph. D. : Indian Diaspora and Migration Studies Integrated Ph. D. : Indian Diaspora and Migration Studies MoUs with
    [Show full text]
  • Hindu Music in Bangkok: the Om Uma Devi Shiva Band
    Volume 22, 2021 – Journal of Urban Culture Research Hindu Music In Bangkok: The Om Uma Devi Shiva Band Kumkom Pornprasit+ (Thailand) Abstract This research focuses on the Om Uma Devi Shiva, a Hindu band in Bangkok, which was founded by a group of acquainted Hindu Indian musicians living in Thailand. The band of seven musicians earns a living by performing ritual music in Bangkok and other provinces. Ram Kumar acts as the band’s manager, instructor and song composer. The instruments utilized in the band are the dholak drum, tabla drum, harmonium and cymbals. The members of Om Uma Devi Shiva band learned their musical knowledge from their ancestors along with music gurus in India. In order to pass on this knowledge to future generations they have set up music courses for both Indian and Thai youths. The Om Uma Devi Shiva band is an example of how to maintain and present one’s original cultural identity in a new social context. Keywords: Hindu Music, Om Uma Devi Shiva Band, Hindu Indian, Bangkok Music + Kumkom Pornprasit, Professor, Faculty of Fine and Applied Arts, Chulalongkorn University, Thailand. email: [email protected]. Received 6/3/21 – Revised 6/5/21 – Accepted 6/6/21 Volume 22, 2021 – Journal of Urban Culture Research Hindu Music In Bangkok… | 218 Introduction Bangkok is a metropolitan area in which people of different ethnic groups live together, weaving together their diverse ways of life. Hindu Indians, considered an important ethnic minority in Bangkok, came to settle in Bangkok during the late 18 century A.D. to early 19 century A.D.
    [Show full text]
  • Pan-Asianism: Rabindranath Tagore, Subhas Chandra Bose and Japan’S Imperial Quest
    Karatoya: NBU J. Hist. Vol. 11 ISSN: 2229-4880 Pan-Asianism: Rabindranath Tagore, Subhas Chandra Bose and Japan’s Imperial Quest Mary L. Hanneman 1 Abstract Bengali intellectuals, nationalists and independence activists played a prominent role in the Indian independence movement; many shared connections with Japan. This article examines nationalism in the Indian independence movement through the lens of Bengali interaction with Japanese Pan-Asianism, focusing on the contrasting responses of Rabindranath Tagore and Subhas Chandra Bose to Japan’s Pan-Asianist claims . Key Words Japan; Pan-Asianism; Rabindranath Tagore; Subhas Chandra Bose; Imperialism; Nationalism; Bengali Intellectuals. Introduction As Japan pursued military expansion in East Asia in the 1930s and early 1940s, it developed a Pan-Asianist narrative to support its essentially nationalist ambitions in a quest to create an “Asia for the Asiatics,” and to unite all of Asia under “one roof”. Because it was backed by military aggression and brutal colonial policies, this Pan- Asianist narrative failed to win supporters in East Asia, and instead inspired anti- Japanese nationalists throughout China, Korea, Vietnam and other areas subject to Japanese military conquest. The Indian situation, for various reasons which we will explore, offered conditions quite different from those prevailing elsewhere in Asia writ large, and as a result, Japan and Indian enjoy closer and more cordial relationship during WWII and its preceding decades, which included links between Japanese nationalist thought and the Indian independence movement. 1 Phd, Modern East Asian History, University of Washington, Tacoma, Fulbright –Nehru Visiting Scholar February-May 2019, Department of History, University of North Bengal.
    [Show full text]
  • Nationalism and Internationalism (Ca
    Comparative Studies in Society and History 2012;54(1):65–92. 0010-4175/12 $15.00 # Society for the Comparative Study of Society and History 2012 doi:10.1017/S0010417511000594 Imagining Asia in India: Nationalism and Internationalism (ca. 1905–1940) CAROLIEN STOLTE Leiden University HARALD FISCHER-TINÉ Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich What is this new cult of Asianism, at whose shrine more and more incense is being offered by vast numbers of thinking Asiatics, far and near? And what has this gospel of Asianism, rightly understood and properly interpreted, to do with the merely political cry of ‘Asia for the Asiatics’? For true it is, clear to all who have eyes to see and ears to hear, that Asia is fast developing a new consciousness of her specific mission, her orig- inal contribution to Euro-America. ———Nripendra Chandra Banerji1 INTRODUCTION Asianisms, that is, discourses and ideologies claiming that Asia can be defined and understood as a homogenous space with shared and clearly defined charac- teristics, have become the subject of increased scholarly attention over the last two decades. The focal points of interest, however, are generally East Asian varieties of regionalism.2 That “the cult of Asianism” has played an important Acknowledgments: Parts of this article draw on a short essay published as: Harald Fischer-Tiné, “‘The Cult of Asianism’: Asiendiskurse in Indien zwischen Nationalismus und Internationalismus (ca. 1885–1955),” Comparativ 18, 6 (2008): 16–33. 1 From Asianism and other Essays (Calcutta: Arya Publishing House, 1930), 1. Banerji was Pro- fessor of English at Bangabasi College, Calcutta, and a friend of Chittaranjan Das, who propagated pan-Asianism in the Indian National Congress in the 1920s.
    [Show full text]
  • Impact of Diaspora Communities on National and Global Politics: Annotated Bibliography Based on Survey of the Literature
    Security Studies & International Affairs - Daytona Beach College of Arts & Sciences 6-30-2005 Impact of Diaspora Communities on National and Global Politics: Annotated Bibliography Based on Survey of the Literature William J. Lahneman University of Maryland at College Park, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://commons.erau.edu/db-security-studies Part of the Defense and Security Studies Commons Scholarly Commons Citation Lahneman, W. J. (2005). Impact of Diaspora Communities on National and Global Politics: Annotated Bibliography Based on Survey of the Literature. , (). Retrieved from https://commons.erau.edu/db-security- studies/6 This Report is brought to you for free and open access by the College of Arts & Sciences at Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Security Studies & International Affairs - Daytona Beach by an authorized administrator of Scholarly Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Center for International and Security Studies at Maryland Impact of Diaspora Communities on National and Global Politics Annotated Bibliography Based on Survey of the Literature Compiled by Kari Plotkin, Assisted by Kevin M. Reeves, Sadaf Zahid and Scott Morrissey Edited by William J. Lahneman, Ph.D. June 30, 2005 Project commissioned by the CIA Strategic Assessment Group CISSM The work does not reflect the position and attitudes of the Strategic Assessment School of Public Policy 4113 Van Munching Hall Group University of Maryland College Park, MD 20742 Phone: 301-405-7601 Fax: 301-403-8107 E-mail: [email protected] “A World of Exiles.” The Economist. (2003). 366: p. 41, 3pgs. http://search.epnet.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&an=8836998 Why does Macedonia have no embassy in Australia? Macedonia has no embassy in Australia because Greeks think the former Yugoslav republic that calls itself Macedonia has purloined the name from them, and the Greek vote counts for a lot in Australia.
    [Show full text]
  • Bose's Revolution: How Axis-Sponsored Propaganda
    University of Massachusetts nU dergraduate History Journal Volume 3 Article 2 2019 BOSE’S REVOLUTION: HOW AXIS- SPONSORED PROPAGANDA INFLAMED NATIONALISM IN WARTIME INDIA Michael Connors [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/umuhj Part of the Asian History Commons Recommended Citation Connors, Michael (2019) "BOSE’S REVOLUTION: HOW AXIS-SPONSORED PROPAGANDA INFLAMED NATIONALISM IN WARTIME INDIA," University of Massachusetts nU dergraduate History Journal: Vol. 3 , Article 2. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7275/4anm-5m12 Available at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/umuhj/vol3/iss1/2 This Primary Source-Based Article is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in University of Massachusetts ndeU rgraduate History Journal by an authorized editor of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. SUMMER 2019 UNDERGRADUATEConnors: BOSE’S HISTORY REVOLUTION JOURNAL 31 BOSE’S REVOLUTION: HOW AXIS-SPONSORED BOSE’SPROPAGANDA REVOLUTION: INFLAMED NATIONALISMHOW AXIS-SPONSORED IN WARTIME INDIA PROPAGANDA INFLAMED NATIONALISMMICHAEL IN C WARTIMEONNORS INDIA MICHAEL CONNORS Published by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst, 2019 31 SUMMER 2019 UniversityUNDERGRADUATE of Massachusetts Undergraduate HISTORY History Journal, JOURNAL Vol. 3 [2019], Art. 2 32 ABSTRACT After decades of subjugation under the British crown, India’s leaders at the onset of the Second World War were split on how to handle nationalist sentiment in their country. Part of the Indian National Congress, an independence-focused political party, these leaders were highly aware of the reality where many common Indian citizens would shed blood for a king that would not validate India as an independent state.
    [Show full text]
  • Nation, Diaspora, Trans-Nation Downloaded by [University of Defence] at 01:31 24 May 2016 Nation, Diaspora, Trans-Nation
    Downloaded by [University of Defence] at 01:31 24 May 2016 Nation, Diaspora, Trans-nation Downloaded by [University of Defence] at 01:31 24 May 2016 Nation, Diaspora, Trans-nation Reflections from India Ravindra K. Jain Downloaded by [University of Defence] at 01:31 24 May 2016 LONDON NEW YORK NEW DELHI First published 2010 by Routledge 912 Tolstoy House, 15–17 Tolstoy Marg, New Delhi 110 001 Simultaneously published in the UK by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, OX14 4RN Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2010 Ravindra K. Jain Typeset by Star Compugraphics Private Limited D–156, Second Floor Sector 7, Noida 201 301 Printed and bound in India by Baba Barkha Nath Printers MIE-37, Bahadurgarh, Haryana 124507 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the publishers. Downloaded by [University of Defence] at 01:31 24 May 2016 British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record of this book is available from the British Library ISBN: 978-0-415-59815-6 For Professor John Arundel Barnes Downloaded by [University of Defence] at 01:31 24 May 2016 Contents Preface and Acknowledgements ix Introduction A World on the Move 1 Chapter One Reflexivity and the Diaspora: Indian Women in Post-Indenture Caribbean, Fiji, Mauritius, and South Africa
    [Show full text]
  • War Crimes, Projects of Empire and the Rule of Law
    The European Journal of International Law Vol. 28 no. 4 © The Author(s), 2018. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of EJIL Ltd. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: [email protected] The Curious Case of Singapore’s BIA Desertion Trials: War Crimes, Projects of Empire and the Rule of Law Cheah W.L.* Abstract This article critically analyses a set of war crimes trials, conducted by the British colonial authorities in post-World War II Singapore, which dealt, among others, with the contentious issue of deserting British Indian Army soldiers. While seemingly obscure, these trials illumi- nate important lessons about rule of law dynamics in war crimes trials. Although these trials were intended by their organizers to facilitate the return of British colonial rule, they resulted in unexpected acquittals and conviction non-confirmations. On the one hand, by applying British military law as a back-up source of law when prosecuting ‘violations of the laws and usages of war’, the British contravened the rule of law by retrospectively subjecting the Japanese defence to unfamiliar legal standards. On the other hand, by binding themselves to a pre-existing and relatively clear source of law, the British were constrained by the rule of law even as this empowered the Japanese defence. These findings speak to broader debates on the challenges of developing international criminal law, by provocatively suggesting that, from a rule of law perspective, what is most important in a body of law is its clarity, accessibility and comprehensiveness rather than its source or its purported ‘universality’.
    [Show full text]
  • A Case Study of the Indian Diaspora in Thailand by Ruchi Agarwal
    Journal of www.cesran.org Journal of Global Analysis Global Analysis Vol. 8 | No. 2 2018 Summer Issue Breaking the Links? A Case study of the Indian Diaspora in Thailand By Ruchi Agarwal Abstract Thailand has long been a destination for South Asian migrants as well as a second home for Indian Diaspora. Recent migrations such as the post-partition period have been relatively understudied, however. In this paper, I focus upon the migration of Indian community to Thailand in the late 1940s to understand how recent arrivals influenced and integrated into existing transnational communities. I am specifically interested in the trajectories of individual migrants and the public representation and organization of Thailand’s evolving Indian diasporic community. A historical linkage lies between South and Southeast Asia and as a result, the Indians moving to Southeast Asia are not entirely ‘foreigners’. This paper explores the trajectories of the more recent Indian diasporic community in an attempt to analyze the aspirations of the newer migrants and their social life outside of the homeland. The findings in this paper are based on past literature, personal observations, and interviews with Indians residing in Ruchi Agarwal is Bangkok. Lecturer at Mahidol University International Keywords: Diaspora, Migration, Migrants, Temples, Thailand College, Thailand. Journal of Breaking the Links? Global A Case study of the Analysis Indian Diaspora in Thailand Introduction The Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2009)1 estimated that the total overseas Indian community constitutes over 25 million spread across different parts of the world. Such large numbers are a result of the different waves of migration beginning in 1830s in the form of indentured labour followed by the voluntary migrations of professionals and information technology specialists in the last three decades of the 20th century.
    [Show full text]