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Subhas Chandra Bose- Statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose to be installed at India Gate

Subhas Chandra Bose- Relevance for UPSC Exam

  • GS Paper 1: Indian History- Modern Indian history from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present- significant events, personalities, issues.

Subhas Chandra Bose- Context

  • Recently, the Prime Minister announced that a statue of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose will be installed at India Gate to honour his contribution to the independence movement.
  • Until the installation of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s statue is completed, a hologram of Netaji will be projected at the site of the statue.

Subhas Chandra Bose- Key Points

  • About: Subhas Chandra Bose, affectionately called Netaji, was one of the most prominent leaders of the Indian freedom struggle.
  • Birth: Subhas Chandra Bose was born on January 23, 1897, in Cuttack, Orissa.
    • His father Janaki Nath Bose was a famous lawyer and his mother Prabhavati Devi was a pious and religious lady.
  • Education: Subhas Chandra Bose was a brilliant student right from childhood.
    • School: Subhas Chandra Bose topped the matriculation examination of Calcutta province.
    • Collage: Subhas Chandra Bose graduated with a First Class in Philosophy from the Scottish Churches College in Calcutta.
    • Swami Vivekanand’s influence: Subhas Chandra Bose was strongly influenced by Swami Vivekananda’s teachings and was known for his patriotic zeal as a student.
    • Indian Civil Services (ICS): To fulfill his parents’ wishes, Subhas Chandra Bose went to England in 1919 to compete for Indian Civil Services.
      • In England, he appeared for the Indian Civil Service competitive examination in 1920, and came out fourth in order of merit.
    • Resignation From ICS: Subhas Chandra Bose was deeply disturbed by the Jallianwalla Bagh massacre, and left ICS midway to return to India in 1921.
  • Literary work: Subhas Chandra Bose wrote the Indian Struggle– covered the country’s independence movement in the years 1920–1934.
  • Death and Controversy: It is believed that Subhas Chandra Bose died in a plane crash in Taiwan on 18 August 1945.
    • However, many in India refused to believe that Subhas Chandra Bose had died in the plane crash.
    • Many inquiry committees such as the Figgess Report (1946), the Shah Nawaz Committee (1956) and the Khosla Commission (1970) were established on the matter.
      • These committees concluded that Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose died in the plane crash in Taiwan.
    • Unlike above, Mukherjee Commission (2005) said that Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s death in the plane crash could not be proved.
      • This report was rejected by the government.

Subhas Chandra Bose- Contribution in Freedom Struggle Movement

  • Association with Congress:
    • After returning to India Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose came under the influence of Mahatma Gandhi and joined the Indian National Congress in 1921.
    • Subhas Chandra Bose became the President of the All-India Youth Congress in 1923.
    • Subhas Chandra Bose was elected as the President of the Indian National Congress in 1938 (Haripur) and was again re-elected in 1939 (Tripuri).
    • During his presidency, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose talked of planning in concrete terms, and set up a National planning Committee in October 1938.
    • Subhas Chandra Bose resigned from the presidency due to internal differences with Gandhi Ji and formed the All India Forward Bloc, a faction within the Congress.
      • Forward Bloc aimed at consolidating the political left.
    • Association with C.R Das: On Gandhiji’s instructions, Subhas Chandra Bose started working under Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das (C.R Das).
      • Subhas Chandra Bose later acknowledged CR Das as his political guru.
      • Subhas Chandra Bose took over the editorship of the newspaper ‘Forward’ in 1921, founded by Chittaranjan Das’s Swaraj Party.
      • CR Das after winning the Mayorship of Calcutta Cooperation appointed Subhas Chandra Bose as the CEO of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation.
      • Subhas Chandra Bose was arrested and sent to jail in Mandalay in 1925 for his political activities.
    • Promotion of Labour Movement: Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose was associated with trade union movements and was elected the President of the All-India Trade Union Congress (AITUC).
    • Opposition to Nehru Report 1928: In 1928 the Motilal Nehru Committee appointed by the Congress declared in favour of Domination Status.
      • Subhas Chandra Bose along with Jawaharlal Nehru opposed it, and both asserted that they would be satisfied with nothing short of complete independence for India.
    • Participation in Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM): Subhas Chandra Bose was jailed during Civil Disobedience movement in 1930.
      • Subhas Chandra Bose was released in 1931 after Gandhi-Irwin pact was signed.
      • He protested against the Gandhi-Irwin pact and opposed the suspension of the Civil Disobedience movement especially when Bhagat Singh and his associates were hanged.
    • Banishment from India and wok in Europe: Subash Chandra Bose was soon arrested again under the infamous Bengal Regulation.
      • After a year, Subash Chandra Bose was released on medical grounds and was banished from India to Europe.
      • Subash Chandra Bose took steps to establish centres in different European capitals with a view to promoting politico-cultural contacts between India and Europe.
      • Defying the ban, Subash Chandra Bose returned to India and was again arrested and jailed for a year.
      • After the General Elections of 1937, Congress came to power in seven states and Subash Chandra Bose was released.
      • Shortly afterward, he was elected President of the Haripura Congress Session in 1938.
    • World War II and Subhas Chandra Bose: Subhas Chandra Bose started a mass movement against utilizing Indian resources and men by the British Government for the great war/World War II.
      • For this, Subhas Chandra Bose was put under house arrest in Calcutta.
      • In January 1941, Subhas Chandra Bose disappeared from his home in Calcutta and reached Germany via Afghanistan.
    • Subash Chandra Bose in Germany: Working on the maxim that “an enemy’s enemy is a friend”, Subash Chandra Bose sought the cooperation of Germany and Japan against British Empire.
      • Subash Chandra Bose began his regular broadcasts from Radio Berlin, which aroused tremendous enthusiasm in India.
    • Subash Chandra Bose in Singapore: In July 1943, Subash Chandra Bose arrived in Singapore from Germany.
      • In Singapore, Subash Chandra Bose took over the reins of the Indian Independence Movement in East Asia from Rash Behari Bose and organized the Azad Hind Fauj (Indian National Army)
      • The Azad Hind Fauj (Indian National Army) comprised mainly of Indian prisoners of war.
      • Subash Chandra Bose was hailed as Netaji by the Army as well as by the Indian civilian population in East Asia.
    • Indian National Army (INA): Under the leadership of Subash Chandra Bose, Azad Hind Fauj proceeded towards India to liberate it from British rule. En route, it liberated Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
      • Subash Chandra Bose gave famous slogans ‘Jai Hind’and ‘Dilli Chalo’.
      • The I.N.A. Head quarters was shifted to Rangoon in January 1944. Azad Hind Fauj crossed the Burma Border and stood on Indian soil on March 18, 1944.
      • However, the defeat of Japan and Germany in the Second World War forced INA to retreat and it could not achieve its objective.

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