Netaji died in 1945 plane crash: Centre in RTI reply

Indian Express: Kolkata: Wednesday, May 31, 2017.

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose died in a plane crash in Taiwan in 1945, the Centre has concluded. “After considering the reports of Shahnawaz Committee, Justice G D Khosla Commission and Justice Mukherjee Commission of Enquiry, the Government has come to the conclusion that Netaji has died in plane crash in 1945,’’ the Union home ministry said in response to a query under the Right To Information Act on Tuesday.

“Some information regarding Gumnami Baba and Bhagwanji is available in Mukherjee Commission report on page 114-122. This report is available in mha.nic.in. Mukherjee Commission had come to the conclusion that Gumnami Baba/Bhagwanji was not Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. Ministry of Home Affairs has declassified all available files (37) relating to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.’’

Netaji’s family expressed its displeasure over the response. “This is irresponsible move… How can the government conclude Netaji’s death without concrete evidence?’’ asked Netaji’s grandnephew and Bengal BJP vice president Chandra Bose. He called it “highly objectionable” and added that they will have to take the matter up with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “It is he who declassified files after 70 years. During our meeting, he promised us to take the investigations to its logical conclusion and solve the mystery.’’

Bose asked how can the government conclude such a thing when their discussion process is on with Modi. “The declassified files are to be scrutinised. The Mukherjee Commission was set up because the reports of other committees and commissions were not conclusive,’’ he said. “Mukherjee Commission clearly stated that Netaji did not die in the plane crash and went to China or Russia. Congress rejected the Mukherjee Commission report on political grounds.’’

Open Platform for Netaji spokesperson Sayak Sen, who had filed the RTI query in March, said that they are shocked. “Had the government reached a conclusion, then why this process of declassifying files to know what happened to Netaji,’’ said Sen. “We were fighting to know the truth because there is no conclusive evidence of his death in the plane crash.’’ The family will take out a rally in Kolkata on August 18 and in Delhi in October to press for more action. A majority of Netaji’s family members and a large section of researchers believe that he did not die in the crash.