The contributor is the Vice-President of the I. N. A. Martyrs’ Memorial Committee Moirang, Manipur. Through his initiative and dedication, the Committee could collect contributions from the Centre and State Governments for the memorial. Shri Yajee was also the former President of the All India Forward Bloc and one of the close associates and confident of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.
. . . . . . Editor,
NDIA is going to celebrate the 75th Birth Day of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on the 23rd of January, 1971 and on this very day, Shri V. V. Giri, President of Indian Republic and one of the closest associates of Netaji is going to unveil the bronze statue of Netaji in military uniform at Moirang (Manipur) in the premises of the Indian National Army Martyrs’ Memorial.
By:Sheel Bhadra Yajee. M.P.
On this solemn occasion, the writer of this article as a colleague and Co-worker of Netaji is to convince the people of India and abroad that Netaji was the greatest revolutionary and socialist leader of India.
Since the very beginning of his political life, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose as the President of Bharat Navjawan Sabha, All India Trade Union Congress, Indian National Congress, the All India Forward Bloc and the Head of the Provisional Azad Hind Government had always advocated uncompromising struggle against the British Imperialism and had clearly preached that the salvation of India, as of the world depended on full blooded Socialism Scientific Socialism, but he also clearly held that India would evolve her own methods to achieve Socialism. Due to his taking help from Germany, Italy and Japan to lead the Indian National Army to liberate India from the clutches of British Imperialism during the Second World War, some interested parties and individuals held wrong notions and created impression that Netaji was not a full-fledged socialist but a national socialist. Though Lenin during the First World War took all help from Germany which was at war with U.K. and Russia, to reach St. Petersburg (now Leningrad) safely to conduct the Great October Revolution, no body doubted his sincerity and called him as agent of Germany.
Now it is a well known fact that just after the All India Anti-compromise Conference at Rangrah (Bihar) in March 1940 in which it was decided to start a national struggle against British Imperialism, Netaji consulted some of us on the question of seeking active help from U.S.S.R. and late Lala Shankarlal the then President of Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee and the then General Secretary of the All India Forward Bloc was sent to Japan on a false Passport to finalize this agreement with the Soviet Ambassador in Japan. In the meanwhile, Netaji was arrested in Calcutta in connection with the removal of the Holl-well movement.
Lala Shankarlal came back to Calcutta from Japan incognito after finalizing the agreement with the Soviet Ambassador in Japan and through Late Mr. Sarat Chandra Bose the elder brother of Netaji, the message of agreement was communicated to Netaji in Calcutta jail.
To come out from the jail and finalize plans to go to U.S.S.R. via Kabul. Netaji started a fast into death. He was released and how he escaped from India to Kabul via Peshawar and again from Kabul to Moscow and Berlin. It is now well known. Due to non-aggression pact with U. K., Stalin and Molotov advised Netaji to take help from Germany and Italy. And Netaji did take help from Germany, Italy and Japan because; these three countries were also fighting U. K. in Second World War.
The writer had to give out this background and reasons as why Netaji had to go to Berlin and Rome because later on the Soviet Press and the Communist Party of India had depicted Netaji as fascist and used vulgar and abusive terms against him. Even after the defeat of the I.N.A. in the battlefield, Netaji decided to go U.S.S.R. via Manchuria to continue the struggle against British Imperialism. While going to Manchuria, the fateful an accident took in which he died.
It may be remembered here that after the formation of the Azad Hind Government on the 2lst of October, 1943, Netaji and his Provisional Azad Hind Government declared war against U.S.A. and U.K. but not against U.S.S.R. and China though they were the allies of U.K. in the Second World War. This foreign policy of Azad Hind Government proves that Netaji was not against any socialist country.
Presiding over the Third Indian Political Conference held in London on June 10. 1933, Netaji said; “During the nineteenth Century, Germany made the most remarkable gift through Marxian philosophy and during twentieth Century Russia had enriched the culture and civilization of the world through her achievement in proletarian revolution and proletarian culture. The next remarkable contribution to the culture and the civilization of the world. India would be called upon to make.” Further he said “we know for example that in Soviet Russia, a new scheme of national ( or political ) economy has been evolved in keeping with facts and conditions of the land. The same thing will happen to India. In solving our economic problems, Pigeon and Marshall will not be of much help.”
As the Editor of “the Forward Bloc” the organ of the All India Forward Bloc, writing on the role of the Forward Bloc said Netaji “that the Forward Bloc would prepare the ground to grow into a Marxist Party”. This declaration of Netaji as the President of the All India Forward Bloc in the official organ of the Party proves that he was a genuine scientific Socialist and was neither a national socialist nor a Fabian Socialist.
On the 15th of March, 1935, writing a letter to the United Press of India from Vienna, Netaji said “further if I am not mistaken, the Congress Socialist Party seems to be under the influence of Fabian Socialism which was the fashion in England 50 years ago”.
The writing in his famous book ‘The Indian Struggle’ about the post-independence struggle period Netaji said “The Party that is going to fight for freedom is the party that is entitled to draw up the constitution of India and rule over the country. If we are to have a socialist economy, socialism cannot be established by the Western Democracy. Socialist reconstruction can be done only by Dictatorship but that Dictatorship should not be of individuals or of the cliques but of general masses” Citing the constituent Assembly of Kerensky’s government, Netaji said that if Lenin would have joined it, the Bolshevik Government of Lenin would have never come into existence”.
Presiding over the fifty first session of the Indian National Congress on Feb. 9, 1938 at Haripura (Gujarat) Netaji said “I am afraid there is lack of clarity in the minds of many congressman as to the Congress in the history of the national struggle. I know that there are friends who think that after freedom is own the Congress Party, having achieved its objectives should wither away. Such a conception is entirely erroneous. The Party that wins freedom should be also the party that will put into effect the entire programme of post war reconstructions. Only those who have won can handle it properly.
If it were to forcibly liquidate itself, chaos would follow. I have no doubt in my mind that our chief national problems relating to the eradication of poverty. Illiteracy and disease and to the scientific production and distribution can be effectively tackled along socialistic lines. The very first things which our future national government will have to do would be to set up a Planning Commission for drawing up a comprehensive plan for construction. Last but not the least, the State, on the advice of Planning Commission, will have to adopt a comprehensive scheme for gradually socializing our entire agriculture and industrial system in the sphere of both production and distribution. Extra capital will have to be procured for this whether through internal or external loans or through inflations”.
Just after the Haripura Congress Session, Netaji as President of the Au India Congress Committee set up a Planning Commission and appointed Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru as the President, Shri V. V. Giri ( the present President of the Indian Republic ) as Convenor and Shri H. V. Kamath as the Secretary of the Planning Committee.
Presiding over the All India Forward Bloc Conference at Nagpur in June. 1940 he declared “the All India Forward Bloc as a full-fledged socialist Party within the Indian National Congress and he gave a clarion call to “All power to the Indian people” and observed “We shall also bear in mind that the Forward Bloc will have a role to play in the post Struggle phase of our history. It will have to build up a new India and happy India on the basis of eternal principles of liberty, democracy and socialism”
These writings and observations of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose given here clearly prove that Netaji was not only the greatest revolutionary leader of India but he was also a genuine scientific socialist leader of the country.