Subhash Chandra Bose is one of the most dynamic leaders of India’s freedom struggle. In 1942, he earned the honorific title ‘Netaji’ in Germany by the Indian soldiers of the Azad Hind Fauj or the Indian National Army and by the German and Indian officials in the Special Bureau for India in Berlin.
Netaji’s death in one of the most discussed mysteries. Several theories are associated with his cryptic death. On August 18, 1945, he boarded into the plane that crashed in Japanese-occupied Formosa (now Taiwan). The widely-accepted belief is that Netaji had died in this crash.
While some official documents claim Netaji had died in a tragic plane crash on this day in 1945, there is a section of society that feels that he disappeared in the crash and there is no legit proof of his death.
Here are a few theories that are associated with Netaji’s mysterious death:
Bose was tortured and killed in prison by the Britishers:
According to the book authored by Maj Gen GD Bakshi, Bose: The Indian Samurai – Netaji and the INA Military Assessment Netaji didn’t die in a plane crash, but the theory was floated to facilitate his escape to the Soviet Union. So, while clarifying the mystery of his death this book says he died during the torture by the British in prison.
The Legend of Gumnami Baba:
On September 16, 1985, a sadhu known as Gumnami Baba died in Faizabad. Crawling after his death came claims that this old man was none other than Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose himself. It is said that a former judge, who was appointed to undertake an inquiry into Netaji’s death in 1999, was the one who made public the controversy of Gumnami Baba, also known as Bhagwanji.
Bose was alive according to the French Secret Service:
Paris-based historian JBP More quoted reports from the France Secret Servicewhich once said that Bose was still alive in 1947, In the report it clearly stated that he was the ex-chief of the Indian Independence League and also a member of Hikari Kikan, a Japanese organisation. While the British and India stayed strong to the point that he died while replying to an RTI application in a plane crash, the French never endorsed that theory.
However, several family members and relatives of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose slammed the Bengali film ‘Gumnaami’ and ‘Conundrum: Subhas Bose’s Life After Death’ and alleged that it is an insult to Netaji. “Why is a film being made on a cock and bull story? It amounts to insulting Netaji,” said Sugato Bose, historian, and grand-nephew of Subhas Chandra Bose. Sugato and his mother Krishna Bose both objected to the name Gumnaami which is taken from Gumnami Baba. More than 30 members of Netaji’s family stated that both are a part of the effort to malign Netaji.
