Today is 23rd of January, the 128th birth anniversary of one of the bravest sons of mother India who contributed his heart out for country’s Independence. On this momentous occasion, citizens across India are paying heartfelt tributes to Netaji, honouring his unparalleled contribution to the freedom struggle. The Leader of Opposition and Congress leader, Rahul Gandhi too paid his tributes to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose on his birth anniversary but in the way, he chose to propagate the same old lie of Netaji meeting with a devastating plane crash on the 18th of August, 1945 that took his life.
Alongside his accolade tweet for Netaji, he shared a picture that featured Netaji’s birth date along with his contentious death date, marked as August 18, 1945. This date aligns with the plane crash theory, which suggests that Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose met with the tragic plane crash that day which took his life. The plane crash theory has been debunked multiple times through credible evidence.
महान क्रांतिकारी, आज़ाद हिंद फौज के संस्थापक नेताजी सुभाष चंद्र बोस जी की जयंती पर उन्हें भावपूर्ण श्रद्धांजलि।
नेताजी का नेतृत्व, साहस, सामाजिक न्याय के लिए उनका संघर्ष, सहिष्णुता और समावेशिता के प्रति उनका योगदान आज भी हर भारतीय को प्रेरित करता है।
भारत माता के अमर सपूत को… pic.twitter.com/Fa2CTUu9BL
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) January 23, 2025
At the latest, Author Anuj Dhar and Chandrachur Ghose in their recent book The Bose Deception: Declassified has worked extensively to debunk the ‘The plane crash theory’. Their research, based on over 2,000 declassified documents from multiple countries, challenges the long-standing plane crash theory that suggests Netaji died in Taipei on August 18, 1945.
Also Read: Did Netaji Really Die in a Plane Crash? Chinese Historians and Evidence Say No!
According to the Japanese account, Netaji and Lt. General Tsunamasa Shidei died in a plane crash at Taipei airport, and their ashes were later sent to Tokyo. However, Anuj Dhar and Chandrachud Ghose, in their book, cited Chinese war historians Zhang Zishen and Xue Chunde and presented that Shidei was not on the same plane as Subhash Chandra Bose. The historians claim that Shidei’s plane was intercepted and shot down by Chinese fighter jets, crashing into the East China Sea.
Justice MK Mukherjee’s 2006 commission report also questioned the plane crash theory, suggesting that the Japanese staged Bose’s death to facilitate his escape to Soviet Russia. Justice Mukherjee Commission found that a Japanese soldier’s body was falsely identified as Netaji’s and Shidei’s death remained unverified.
The Chinese version of events directly contradicts the Japanese claim upheld by the Indian government in 2006 under Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Anuj Dhar and Chandrachud Ghose point out inconsistencies, including the lack of evidence that Netaji and Shidei arrived in Taipei together, contradictory eyewitness accounts, and missing government records from both India and Japan.
Treatment of Subhash Chandra Bose by Indian National Congress
Rahul Gandhi from Congress coming out to propagate the bogus plane crash theory is not shocking. There is a long history of Congress disrespecting Netaji and not giving him his due. During the days of freedom struggle, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose was unceremoniously sidelined by the Congress party. Bose’s charisma, uncompromising nationalism, and revolutionary approach often clashed with the Congress high command, led by Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru. His treatment by the party underscores a pattern of sidelining capable leaders who challenged the established hierarchy.
In 1938, Bose became Congress President at the Haripura session, advocating a decisive mass movement against British rule and opposing the Government of India Act, 1935. While many Congress leaders sought concessions within the British framework, Bose pushed for complete independence, or Purna Swaraj. His bold stance, however, was met with resistance from the old guard, particularly Gandhi.
The defining moment came in 1939, during the Congress session at Tripuri. Bose contested for re-election against Gandhi’s chosen candidate, Pattabhi Sitaramayya, and won decisively (1,575 votes to 1,376). Gandhi declared Sitaramayya’s defeat as his own, prompting the Congress Working Committee (CWC) to resign en masse. This undermined Bose’s presidency, as Gandhi loyalists sought to curtail his powers.
Faced with relentless opposition, Bose proposed a six-month ultimatum to the British for granting independence, failing which a nationwide struggle would ensue. His foresight about an impending world war proved accurate, but his warnings were ignored. The Congress leadership, under Gandhi’s influence, diluted Bose’s authority by passing a resolution declaring that the Working Committee must align with Gandhi’s policies. Feeling stifled and isolated, Bose resigned in April 1939.
The hostility did not end there. In August 1939, Bose was removed as President of the Bengal Provincial Congress Committee and barred from holding any elective office in Congress for three years. By then, his differences with Nehru had also deepened. Bose criticized Nehru for abandoning socialist ideals and compromising under Gandhi’s influence. Free from Congress constraints, Bose later formed the Forward Bloc, continuing his fight for complete independence.
