Nation pays tribute to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on 123rd birthday; declare January 23 as Patriots Day, demands family

NEW DELHI: On Thursday (January 23), an indebted nation and millions of countrymen are paying homage to Subhas Chandra Bose, who is considered as the most iconic and influential freedom fighters of India, on his 123rd birthday. Bose, who is also referred to as 'Netaji' for his extraordinary leadership skills, is regarded by the world and his ardent admirers as a charismatic orator. 

On January 23 every year, people from across the country pay their tribute to the iconic leader whose famous slogans ‘tum mujhe khoon do, main tumhe aazdi dunga,’ 'Jai Hind' and 'Delhi Chalo' sparked patriotism in the hearts of many Indians during the struggle for freedom from the British Raj. 

Netaji's birth anniversary, the mass acknowledgement of which was mostly restricted to the eastern states, was made a national phenomenon last year when Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a museum dedicated to Subhas Chandra Bose at the iconic Red Fort to mark his 122nd birth anniversary. The museum inaugurated by PM Modi dedicated to the legendary freedom fighter and his Indian National Army showcased various artefacts related to Bose. 

A wooden chair and sword used by Bose, his medals, uniforms, badges were put on display that day in the Bose Museum. On the same day, the PM inaugurated the Yaad-e-Jallian Museum (dedicated to Jallianwala Bagh and World War I), the Museum on 1857 - India's first war of Independence, and Drishyakala - Indian art-based Museum within the Red Fort complex. 

Altogether, the PM spent nearly an hour at the museums last year. 

A few months ahead of that in October 2018, PM Modi also hoisted the national flag at Red Fort and had unveiled the plaque commemorating the 75th Anniversary of the formation of Azad Hind Government, formed by "Netaji". 

In 2018, the PM had also renamed 3 Andaman & Nicobar Islands as a tribute to Netaji. The Ross Island was renamed as Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Dweep, the Neil Island as Shaheed Dweep and Havelock Island as Swaraj Dweep.

But come 2020, the enthusiasm appears to be missing. According to the Press Information Bureau, there is no major event scheduled by the Ministry of Culture or, for that matter, any ministry on January 23, the birth anniversary of Bose, on him.

According to party sources, the BJP at the moment is fully focussed on its campaign for the upcoming Delhi assembly election, which begins from Thursday itself. Interestingly, the party, which released its list of star campaigners on Wednesday, wants to hit the campaign trail with a bang with over 140 small and medium rallies in Delhi.

Amid all this, BJP's West Bengal Vice President and Netaji's grandson Chandra Kumar Bose had demanded that January 23rd be declared as 'Patriot’s Day' commemorating the birthday of the iconic freedom fighter.

"There should be some event on Bose. If you ignore him, you ignore the nation. That is my message to the Prime Minister," Bose said. Chandra Bose said that if the Centre doesn’t declare January 23 as Patriots Day, people across the nation who respect Netaji will all observe Patriot’s Day. 

This apart, he said Mohammad Ali Jinnah was a secular person but Pandit Nehru and Gandhiji were communal persons. He even said people should say ''Jai Hind'' and not ''Bharat Mata ki Jai''. Bose said that he is not against saying ''Bharat Mata ki Jai'' but people should say Jai Hind as it is more powerful. However, he added that the BJP-led NDA government has recognised Bose's immense contribution.

On December 2, the Government of India (GoI)  de-classified all records relating to Netaji and Azad Hind Fauj and placed them in the National Archives of India. A press release from the Press Information Bureau stated that a total of 304 declassified records and files have been transferred to National Archives of India for permanent retention.

Out of 304 files, 303 files are already uploaded on the Netaji web portal i.e. www.netajipapers.gov.in. The National Archives of India acts as the custodian of declassified files and records of the Government of India. All these files are made public under the Public Records Rules,1997. 

(With Agency inputs)