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Mahatma and Netaji - A little bit of history

In my previous post, I has asked the question:�What could be the reason(s) for the Government’s continued silence on the matter of Netaji’s disappearance?

It would be tempting to blame this on partisan politics but actually�it is not just the Congress that has failed us in this regard.� As Anuj Dhar mentions: “The BJP seems to be in unison with the Congress over the Subhas Bose death case. That’s why you haven’t heard anything on this matter from their senior leaders, with the notable exception of Dr Murli Manohar Joshi”

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Time for a�little bit of history.

In the early days of the struggle for India’s freedom,�Netaji’s influence and�impact on the freedom movement was equal to (if not more than)�that�of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru…Unfortunately the relationship between Netaji on one hand, and Mahatma on the other was uneasy and fraught with�disagreements.

As many of you may know,�his re-election to the post of Congress President in 1939 created further tension between him and the Mahatma - especially as he had won the post defeating Pattabhi Sitaramaiah (who was Gandhiji’s nominee).

Gandhiji apparently took Sitaramayya�s defeat personally and is believed to have remarked: “I consider Pattabhi’s defeat as my own”.��

There were other reasons behind the tension, including disagreement over the immediate goals and objectives of the movement.� Soon after his re-election, Netaji “…brought a resolution to give the British six months to hand India over to the Indians, failing which there would be a revolt. There was much opposition to his rigid stand, and he resigned from the post of president and formed a progressive group known as the Forward Block… [link]”

Here is another account and interpretation of events around the time:

In a letter dated March 28, 1939, from Manbhum, Bihar - Bose complained bitterly to Nehru of Gandhi’s quiet campaign of non-cooperation with him. Bose had just won the Presidency of the Indian National Congress, defeating Gandhi’s chosen nominee, Dr Pattabhi. At first, Gandhi had tried to talk Bose out of running for the post, and tried to work out a backroom deal for Dr Pattabhi’s ascension (as he had done on many earlier occasions). But Bose was determined to seek the mandate of Congress activists, and won by a handsome margin in an election where the official machinery of the Congress had put all its weight behind Gandhi’s hand-picked nominee.

Bose’s historic election signified the mood of the Indian masses, who were becoming increasingly impatient with Gandhi’s tepid nationalism. Bose had always strived to accelerate the freedom struggle, and the mass of Congress Party workers appreciated his sincerity and unswerving commitment to the national cause. In many ways, he was the best person to lead the Congress, with intellect and vision that exceeded Gandhi.

But Gandhi, along with Patel and Nehru formed a tactical block against Bose, and prevented him from functioning effectively as leader of India’s preeminent national organization. In vain did Bose make his case with Nehru, who remained unmoved, and eventually, it led to Bose having to quit the Congress, and organize outside it’s tedious confines.

But there was more to this than met the eye…

In the words of Prof Satadru Sen, �Gandhi certainly saw Bose as a rival and a dangerous upstart, and did his best to destroy him politically�

What follows is probably the most truthful (and detailed) account of what actually happened during the months following�Netaji’s re-election that ultimately led to his ouster as Congress President.

From:� Subhas Chandra Bose 1897-1945, by Prof. Satadru Sen

The break (between Gandhi and Bose) came in the fall of 1938, when war in Europe became a distinct possibility. Bose and the left saw the possibility of war as a tremendous political opportunity, and wanted to use this opportunity to pressure the colonial government for immediate concessions. Gandhi and the Congress right, on the other hand, wanted to issue a much weaker resolution, hoping that the British would simply do the right thing if war broke out. Bose and the left refused to give in, and Gandhi was furious. Even though Bose was the Congress president at this time, Gandhi had long enjoyed the status of the unofficial super-president of the Congress, and he did not like Bose’s disobedience.

Bose was up for re-election in January of 1939, and Gandhi decided to block him. Quite apart from his personal animosity, there were real issues involved. Bose wanted the Congress to walk away from implementing the Government of India Act of 1935. He also wanted to give the colonial government an ultimatum demanding immediate independence, and to begin all-out civil disobedience if the government refused. Gandhi and the Congress right felt otherwise. In any event, Bose won his re-election, narrowly defeating P. Sitaramayya, who was Gandhi’s chosen candidate.

Gandhi now worked actively to bring Bose down. The Congress constitution provided only two ways for getting rid of the president: he could be voted Out of office, or he could resign. Since Gandhi was unwilling to wait for the next election, he decided to force Bose to resign. Even though Bose was the Congress president, Gandhi’s supporters controlled the party’s Working Committee. Without their cooperation, the president could not operate effectively; it was a system of checks and balances similar to what we have in the US government.

Gandhi’s supporters now resigned, and Bose found himself unable to form a new Working Committee against Gandhi’s opposition. He tried hard to work out a compromise with Gandhi. He even offered to let Gandhi nominate the entire Working Committee, if Gandhi would only accept Bose’s plan to launch an agitation for immediate independence. Gandhi politely refused, and Bose had no option except to resign, four months into his second term as president.

One of the interesting things about this whole episode is that Bose blamed Nehru more than he blamed Gandhi. He never completely cut his ties with Gandhi, and continued to try to rebuild his bridges. But he never forgave Nehru for not helping him during this crisis.

…Bose, meanwhile, had been busy organizing his own party, called the Forward Bloc. This was initially within the structure of the Congress. But by 1940 it had become an independent political party, mainly because the Congress had refused to tolerate its allegiance to Bose instead of to Gandhi, and had kicked its officers out of office. Things were happening very fast for Bose, as usual. In July of 1940, he was arrested and sent to prison again for planning to lead a march demanding the removal of a memorial to the victims of the Black Hole of Calcutta. He went on a hunger-strike, and in December he was released.

Then began his great adventure. Even before his last arrest, Bose had begun to think about getting himself out of India. He felt that there was little that he could achieve in India under the circumstances. His career in the Congress had stalled, and besides, the Congress was unwilling to do what he wanted it to do. The war, he felt, was too important an opportunity to waste. So he came up with a plan. He would escape from India, get to the Soviet Union, and then go on to Germany. When he got to Germany, he would persuade the Germans to help him in his fight against the British in India.

Click here to continue reading�a fascinating account�of Netaji Bose’s journey out of India.

What happened afterwards is a sad story of unfulfilled promises, bad luck and a turn of fate…While Netaji remained in the public consciousness for many many years after 1939, his influence began to wane and his absence from the public eye led to the leadership of the movement firmly gravitating towards Gandhiji and Nehru..

The rest, as they say, is history.

Recommended Read: Gandhi - ‘Mahatma’ or Flawed Genius? National Leader or Manipulative Politician?�

Unexpected Find of the Day: Nathuram Vinayak Godse�s statement in court during his trial for the murder of Mahatma Gandhi.

Related Post:� Let the truth be known: What really happened to�Netaji?�

May 30th, 2008 Posted by B Shantanu | British Rule in India, Modern Indian History, Politics and Governance in India, Post Independence History | 5 comments