["Demanding that all classified documents relating to any matter including Netaji be opened to public, Bose adds, "Such classified documents should be released and, if the matters are too sensitive, the period may be extended to 50 years."
It is truly unacceptable that even after the lapse of half a century state files are not "declassified" and kept beyond the reach of interested researchers and commoners.] I/III. http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/war-of-words-erupts-over-netaji-snooping/article1-1335955.aspx NATION SUNDAY, APR 12, 2015 'If snooping went on till 1968, what stopped it? Did it stop at all?' Netaji Bhavan at 38/2 Elgin Road, Kolkata. (Source: Express photo by Shubham Dutta) Written by Subrata Nagchowdhury | Kolkata | Published on:April 12, 2015 2:40 am "The individual must die, so that India may live and may win freedom and glory...." reads an excerpt from the writings of Subhas Chandra Bose at the entrance of 38/2 Elgin Road, or 'Netaji Bhawan', in the heart of Kolkata. This is one of the two houses of Netaji that were under surveillance for over two decades according to some files of the Intelligence Bureau declassified at the National Archives now. This is also the house from where Netaji made his great escape in 1941. The other house on which surveillance was kept is 1, Woodburn Park. It now houses the Centre for Asian Studies. Historian and a Netaji relative, Dr Sugato Bose, talks about how his father Dr Sisir Bose evaded at least 14 intelligence officials posted at the Elgin Road house once and drove Netaji out disguised in a Pathan suit. RELATED Sugata Bose And The Two Houses Under Surveillance Kodalia Property Not Netaji's Ancestral House: Family To CM Parliament Yet To Approve Mukherjee Commission: Centre Tells High Court "But that was during British rule," Bose, who is now a Trinamool Congress MP, adds. "What is most shocking is that the snooping continued even after Independence." Equally shocking is that it was the Congress that ruled Bengal then "and the snooping could not have continued without the knowledge of the Bengal government", says Bose. He adds that he had looked at the files at the National Archives and found the documents and letters to be "totally harmless, nice letters, private and very intimate letters", says Bose. Netaji's shoes on display Netaji's shoes on display The MP wonders if the spying had stopped now. "If it continued till 1968, what stopped it?" Bose asked. "Did it stop at all? Who knows that even now our e-mails are not monitored, telephones not bugged? This was an encroachment on privacy and most of all there was no security threat involved." Bose doesn't believe that the "political challenge" that Netaji's return might have posed to then leaders could have been the reason to snoop. "The motive is not clear. There is also no evidence to suggest that it was ordered by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru." He talks about the "intimate relationship" the Bose family had with the Nehrus. Nehru would invite Netaji for breakfast whenever he was in Delhi, Bose says. ***Demanding that all classified documents relating to any matter including Netaji be opened to public, Bose adds, "Such classified documents should be released and, if the matters are too sensitive, the period may be extended to 50 years."*** [Emphasis added.] About Bose, he notes, "The argument that releasing such documents may sour relations with friendly countries does not hold water. In 1941 the Churchill government had initiated a move to assassinate Netaji. Does it mean it would impact India's relations with the David Cameron government?" II/III. http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-snooping-on-netaji-family-by-nehru-government-a-sinister-propaganda-congress-2076441 Snooping on Netaji family by Nehru government a 'sinister propaganda': Congress Friday, 10 April 2015 - 7:51pm IST | Place: New Delhi | Agency: PTI Congress' reaction came in the wake of reports that between 1948 and 1968, the family of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose was spied upon in Calcutta by Intelligence Bureau (IB). Jawahar Lal Nehru File Photo Congress on Friday rejected reports that Jawaharlal Nehru's government had snooped on the family of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and accused the Narendra Modi dispensation of launching a "sinister propaganda of selective leaks and half truths" to malign national icons. AICC said that since the Intelligence Bureau reports directly to the Home Minister, the ruling party was "attempting to malign the great Home Ministers between 1948 to 68 including Sardar Patel and Lal Bahadur Shastri". "Why is BJP trying to malign the great Home Ministers and veteran freedom fighters like Shri Vallabhbhai Patel, Shri C. Rajagopalachari, Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri, Shri Govind Ballabh Pant, Shri Gulzarilal Nanda and others?" party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi told reporters. He alleged "a systematic and sinister propaganda of selective leaks and half truths has been unleashed by current BJP government to malign national icons who reshaped India's destiny, rewrote its history and made it a great nation today." The Prime Minister and the Home Minister must explain why only 'notings on file' of the two declassified files have been released while withholding the 'correspondence portion' of these files, he said. "Does the correspondence portion contain some inconvenient truth that the Prime Minister's Office has chosen to withhold?" he added. Congress' reaction came in the wake of reports that between 1948 and 1968, the family of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose was spied upon in Calcutta by Intelligence Bureau (IB), much of it when Nehru was Prime Minister. Singhvi alleged that BJP, in its "classic diabolical design", is seeking to malign not only Pt. Nehru but also other national leaders like Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Gulzarilal Nanda, C. Rajagopalachari, Govind Ballabh Pant and Y B Chavan. "India's history and achievements can never be segregated or looked at separately from the achievements of these great men who were Prime Ministers and Home ministers," he said. He demanded that the Prime Minister and the Home Minister should have the courage to come out, make a statement and place full facts in public domain. This, he said, was necessary as the PMO has still kept 58 related files as classified and the Home Ministry has kept 29 such files as classified -- a total of 87 files on Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose that are still classified. "We also demand that all such documents should be declassified so that complete truth is placed in public domain.", he said. III. http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/war-of-words-erupts-over-netaji-snooping/article1-1335955.aspx War of words erupts between BJP and Cong over Netaji snooping case HT Correspondent, Hindustan Times, New Delhi| Updated: Apr 10, 2015 21:57 IST A war of words erupted between the Congress and BJP on Friday over revelations that former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru and successive Congress governments snooped on Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's family for 20 years. The Congress accused the Modi government of unleashing a "systematic and sinister propaganda of selective leaks and half truths" to malign not only Nehru but also other national leaders such as Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Lal Bahadur Shastri and C Rajagopalachari. "The PM and home minister Rajnath Singh must explain why only file notings of two declassified documents have been released while withholding the correspondence portion of these files. Does that portion contain some inconvenient truth the prime minister's office has chosen to withhold?" asked Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi. The controversy was ignited after media reports surfaced about two recently-declassified intelligence reports that said the Union government spied on several members of Bose's family between 1948 and 1968. Singhvi said a total of 87 files - 58 by the PMO and 29 by the home ministry -- on Netaji are still classified and demanded all documents be released. The party has repeatedly accused the NDA regime of trying to erase Nehru's legacy, citing its move to dismantle the planning commission. But the BJP hit back, calling the episode shocking, and demanded a probe. "If you see the history of Congress, there are lots of hidden things about them. The Congress has a murky past," Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said. Union minister Nirmala Sitharaman said even when the government was unaware of Bose's whereabouts, it continued snooping until 1968. "This is really surprising and shocking. I certainly feel until 2010-11, snooping had become a part of the Congress' DNA," she said. The BJP was backed by Biju Janata Dal leader Bhartruhari Mahtab who said the information showed Nehru's image as a true democrat was fragile. "Surveillance for 20 years shows the attitude of the Congress towards one of the greatest sons of India," said the MP from Cuttack, where Netaji was born. -- Peace Is Doable -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
