A section of members of Netaji Subash Bose's family and The Open Platform for Netaji on Thursday demanded the Narendra Modi-led Central government declassify all files - including of the IB - on the Indian revolutionary and set up a special investigation team to take up the probe of his disappearance on August 18, 1945.
The forum also asserted it would take out a rally here on Friday to demand an end to the mystery of the freedom fighter's disappearance in an alleged plane crash on the day in 1945, in defiance of the West Bengal government's alleged denial of police permission to hold the march.
"The process (Centre's decision to declassify Netaji files in January 2016) has started and we want Modi ji to complete the cycle. The SIT would take up the investigation where Mukherjee Commission had ended. We want the government to appoint a high-powered SIT to scrutinise documents released, and prepare a report to be placed in both Houses of Parliament," Netaji's grandnephew Chandra Kumar Bose, also the convenor of the platform, told the media here.
The platform demanded the Centre arrange for the SIT's visit to Russia, Britain, Germany, France, Japan, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan and Myanmar to examine all relevant files and documents, and submit a report to the government.
Other demands include acceptance of the findings of the Justice Mukherjee Commission, or stating the reasons for its rejection; conducting a mitochondrial DNA test on the ashes alleged to be Netaji's at the Renkoji Temple in Japan, and ascertaining their authenticity or otherwise, conduct of scientific research and analysis to ascertain the identity of Bhagwanji or Gumnamibaba of Faizabad.
"The Centre and the state government have a responsibility to find out the truth," Bose said.
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He also stressed on the need to rectify distortions in various published accounts of the Indian freedom movement, based on research and documentation on the role of Netaji and the Indian National Army.
On the rally, which the platform members claimed, was denied permission by the Mamata Banerjee-led dispensation, Bose dared anyone to stop it. The platform said it would observe the day as 'Declassification Day'.
"I invited her (Banerjee) to join our march. She told me 'Accha dekhchi' (Lets's see)... what does that mean? The police administration... the Commissioner of Police... we had sent an email and we had sent a representative... he had to wait for 8 hours at Lalbazar police headquarters. How dare the Police Commissioner have the guts to insult members of the Bose family? To insult citizens of Kolkata... to insult Netaji... to insult Bengal?
"We demand an answer from the Chief Minister and tomorrow (August 18) we will march from Netaji Statue to Netaji Bhawan. How do you dare you stop the open platform? Whole Kolkata will march tomorrow (August 18)," Bose added.
--IANS
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