What my countrymen are trying to say is that Bose is an icon who is worshipped in India.
We don't claim that he was a great military leader, but his attempts to seek a military solution are respected.
We don't claim that he was trying to win a war, but he was only seeking to free his motherland.
He failed as a military leader, but he was part of the same team that sought Indian independence.
Bose had first gone to Soviet Union and when he got no help from Stalin, he went to Germany. He did not even get an acknowledgement from Hitler when he tried to seek his assistance in 1941, in fact he was ignored. Just one battalion was created from Indian students and POWs, IR 950 (known as the Indian Legion). Did they do anything operational?....apart from some sabotage ops in Baluchistan,...nothing much.
Bose's efforts were no military success, but his efforts are acknowledged as they led to the ultimate aim of freedom from British colonial rule.
Will Indians feel bad if we got to know that he was murdered?....damn right Yes.
Why?..because most Indians respected the British for their sense of justice and fair play. When they left India, they were sent off with respect and decorum and not with hate.
But if we are told that the British held a grudge against Bose, then many would hold one against them too.
We don't claim that he was a great military leader, but his attempts to seek a military solution are respected.
We don't claim that he was trying to win a war, but he was only seeking to free his motherland.
He failed as a military leader, but he was part of the same team that sought Indian independence.
Bose had first gone to Soviet Union and when he got no help from Stalin, he went to Germany. He did not even get an acknowledgement from Hitler when he tried to seek his assistance in 1941, in fact he was ignored. Just one battalion was created from Indian students and POWs, IR 950 (known as the Indian Legion). Did they do anything operational?....apart from some sabotage ops in Baluchistan,...nothing much.
Bose's efforts were no military success, but his efforts are acknowledged as they led to the ultimate aim of freedom from British colonial rule.
Will Indians feel bad if we got to know that he was murdered?....damn right Yes.
Why?..because most Indians respected the British for their sense of justice and fair play. When they left India, they were sent off with respect and decorum and not with hate.
But if we are told that the British held a grudge against Bose, then many would hold one against them too.
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