Netaji Files- How long can you keep files a secret? It’s your turn now: Mamata to Centre

Watch Video: West Bengal Government Declassifies Files On Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

Talking to the reporters after making public 64 secret files on Netaji in Kolkata, Mamata said, the West Bengal government has made a beginning today. “It is the beginning of the future. You can’t suppress truth for long. It will come out one day,” she said.

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She said “our tribute” to Netaji has been “reduced to mere ritual celebrations” on his birth anniversary every year. “But the true facts about this leader should come out. The files that the state government put in the public domain today will give insights about Netaji and would open an window to the world,” she said.

Mamata, who spent nearly half-an-hour on a computer at the Kolkata Police Museum perusing the digitised files, said that some of the documents throw light on mystery surrounding Netaji’s death. At least one file mentioned about Netaji being alive in 1946. This was evident by a letter written by one Dr L Abegg from Zurich to Netaji’s brother Dr Sarat Chandra Bose in 1949 in which he said that in 1946 he had heard from some Japanese sources that Netaji was still alive.

To a query on the alleged spying of the Netaji’s family by the Congress government under Jawahar Lal Nehru for 20 years from 1948 to 1968, she said, “I have gone through files and seen how spying was done even after independence. It has been proved. This was unfortunate”.

Earlier in the day, the family members of Netaji were handed over a set of CDs containing the digitised files.

The family members hailed the state government’s initiative and said that Centre should follow it up. “Congratulations to Mamata for opening the files. Congrats to the police for displaying the key files in such short time. Thank You,” wrote Krishna Bose, a former Trinamool Congress MP and Netaji’s family member, in the visitor’s book at the Kolkata Police Museum.

Dr Sumantra Bose, a LSE professor and another family member, wrote: “Jai Hind!”

Apart from Kolkata Police Commissioner Surajit Purkayastha, a number of personalities who had deposed before the Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry on Netaji’s disappearance were present during the function.