Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose death mystery: MEA action in 1996 ran contrary to PMO says Anuj Dhar

With each passing day the mystery surrounding Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose only seems to intensify. Now, it has been revealed that differences between the Prime Minister's Office and the External Affairs Ministry in the year 1996 surprisingly stopped a move to ask Russia about the whereabouts of Netaji.

Anuj Dhar, the author of the book on Netaji Bose, titled "India's Biggest Cover-up," speaks with OneIndia about the classified documents he has accessed.

MEA dropped plans on seeking information from Russia:

Dhar says that the government of India dropped out of seeking information regarding Bose from Russia. He also adds that he had once spoken with former Defence Minister, George Fernandes who in turn had spoken about the same with his counterpart in Russia.

The Russians are said to have informed that this issue needs to be taken up at the highest level. However, it is surprising that successive governments failed to rake up the issue even once.

Dhar says that it is believed by some researchers that Bose may have stayed in Russia (then USSR) in 1945 before coming back to India.

The documents that I have accessed suggest that the PMO had directed discreet inquires be made on the information relating to Bose with Russia.

This was a decision taken in March 1996. However in November 1996, the Ministry for External Affairs seems to have dropped the idea of any intervention into the subject, Dhar also explains.

Ties with Russia:

The classified document of the MEA joint secretary, R L Narayan states that making a formal request to open the KGB archives may amount to disbelieving the Russian government's categorical and official statement on the subject.

However, if one does look at the file noting by the PMO it seems as though they were in favour of an intervention on this subject, Dhar also explains.

He says on March 25 1996 the PMO had written, "Prime Minister would like the ambassador in Moscow to make discreet inquiries at a high level to ascertain the possible existence of such information (relating to Bose in Russia).

However, the stand of the MEA ran contrary and it was stated that it would not be right on part of India to approach Russia to open up its archives on this subject, Anuj Dhar also says.