Faced with criticism from various quarters, especially the Left parties, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has done a U-turn on the importance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s role in the freedom struggle. Now, it says his contribution was “immense”.This was stated by Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil in a letter to Forward Block general secretary Debabrata Biswas after the latter sought an explanation as to how the Home Ministry had said the government had no information in its records about Netaji’s contribution to the freedom struggle. “The great and seminal contribution of Netaji in the freedom movement is immense and well-known and it is not possible to reduce it into a few pages,” Patil’s letter said. Constant efforts are made by various ministries and departments of the Central and state governments to spread the message and legacy of Netaji. “In short, the memory of Netaji and his contribution are an intrinsic part of Indian history and heritage,” Patil said. Patil’s reply came within days of his ministry saying, in response to an application under the RTI filed by Delhi-based Dev Ashish Bhattacharya.
