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The following files on Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose have been located in our records:

S i .N o . Files number

1. 23 ( 156 ) /51 — PM

2 . 23(11) /56-57-PM '

3. 2 ( 6 4 J/56-66-PM Vol. I to V

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4 . 2(64)/78-PM

5 . 2 ( 6 4 )/79-PM "

6 . 2 ( 6 4 1/80-PM

7 . 2(64)/81-PM '

8 . 2(64)/ 8 2 - P M v

9 . 2(64)/84-PM J

10 2(64)/86-PM ^

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12. 800/6/C/1 / 89-Pol

13. 800/6/C/l/90-Pol ^

14 . 800/6/ C / 1/91 - Pol iX

15. 915/11/C/6/96-P01-/

16 915/ll/C/9/99-Pol Vol.I,II & III ^

Subject

Disposal of properties of Indian National Army in the far East.

I.N.A. Treasure.

ii) A p p o i n t m e n t of anEnquiry C o m m i t t e e to gointo the circumstances of the death.

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Death of Sh. S.C.Bose.

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It may be mentioned that the Commission has specifically mentioned about 3 files of PMO i.e.

(i) 23(156)/51-PM

(ii) 23(11 ) /56-5 7-PM

(iii) 12(226 )/56-PM

Submitted

[ B.K.Dhal ]Under Secretary

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The files at (i) & (ii) are available in our records and placed below. The file at (iii) has since been destroyed.

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FR mav kindh be seen.

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S ecretary . Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry has requested that photo-copies of the files records concerning

ii Subhas Chandra Bose IN A as listed in our letter dated2.5.2000 (F A) may be sent to him immediately.

He has also desired that the subject and contents of F.No. 12(226)/56. PM and the circumstances under which the file was destroyed may be intimated to him.

It may be mentioned <fcn this connection that the subject of the file was “ Investigation into the circum stances leading to the death of Shri Subhash Chandra Bose”. Since the files was opened in Cabinet meeting head, most probably this tile contained the agenda paper minutes o f the C ab in e t m eeting on the subject. The file register indicates that rhe riie wa* destroyed on 6.3.1972 (perhaps t e after routine review - because a set o f agenda papers and minutes a*i£ kept permanently in Cabinet Secretariat.)

If approved we may send a reply on these lines. We may also start photo-copying the files, i f approved.

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[ B.K.Dhal ]Under Secretary

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Reference notes on Page 3/n.

The photo-copies of the 16 files have been made. If approved, we may now send these to Secretary, Justice Mukherjee Commission.

Certain documents of F.No.23(156)/51-PM required by the Commission (F/A) have been destroyed while recording the file in 1969. The list of documents destroyed has been kept in the file (F/B). We may bring this to the of the Commission.

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Notes from page 1/N onwards may kindly be seen.

2. Two top secret tiles (File No. 2 (64y56-66-PM (Vol. II) and No. 23 (ll)/56-57-PM) which have been transferred to the NGO Section by the Political Section are placed below.

3. File No. 23(1 l)-56-57-PM deals with INA Treasure. The Treasure was taken over on 24 September, 1952 from Japan and consisted o f some/fiharred and broken pieces of jewellery. These were given to the National Museum. The then Prime Minister had stated on 9.1.1953 that this should be kept as it is and apart from everything else, it is some evidence of the aircraft accident and subsequent fire.

4. The file was categorised as Top Secret as it contains four CCB telegrams which originated from MEA and Indian Embassy in Tokyo in the year 1952. It is understood from Under Secretary (Political), PMO that the CCB Telegram cannot be downgraded but canuw^be destroyed, when no longer required by following the described procedure. The Telegrams do not contain any information which can jeopardise the security o f the nation or friendly relations with foreign countries.

5. In so far as File No. 2(64)/56-66-PM (Vol. II) is concerned, it contains papers relating to questions raised in the Parliament/ newspaper reports, besides the following top secret papers relating to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose;-

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i) Letter dated 12.6.1963 from the then DIB to the then PPS to PM. f Q

ii) Letter dated 7,9.1963 from the then PPS to PM to the then DIB. L r H f t )

iii) Letter dated 11.11.1963 from the then PPS to PM addressed to the then DIG. U~

iv) Letter dated 16.11.1963 from Shri B.N. Mullick, DIB, to the then PPS to PM. I \ ' Jf. 'I

v) Letter dated 2.9.1964 from the then Prime Minister to Shri P.C. Sen, the then Chief Minister, West Bengal. / ^ f C

vi) Letter dated 8.9.1964 from Shri Prafulla Chandra Sen, the then Chief Minister, West Bengal to Shri Lai Bahadur

Shastri, the then Prime Minister, acknowledging the receipt o f letter written by the then Prime Minister to him on 2.9.1964.

6. The File also contains notes/orders by Shri Lai Bahadur Shastri, the then Prime Minister. In so far as the 2 letters received from the DIB are concerned, we have since requested the IB to agree to the downgradation o f their 'top secret' letters to 'secret'. The downgradation o f the letters written by the then PPS to PM can be done within the PMO under the powers delegated to JS(A), from 'top secret' to 'secret'. With regard to the letter o f the then Chief Minister, West Bengal to the then Prime Minister, it would be very cumbersome to take up the issue with the West Bengal Government seeking their concurrence to downgrade the letter written by the former Chief Minister, way back in 1963. In any case, the letter does not reveal much and would not jeopardise either the national interests or relations between the Centre and the State, etc. the Commission can perhaps be requested to make use o f the information contained therein, in camera, without publishing it in its report, as it is a top secret document.

7. In addition to the submissions made above, it may be mentioned that we have in the NGO Section, the following 'top secret' files relating to the controversy about Netaji's death and bringing his ashes to India from Japan;-

i) File No. G-12 (18/94-NGO) îi) File No. G-16 (3/95-NGO) îii) File No. G-4 (2/95-NGO) îv) File N o. G-12 (3/98-NGO) ^

8. The files contain papers received from the Cabinet Secretariat about the Agenda o f the Cabinet, Note o f the Cabinet drafted by the Ministry o f Home Affairs, letter o f the Home Minister, notes from MEA etc.

9. In view o f the above, it is proposed that:-

A ) JS(A) may kindly agree to the letters written by Shri N. Ram, the then PPS to PM dated 7.9.1963-Flag (A), reminder dated 11.11.1993-Flag (B ) and letter dated 2.9.1964 from the then PM to the then Chief Minister, W est Bengal-Flag (C) being downgraded from 'top secret' to 'secret'.

B) Action to downgrade the two letters o f DIB may be taken once their consent have been received and

C) Photocopies o f the following top secret files may be sent to the Commission, with the request that while information contained in the top secret papers may be made usej/f' o f by the Commission, in camera, since these are classified as top secret papers, they may consider not publishing the same;-

i) File No. 23 (1J/56-57-PM)^ ii) File No. 2 (64/56-66-PM (Vol. II) '

iii) File No. G-12(l8)94-NGO) ,iv) File NO. G-16(3^95-NGO){*) File No. G-4 (2^95-NGO)H File No. G-12 (3)98-NGO)

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Reference JS(A)’s query on pre-page.

2. The course of action proposed may be approved. There appears not to be any ground for withholding any of the papers proposed to be passed on to the Justice Mukherjee Commission. The four “Top Secret” CCBs in File No. 23(ll)/56-57-PM are quite innocuous and refer to the transfer of the INA “Treasure” from Tokyo to New Delhi. While it is not possible to downgrade Top Secret CCBs, there need be no objection to them being handed over to the Commission if they can help in any measure to set this controversy to rest.

eep M azumdar) puty Secretary

18/7/2000

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Internal

Notes on pre-pages may kindly be seen.

2. Justice Mukherjee Commission has sought papers/ files relating to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose available in this Office. A list o f such files had been given to the Commission. The Commission desires the files by 31st July, 2000.

3. It was seen that certain papers like the IB reports and CCB documents required to be downgraded. These documents have now been downgraded. JS may like to agree to:

a. downgrading of the letters mentioned at para 9 (A) on page 7/N ante;

b. Another file maintained in the political section which was marked Top Secret, may also be allowed to be downgraded. The file contains Notings within the PMO and has an unsigned extract o f record from National Museum of India.

c. the handing over of all the 7 files, 6 containing CCBs/ IB reports already downgraded + 1 referred to at (b) above.

4. Once the above is agreed to, files would immediately be transferred to the Commission within the time-limit prescribed.

JS (A)

hana Ranjan](Archana Ranjan)20.7.2000

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FR may kindly be seen.

2. It appears from the proceedings of the Commission attached to the FR that the Commission have, while taking note of this Office letter dated <24.7.2000 wherein it was, inter alia, requested that "while information contained in the 'Top Secret' papers may be made use of by the Commission, in camera, since these are classified as 'Top Secret', thejrmay kindly consider not publishing the same", directed this Office to 'adduce specific reasons as to why privilege is being claimed against the disclosure of the contents thereof, more so, when the Commission is holding a public enquiry and its report will be a public document and the contents of those files may have an important bearing.'

3. The Commission have further directed this Office to inform the Commission about destruction of files, etc., besides filing an Affidavit regarding availability of files/documents mentioned in para a(i) read with para (b) of Commission's order dated 23.3.2000 read with their order dated 13.6.2000.

4*-4. In so far as claiming of privilege is concerned, provisions of Sections 123 and 124 of the Indian Evidence Act,1872, provide as under:-

Section 123:-Evidence as to affairs of the State - No one shall be permitted to give any evidence derived from unpublished official records relating to any affairs of State, except with the permission of the officer at the head of the department concerned, who shall give or withhold such permission as he thinks fit.

Section 124 -Official communications.- No public officer shall be compelled to disclose communications made to him in official confidence, when he considers that the public interest would suffer by the disclosure.

C5. Classified communications available on PMO files had originated from a number of Ministries like Ministries of External Affairs, Defence & Home, Cabinet Secretariat, Intelligence Bureau, National Museum of India, and Government of West Bengal. Two letters written by private persons were marked as 'Confidential' or 'Secret'. It does not seem desirable or practical to get in touch with private parties for getting their

concurrence to get their communications declassified. In order to get the letter of the then CM, West Bengal, Shri P.C.Sen, declassified, before informing the Commission that this Office has no objection to its publication as a part of the Commission's Report, etc., we may write to Chief Secretary, West Bengal, accordingly, as per the draft placed below for consideration/approval. For getting the requisite information about the communications which originated from other Ministries/agencies mentioned in the preceding paragraph, we may write to them as well,, as per the U.OT placed below. Since the Commission has been in touch with some of the Ministries/agencies mentioned above, it is quite possible that the concerned Ministries/agencies have already taken a view about the desirability or otherwise of declassifying their communications and allowing the Commission to use the same in any manner it wished to do. Regarding declassification of notes/correspondence within the PMO, appropriate orders would be solicited.

a6. A copy of the Affidavit filed by Director (IS-I) MHA has been procured informally and is placed on the file. MHA are filing another Affidavit before the Commission, duly sworn by the concerned Joint Secretary. Affidavit to be filed by the PMO(JS-A) would be attempted after we get feedback from the concerned Ministries/agencies/Govt. of West Bengal and a thorough search for the missing file(s) has been made by Pol. Section.

7. Submitted.

(P.S.LaMy)Under Secretary(NGO)

14.9.2000.

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INTERNAL

May kindly see the notes from page 13/N onwards.

We haveusince received the reply from the National Museum, Ministry of Defence, Cabinet Secretariat and Ministry of External Affairs. These may please be seen at pages 31-34/C. The National Museum have stated that they would convey their decision to declassify the document pertaining to the Museum, in consultation with Department of Culture, Ministry of Culture & Tourism. The History Division of the Ministry of Defence have referred the matter to DGMI, AHQ for appropriate action in the matter. The Cabinet Secretariat have left the decision regarding declassification to the Ministry of Home Affairs. With regard to the stand of the Ministry of External Affairs, it may be mentioned that their no objection has been received to declassify the paper, originating from that Ministry enclosed with our U.O. dated 14.9.2000, to 'confidential'. As to which of these may be made public, if any, that Ministry have left it to the discretion of the Commission. As regards the documents to be produced before the Commission by the Ministry of External Affairs, it has been indicated that they intend taking the same stand.

As the next date of hearing by Commission has been fixed as26.9.2000, it appears unlikely that we would get the response from all the Ministries/Departments/Agencies addressed by us on 14/15.9.2000;to convey their views to declassify and make public the document end. In any case, in their

-V

directions not only to the PMO, but also to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of External Affairs and the Government of W est Bengal for production of documents/ filing of affidavit etc. If approved, we may write to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Defence, Intelligence Bureau, National Museum and Government of West Bengal to convey their stand in the matter to the Commission direct, under intimation to this office. A draft is placed below accordingly, for approval. W ith regard to the Ministries/Departments/Agencies/State Governments addressed separately by Pol. Section, a separate reference on same lines would be sent from Pol. Section file.

In so far as the classified notes/letters which were initials® in the Prime Minister's Office, it is for consideration whether we may take the stand, on the lines of the one taken by the Ministry of External Affairs, that our classified notes/letters etc. may be

proceedings Commission had passed

declassified as 'confidential' and we leave it to the discretion of the Commission to make them public, or convey that all our classified notes/correspondence has been declassified and there is no objection to making the same public.

Orders , are solicited for the declassification of the notes/correspondence originating from Prime Minister's Office on our files as 'confidential', and to convey to the Commission that they may use their discretion to make all/ any of these documents public.

>Draft of the Affidavit to be filed by the JS(A) before the

Commission has been attempted and is placed below for approval. I have ascertained from the Ministry of Home Affairs on phone that the Affidavit could be typed on the plain paper. However, this would need to be got verified from Notary Publii ig sent theCommission.

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Internal

In response to the directions of the Justice Mukherjee Commission of / Inquiry set up to enquire into the disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose,

V f t Political Section and NGO Section had sent copies of a number o f Secret/ Top Secret_ f k files to the Commission. An Affidavit was also filed on behalf o f PMO, by US(AjTThe(t Secret/Top Secret files, copies o f which were sent to the Commission contained

classified references which originated from Ministries o f Home, External Affairs, Urban Development, I&B, Defence, Department of Economic Affairs, Department of Food and Public Distribution, Cabinet Secretariat, Intelligence Bureau, National Museum, and State Governments o f Orissa & West Bengal, etc. Since as per the extant orders, concurrence o f the originating Department is necessary to downgrade/

, i,k declassify any document, references were made*io the above mentioned Ministries/’ • tC . Departments, State Governments, Agencies to convey their concurrence to declassify

^o'H 5/ u the documents which had originated from their side. Copies o f the relevant documents were also sent alongwith our reference.

2. In so far as classified notings/ papers which had originated on PMOP'17//Y files in this Office are concerned, a view was taken^with the approval o f JS(A) that all

such notings/papers may be treated as declassified' as confidential', and the Commission may be informed that it has the discretion to make the same public. The same view was conveyed to the Commission in the Affidavit filed by US(A) before the Commission, last month.

3. In response to this Office communications to various Ministries/Departments/Agencies, we have received comments/views from most of them, which are detailed below:-

-A* 1. Ministry o f External Affairs: No objection to the documents sent

to them being downgraded 'to confidential. As to which o f these may be P 7 c made public, if any, the MEA have left it to the discretion of the

Commission. As regards documents being produced before the Commission by the MEA, they intend to take the same stand.

j. / c 2.Ministry o f Home Affairs: The Ministry has agreed to declassify 15 ofthe 20 documents sent to them. For the remaining 5 documents, the Ministry feels that these may continue to be treated as classified. One o f the references is a copy of Cabinet Secretariat U.O. dated 26.9.2000 addressed to MHA and a copy endorsed to this Office. We have not sent a copy of this letter to the Commission since this correspondence originated on a reference made by PMO regardin^declassification o f Cabinet Secretariat's earlier references.

(MHA have, however, not specifically given any advice/views on Cabinet Secretariat's U.O. dated 26.9.2000, in which MHA were requested to take a view regarding downgradation o f MHA's O.M.No. 1/12014/27/93- IS(D.III) dated 17.5.94 and background Note o f the same number dated 2.2.94 and give gradation to Cabinet Secretariat's No.89/2/l/94-TS dated 22.7.94.)

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3.Ministry o f Defence: While drawing attention to this Office references, MOD have confirmed that their reference can be downgraded to unclassified.

4. Intelligence Bureau: No objection from the security angle to their documents being declassified.

^ ^ S. Government of West Bengal:No objection to declassification o f, ^ the correspondence made by the State Government with PMO.

( Cf'TvO. t/1C-J 'L-e-raf* < ) 6. Cabinet Secretariat: Since papers had been sent by MHA with

^ ^ classifications, whatever gradings MHA were to give with regard to MHA^ r f( c documents, identical grading would be given to Cabinet Secretariat papers.

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7.Ministrv of I&B: No objection to their references being declassified.^ /V* , ^8.Ministry of Urban Development: - d o -

9.Department of Food & Public Distribution: - do -

S< "2-7 /w, 3 7

10.Department of Economic Affairs: - No clearcut answer has been m ^ . given regarding declassification o f the reference.

11.Government of Orissa: Reply received. Orissa Government have no W objection if the Commission makes the correspondence public.

12. National Museum: As advised by the Department o f Culture,the Museum has taken up the matter with MHA to inform them whether the Treasure could be shown to the Commission. Final reply from the National

Museum is still awaited.

4 M1 C 'S . )

The documents which had originated from MHA, and which the MHA feels should continue to be classified, have been flagged. Earlier we had taken the stand, on the lines of the stand taken by the MEA that the notings/ correspondence which had originated from the PMO may be treated as declassified to confidential, and left it to the discretion o f th^Commission to make all/ any of these documents, public. Subsequently, on 6.11.2000, a clarification was sought, on phone, by Director(A) from Shri Jayant Prasad, JS(CNV)MEA about the word declassified' used in second line o f MEA U.O.No.25/4/NGO Vol V dated 19.9.2000(p.34/c). JS,MEA clarified that the intention was to use the word downgraded' instead of the word declassified'and that this may be read accordingly. In view o f this, we shall

have to use the same expression with regard to our own notings/ documents, except those which relate to the five classified documents which had originated from MHA The relevant notes portion on our files, which relate to the still classified documents of MHA, have also been flagged.

.AThe Commission have, in their latest directions, reiterated their earlier directions with regard to filing of Affidavit by a JS from PMO by15.11.2000, covering various points intimated earlier to PMO. A copy o f the Affidavit dated to be filed by the-Home Secretary, as Head o f the Department, has been procured informally from M HA Under sections 123 and 124 of the Evidence Act, read with Article 74(2) o f the Constitution, only Head o f the Department can claim privilege ifcertain documents/papers are not to be made public. A copy of the ordfrlssued by Administration Section, declaring the Head of the Department, is placed below.

Invjew of the above, orders are solicited as to whether we may file the affidavitTonthe lines mentioned below, or seek 15 davs time from the Commission to tie up loose ends in conMiltalioii witli MHA/MEA etc. and then filethe Affidavit, ensuring that there is no conflict in the stand taken in the MHA/MEA,etc in respect of various documents, before the Commission:-

(a) That the Affidavit, duly signed by the Head of the Department

claiming privilege may be sent to the Commission, informing that all the notes/correspondence which had originated from this Office, barring the 4 out of the 5 references( the last reference dated 18.9.2000 is of recent origin and we need not include this in the list of privileged documents being sent the Commission although it may continue to be classified) mentioned in Annexure II to the Affidavit, may be treated as downgraded' to confidential' and that the Commission may exercise its discretion to make public any/ all o f such documents;

(b) With regard to the 4 documents listed in Annexure II tothe Affidavit, it may be mentioned in the Affidavit that the originating Ministry. i.e. Ministry o f Home Affairs, is claiming privilege in respect o f the files containing the above documents separately.

© Further, since MHA have not given any decision about downgradation /declassification o f their two documents, mentioned by the Cabinet Secretariat in their U.O. dated26.9.2000, “therefore, it has not been possible to take a view with regard to Cabinet Secretariat's documents (1) Cabinet meeting Notice No.6/CM/95(iii) dated 6.2.95(2) Record Note of discussion of the meeting held on 20.7.1994 regarding Controversy about Netaji's death and allegations that he was a

an MI-6 agent' and (3) Cabinet Secretariat U.O.No.l3/CM/70 dated 24.2.1970 forwarding Cabinet note on Fresh inquiry into disappearance o f Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in 1945- Demand for ',received from M HA As soon as the views o f MHA are received, this Office shall inform the Commission accordingly. Clarifications on a few more documents have been sought recently. Comments/views of MHA are awaited.

(d) Keeping in view the stand o f the MHA with regard to the remaining 4 documents mentioned in Annexure II to the Affidavit, we in the PMO shall have to claim privilege in respect of notings on files (page numbers to be specifically mentioned), since by the disclosure o f the contents of the notings, which are based on MHA communications, which are still classified, public interest would suffer. The language may be borrowed from the Home Secretary's affidavit.

(e) With regard to notes on PMO File No.G.12(18)/94-NGO, which relate to Cabinet Secretariat's record of discussions held on 20.7.94, we may inform the Commission that we shall let them know about our decision/ views after hearing from MHA;

(f) Since final replies from the MHA (in respect of documents mentioned at (c) and (e) above), Department o f Expenditure and the National Museum are yet to be received, we need not wait indefinitely for their responses, and truthfully mention these facts to the Commission, mentioning at the same time that as and when the replies from these defaulting Departments are received, the Commission would be informed, suitably.

Draft o f the Affidavit, which has been prepared in consultation with US(Pol), is placed below. Now, we are faced with a situation where on the one hand, the Commission has directed that the Affidavit should be sent over the signatures of an officer not below the rank o f Joint Secretary, while on the other hand, the

provisions of the Evidence Act empower only the Head of the Department, i.e., Director in the PMO, to claim privilege.

In case it is decided not to seek 15 days' time, then, perhapsa clarification may be sought telephonically from the Commission that they would accept the affidavit signed by Director, and whether two separate Affidavits would need to be submitted, one on issues other than those documents in respect o f privilege is being claimed, and one by the Head of the Department cla ’ ’ vilege under the Evidence Act

(P.S.Lallv)13.11.2000.

D irector^

- 27/N -Internal

In its last meeting on 28.9.2000, Justice Mukherjee Commission had directed PMO to submit an affidavit signed by an Officer not below the rank of Joint Secretary, as earlier affidavit was signed by the Under Secretary(A). The Commission has not taken cognisance of the earlier affidavit.

2. The affidavit to be filed would consist of details of files/documents maintained in this office, concerned with the issues before the Commission. Since some of the documents originated from the other offices, it was decided that we would seek the views of the originating authorities on those papers. Most offices have written to us, iniimating their stand, which we will communicate to the Commission. We have not heard from the DG, National Museum, and we would intimate the Commission accordingly. MHA has sent a copy of their affidavit only today which shows that they are claiming privilege on certain documents. On discussion with Ms. Gairola, Joint Secretary, MHA, it has been learnt that MHA has claimed privilege on letters relating to the security provided by the Japanese Government at the Renkoji Temple where the ashes of Netaji are kept. They would also be seeking privilege on documents relating to the daughter of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. She also intimated that papers relating to allegations regarding his being an MI-6 Agent should also not to be made public.

3. Since we would now be claiming privilege on our documents on the above three issues, in conformity with the MHA stand, we would require the approval of the Secretary, before claiming privilege. It may be desirable to consult the lawyer of MHA also once it is decided to claim privilege onthese documents.

4. We may, if approved, seek a further period of two weeks from the Commission to enable us to prepare the affidavit stating the above facts andclaiming privilege.

f Y ) / (A rcharm ^Ij^an)\ 13/11/2000

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INTERNAL

/ In response to the letters/directions issued by Justice Mukherjee _ ft<xa w Commission appointed to enquire into the alleged disappearance of <&■ (r 'l jc Netaji Subash Chandra Bose, we have sent photocopies of 23

■ Secret/Confidential/ Non-Secret and 7 ^ Top Secret files to the ~ Commission, so far. While^forwarding photocopies of the Top Secret files

to the Commission on 24th July, 2000, we had requested the Commission that while information contained in the Top Secret papers may be made use of by the Commission, in camera, since these are classified as Top Secret, they may kindly consider not publishing the same. No such mention was made while forwarding photocopies to the Commission from the Political Section.

^ f-pfr..!■,/£ 2. The Commission, in its proceedings dated 31st August, 2000, gave^ I f the following directions to the Prime Minister's Office:-

i) while sending photocopies of seven files marked as Top Secret/Secret’ with a forwarding letter No.G-16(4)/2000-NGO dated July 24, 2000 (also marked Top Secret/Secret’) addressed to the Secretary of the Commission, a Director of the Prime Minister's Office, South Block, New Delhi has made the following request:

"It is further requested that while information contained in the Top Secret' papers may be made use of by the Commission, in camera, since these are classified as Top Secret', they may kindly consider not publishing the same."

Viewed in that context, the above office/secretariat is directed to adduce specific reasons as to why privilege is being claimed against the disclosure of the contents thereof, more so, when the Commission is holding a public enquiry and its report will be a public document and the contents of those files may have an important bearing.

ii) The above office will lettfiis Commission know whether any of the files/records relevant to the terms of reference of this Commission has been destroyed and, if so, details thereof and why, when and where they were destroyed and whether copies of the documents contained therein have been kept or maintained.

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iii) In spite of directions contained in paragraph a(l) read with paragraph (b) of the order of this Commission dated March 23,^ 2000 read with the order dated June 13,H2000, the above office/Secretariat has not filed any affidavit regarding the availability of files/documents mentioned in the aforesaid paragraph a(l).

>

3. It may be clarified here that an affidavit was in fact sent to the Commission, over the signature^ of US(A). However, the Commission in its proceedings dated 28.9.2000jnter alia, observed as follows:-

"a) Even though in paragraph E of the order dated August 31,2000 there was an express direction that all informations to be furnished in terms thereof must be supported by affidavit of a competent officer not below the rank of a Joint Secretary to the Government of India, the Prime Minister's Office has sent an affidavit sworn by an Under Secretary of that office in purported compliance of paragraph A of the said order. The Commission therefore does not take any notice of the contents thereof; and calls upon the said office once more to strictly comply with the orders/ directions issued on August 31, 2000."

4. Most of PMO files contain classified correspondence originating from other Ministries/Departments/State Governments. As per the extant orders, prior to downgradation/declassification of a classified paper, concurrence of the concerned Ministries/Departments/Agencies from where sucivclassified paper originated is essential. We had accordingly forwardeapnotocopies of the correspondence to the Ministries of Home Affairs, External Affairs, Defence, Urban Development, Information and Broadcasting, the Cabinet Secretariat, Intelligence Bureau, Department of Food and Public Distribution, Department of Economic Affairs, the National Museum and the State Governments of Orissa and West Bengal with the request that their views/comments for declassification of the papers may be conveyed to PMO.

Exfe5. The Ministry of External Affairs have already conveyed to us that the correspondence of that Ministry available in our files, copies of which were sent to them may be downgraded to confidential and that it is left to

r the discretion to the Commission to make public any/all documents. The a ^ M inistr^of Defence, Intelligence Bureau, A

Ministry of l&f^1 Ministry ${ Urban Development, thejrtipartment of Food and Public Distribution and Government of West Bengal have agreed to declassify the papers relating to them on our files. With regard to the Ministry of Home Affairs, barring 5 documents, listed in the I.D. Note dated 3rd November, 2000 (page 66/C) that Ministry has agreed to

- ■>(-

declassify the rest of the papers which had originated form their side.C^fkrixtfc With respect to 4 of these 5 documents, privilege is Jto be claimed from

v the Commission. The fifth reference is a U.O. dated 18.9.2000 CabinetSecretariat to MHA regarding declassification of records and is of recent origin. We need not include this in the list of documents for which we are claiming privilege. Similarly, PMO shall have to claim privilege with respect to the notes on the PMO files relating to these 4 documents.

)p- S'?ft- 6. In so far as the Cabinet Secretariat are concerned, they have left the decision to MHA by stating that the classification by the Cabinet Secretariat was based on the classification given on the papers forwarded to them by MHA and that whatever grading the MHA give to their documents, the same may be assigned to the Cabinet Secretariat papers. Reply of the MHA on this is still awaited. The reply sent by the Government of Oriss§is ambiguous. Clarification sought from the State Government, despite repeated telephonic and written reminders, it is not

- forthcoming. With regard to the Department of Economic Affairs, it has informed that their file was not traceable and hence it was not possible to offer their views/ comments. Another reference has been made to th a t/ Department that in the absence of their file they should take the view on the basis of the photocopy of the document already forwarded to them. Their reply is awaited.

p C% 7. The only other defaulting agency is the National Museum. Theyb | i > / t are beating about the bush and seeking^/iews of various departments b A like Department of culture, Ministry of Home Affairs and now MEA^vith

regard to declassification of the documents forwarded to them, rather than taking the view themselves.

8. Due to the reasons assigned above, we had to seek extension of P \ ^ I c- time of 15 days from 15.11.2000 so that we can file our affidavit before

the Commission.

9. In the Affidavit file by US(A) on 22nd September, 2000 (pages 50- 54/C), the position regarding (i) destruction of file No.12(226)/56-PM which contained Agenda Paper/Cabinet decision regarding "Investigation into the circumstances leading to the death of Shri Subash Chandra Bose", (ii) position regarding destruction of some papers from our file No.23(156)/51-PM, (iii) missing file No.2(381 )/60-66, dealing with the "Proposal to bring Shri Subash Chandra Bose’s ashes from Tokyo and to put a memorial to him in from of the Red Fort of Delhi", and (iv) missing file No.2(364)66-70-PM (Vol.VI) regarding "Death of Netaji Subash Chandra Bose and appointment of an Enquiry Committee to go into the

. circumstances of death" was clarified. The same position is beingreiterated in the draft Affidavit placed below.

-

M h 10- ln the meantime, as decided at page 27/N, we had "Written to the Department of Legal Affairs, Branch Secretariat, Calcutta to nominate a Counsel, preferably the one nominated for the MHA, to represent this office. Before a reply could be received Branch Secretarial Ministry of Law), Calcutta, Shri Tarakeshwar Pal, Advocate, Senior Counsel-I, Calcutta, who has been assigned to assist the Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of External Affairs met Director (A), PMO on 21st November,

\1t>j u 2000. Vakalatnarrnrduly signed by JS(A) was handed over to him. The Counsel , while drawing attention to the directions of the Commission dated 31.8.2000(p14/c), advised that in case the PMO has no witness to examine, on its behalf before the Commission at the stage, a certificate,

X 1 duly signed by a Joint Secretary may be given to him. A certificate has <j accordingly been typed on PMO letterhead, on the lines of the one given

by MEA, (p.21/C) for signatures of JS(J).

11. It has already been decided, with the approval of JS(A) at p.27/N tJL v*. that approval of Secretary to PM may be solicited for claiming privilege in

a t respect of the documents which the MHA wants to remain classified, and the relevant notes available on PMO files. Such documents/notes portions have been duly flagged. The statement at Flag gives complete picture regarding various classified papers on PMO TS files,i.e., earlier classification, status after receiving replies from various Ministries/ Departments/State Govt, of West Bengal, action pending with regard to declassification, items in respect privilege is to be claimed,etc.

12. Draft of Affidavit to be filed before the Commission has been attempted and is placed below for approval. If any information is received before it is filed before the Commission, it would be incorporated accordingly. In the Affidavit it is being certified that barring the Notes portion/correspondence with respect to which privilege is being claimed, vide Annexures at I & IA attached to the Affidavit, all other classified papers/notes which had originated from PMO files may be treated as confidential, but the Commission may use its discretion to publish any/all such notes/correspondence as it deems fit, to which we would have no objection.

^fo/ZC rO(P.S. Lafly)

Under Secretary (NGO)

- 33/N-Internal

This Office has sent photocopies of documents related to the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose to Justice Mukherjee Commission, appointed to enquire into the issue. The Commission had inter alia, given directions enjoining on us to submit an affidavit, detailing relevant facts, signed by an officer not below the rank of Joint Secretary to the Government of India.

2. In pursuance to the directions a draft Affidavit has been attempted and is placed below. Most of the PMO files contain classified correspondence originating from other Ministries/State Governments. In order to get concurrence of the concerned organisations for their downgradation/declassification, photocopies were sent to them with the request that their comments regarding declassification may be conveyed expeditiously. Except for National Museum and Government of Orissa, who gave an ambiguous reply, all other Organisations have conveyed their comments. A clear reply from Cabinet Secretariat is also awaited. MHA has declassified all the documents originating from them except for five documents on four of which privilege has been claimed by MHA. PMO shall have to claim such privilege on documents on the same issue maintained in this office. MHA had engaged a Counsel through the Branch Secretariat, Ministry of Law, Calcutta. On their advice we have engaged the same Counsel to whom the draft Affidavit, after Secretary’s approval, would be sent for vetting. As advised by the Counsel, we would also be intimating the Commission that we have no witnesses for examination of the Commission. A certificate stating this fact has also been prepared and is placed below at F/R. Draft Affidavit to be filed before the Commission would be reviewed and any information received subsequently, before the Affidavit is filed, would be incorporated suitably. In the Affidavit, it is being certified that barring the Notes portion/correspondence with respect to which privilege has been claimed, vide Annexures I & IA attached to the Affidavit, all other classified papers/notes which had originated from the PMO files may be treated as Confidential, and the Commission may use its discretion to publish any/all, as it deems fit.

’V

-34/N-

3. Accordingly, Draft Affida\it placed below may please be approved. Secretary may also please grant approval to the proposal regarding claiming privilege in respect of papers related to the documents which the MHA has indicated must remain classified, available in PMO files.

(Archana Ranjan)27/11/2000

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From pre pagev ifK wKs ^

y f >No response has been received to D.O. letter dated 7th December,

2000 sent by Director (A) to the Secretary, Department of Culture. As directed by Director (A), I had also met Ms. Humera Ahmed, Director, Department of Culture on 11th December, 2000, and explained the rules position regarding down gradation/declassification of classified record. I also requested her to expedite decision. Director (A) may like to remind Ms. Ahmed telephonically to expedite decision.

The Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry have forwarded a copy of the proceedings dated 23.11.2000 of the Commission and same are available at pages 168 to 173/C. In the proceedings, the Commission have allowed time of 10.12.2000, to file the Affidavit by this

p Office. It may, however, be mentioned that an Affidavit has already been filed with the Commission on 30th November, 2000.+

Shri Animesh Majumdar, Jr. Government Counsel, Calcutta, has sent a fax message dated 8th December, 2000 (page 170/C) requesting that relevant/orders/law as to allocation of PMO matters of dealing may be sent to them in connection with the hearing of privilege claimed by this Office, fixed_by the Commission on 22nd December. 2000. If approved, we may send extracts£%» Record Management from the Manual of Office Procedure, and Allocation of Business Rules relating to the Prime Minister's Office. Separately, I have requested my colleague US(Pol), to try and trace out the actual classification ('A', ’B' or 'C') given to the Pol. files which are missing, and also a copy of any note initiated on which orders of the competent authority was obtained before destruction of the Pol. files. That information would be kept ready in case it is required by our Counsel at Calcutta or by the Commission. Due to postal strike, it would not be possible to send the papers by post. The W’fc A '

extracts would be sent through fax.

I

»V*'f/a<rv0 (P.S. Lally) I

Under Secretary(VGie>)13.12.2000

DirectorTA) .

________________ ( I

Internal

*

The Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry has been set up to probe into the alleged death/disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. As directed by the Commission, all documents maintained in this Office on the subject, were forwarded to the Commission, at Calcutta. The Commission had then directed that an affidavit detailing relevant facts, signed by an officer not below the rank of Joint Secretary to the Government of India, be submitted to them.

2. In pursuance to these directions, an Affidavit was filed in the Office of the Commission of Inquiry, after getting it duly vetted by the Ministry of Law and the Counsel engaged by us for the purpose.

3. Most of the PMO files contained classified correspondence originating in other Minsitries/State Governments. In order to get concurrence of the concerned organisations for their down gradation/declassification, photocopies were sent to them with the request that comments regarding declassification may be conveyed expeditiously. Except for the National Museum and Government of Orissa, who gave an ambiguous reply, all other organisations have conveyed their comments. A clear reply from Cabinet Secretariat is also awaited. MHA has declassified all the documents originating from them except for five documents, on four of which privilege has been claimed by them. These documents relate to the following subject:

(1) Controversies regarding Netaji’s death and bringing his ashes to India from Japan;

(2) Identity of Mrs. Anita Pfaff, daughter of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.

4. Since the MHA has claimed privilege on papers/documents relating to the above issues, those papers and the notes portion dealing with them available on PMO files have also been treated as classified. Privilege has been claimed with the approval of the Secretary. Apart from the notes portion/correspondence with respect to which privilege has been claimed byl this Office, the Commission has been informed, all other classified I papers/notes may be treated as Confidential, and Commission may use its discretion to publish any/or all, as it deems fit. The Commission has also/

been informed that this Office would intimate to them our views regarding documents which originated in other organisations, as mentioned in paragraph 3 above, on hearing from those organisations.

5. The next hearing of the Commission is on 2 2 nd December, 2000.

6. For information, please.

i(Archana Kanjan)

19/12/2000

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Prime Minister's Office

Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry has been appointed to enquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subash Chandra Bose. The Commission had, inter-alia, directed that all information to be furnished in terms of the orders/directions to the Commission must be supported by an affidavit of Competent Officers, not below the rank of a Joint Secretary to the Government of India.

2. This Office made available photocopies of all the files, including classified files, to the Commission. The files with the Prime Minister's Office contained classified letters written by various Ministries/Departments/State Governments. The Ministry of Home Affairs, who were consulted in the matter, advised this Office not to declassify some of their letters, available on the PMO files. That Ministry also claimed privilege in respect of the two files, through an affidavit signed by the Home Secretary as Head of Office. Consequently, this Office also claimed privilege, by an affidavit filed by Joint Secretary in the Prime Minister's Office in respect of the classified MHA papers, available on the PMO files. Under Sections 123 -124 of the Evidence Act privilege has to be claimed by the 'Head of Department’.

3. Under Section 3 (d) of Delegation of Financial Powers Rules, 1978, "Department of the Central Government" means ya Ministry or a Department of the Central Government as notified from time to time and includes the Planning Commission, the Department of parliamentary Affairs, the President's Secretariat, the Vice-President's Secretariat, the Cabinet Secretariat and the Prime Minister's Office. 1

Under Section 3. (f) of the Delegation of Financial Powers Rules, 1978, "Head of the Department" in relation to an office or offices under his administrative control/means an authority specified in Schedule I and includes such other authority or person as the concerned Department in the Central Government may, by order, specify, as a Head of the Department.1

‘ Provided that such a person is the Head of an identifiable organisation and the minimum of this revised scale of pay is not lower than that of a Deputy Secretary to the Government of India.'

4. In terms of the above rules, Smt. Archana Ranjan, Director in this Office was declared as Head of the Department in respect of this Office for the purpos°s of Rule 3 of the Delegation of Financial Powers Rules, 1978 and other Financial Rules w.e.f. 14-9-1998, until further orders. The Affidavit filed by Joint Secretary to PM before the Commission had

A the approval both of the designated Head of Department and Secretaryto PM/> In the affidavit, filed before the Commission on 30th November, 2000, it was specifically mentioned in para 7 of the affidavit that permission to withhold to produce the said records or the disclosures of the contents or to give any evidence derived from the papers in respect of which the privilege was being claimed, had the approval of the Head of Department. As mentioned above, the Head of the Department, duly declared by this Office, is Smt. Archana Ranjan, Director, who is junior to Joint Secretary to PM. However, our Government Counsel at Calcutta informed us verbally that during the hearing on 22.12.2000, the Hon'ble Mr. Justice Mukherjee had observed that the affidavit claiming privilege ought to have been signed by an officer of the rank of Secretary to Government of India. As has already been explained above, the affidavit claiming privilege and furnishing other information was sent over the signatures of Joint Secretary to PM, keeping in view the directions of the Commission that all information is to be furnished at least by an officer of the rank of Joint Secretary to Government of India.

5. In view of the above, observation made by Mr. Justice Mukherjee advice of Ministry of Law is solicited as to whether another affidavit wouid require to be filed before the Commission over the signatures of the 'Head of Department' as per the orders issued by PMO in September, 1998, i.e. by Smt. Archana Ranjan, Director, or it would be necessary/advisable/ mandatory for Secretary to PM to file a supplementary affidavit claiming privilege in respect of the classified papers. As the next date of hearing is 17th January, 2001, this may please be treated as Most Immediate.

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I SI 'S fi«j. ,oi || f c 2-/ e> / / (t>

JAii jn n i I 1 1,o \ (P.S. Lally)

...... .I ........ t'TnrecuT j UndersecretaryJ craft eV. __ __

DirectprW "

‘"Ministry of Law, Justice & Company Affairs (Deptt. of Legal Affairs, Advice 'A* Section), Shastri Bhavan, New Delh. y y

PMO U.O.No.G-16(4)/2000-NGO dated 02.01.2001 JW

DEPARTMENT OF LEGAL AFFAIRS * * * * * * *

The PMO has f i l e d an a f f i d a v i t d a t e d 2 9 . 1 1 . 2 0 0 0 bef or e h o n ' b l e j u s t i c e Mukher jee Commission of I n q u i r y a t C a l c u t t a in compl iance of i t s o r d e r s / d i r e c t i o n s d a t e d 3 1 . 8 . 2 0 0 0 and 2 8 . 9 . 2 0 0 0 . The s a i d a f f i d a v i t was f i l e d by Sh. J a r n a i l Singh, JS to PM on s p e c i f i c d i r e c t i o n o f t he Commission t h a t the a f f i d a v i t should be f i l e d by the o f f i c e r not below the rank of JS. In t he s a i d a f f i d a v i t w i t h the approval of the ' 'Head of the D e p ar t me n t ^ { t h e D i r e c t o r , n o t i f i e d under Ru le 3 o f the D e l e g a t i o n of F i n a n c i a l Powers Rules, 19 78) to w i t h o l d the per>ymViorT to produce the records l i s t e d in annexur e I & IA o r to d i s c l o s e theiri* contents or to g i v e any e v i d e n c e d r i v e d t hereCf rom, p r i v i l e g e u/s 123 and 124 o f the E v i d e n c e Act was a lso c l a i med . I t is s t a t e d t h a t the Government Counsel a t C a l c u t t a has in fo rmed t h a t d u r i n g t h e h e a r i n g on 22 . 1 2 . 2000 the hon ' b l e Mr . M u k h e r j e e has obs er v ed t h a t the a f f i d a v i t c la iming p r i v i l e j g e ought t o have been signed by an o f f i c e r of the rank of S e c r e t a r y to the Government of I n d i a . The PMO has a c c o r d i n g l y r e f e r r e d the m a t t e r to us for a d v i c e as to w h e t h e r a n o t h e r a f f i d a v i t would r e qu i r e to be f i l e d b e f o r e the Commission over the s i g n a t u r e of the Head of t he D epar tm ent as p e r the orders issued by the PMO in September 1998 i . e . by Smt. Archana Ranjan, D i r e c t o r or i t would be n e c e s s a r y f o r S e c r e t a r y to PM to f i l e a s u p p l e m e n t a r y a f f i d a v i t c l a i mi ng p r i v i l e g e in r espect of the c l a s s i f i e d p a p e r s .

2. I t has been h e l d by the c o u r t s t h a t the p r i v i l e 2 g e u/s 123 of the E v i de nce Act t o g r a n t or w i t h o l d permiss ion to the p r o d u c t i o n o f a document r e l a t i n g to a f f a i r s of S t a t e should be c l a i m e d g e n e r a l l y by the M i n i s t e r in charge who is the p o l i t i c a l head of the Department concerned, i f n o t , t he S e c r e t a r y o f the Department who is the Depar tmenta l Head [ G . G. in Counc i I v s . Peer Mohd. AIR 1950 ( \ / o l . 37) Pu n ja b 2 28 , UO] f_vs. Sudhi r Kumar AIR 1963 Or i ssa 1 1 1 ] .

3. In another ma t te r the High C o u r t o f P u n j a b w h i l e con s i d er in g the a f f i d a v i t by D i r e c t o r o f I n d u s t r i e s c l a i mi ng p r i v i l e g e u/s 123 o f the E v i d e n c e Ac t had observed tha t the D i r e c t o r of I n d u s t r i e s may be c a l l e d the Head of the Department f o r o t h e r pur po ses b lit f o r purposes of sec t i on 123 of the E v i d e n c e Act i t is S e c r e t a r y of the Department or the M i n i s t e r in c h a r g e of the concerned Department who can f i l e an a f f i d a v i t g i v i n g or w i t h o l d i n g the permission c o n t e m p l a t e d in t h i s Act and t h e r e f o r e , the D i r e c t o r of I n d u s t r i e s is no t e n t i t l e d to c l a i m p r i v i l e g e respe ct ing t h e l e t t e r s in t he l and a c q u i s i t i o n f i l e kept and m a i n t a i n e d by h i m . [ 1963 C u r . L . J . 130 ( Pun j ab ) ] (Vide Law of E v i d e n ce V o l . I I 1997 MLJ P u b l i c a t i o n page 70 7 ) . T h e r e f o r e , the D i r e c t o r may be the Head of the Department f o r the purposes of R u l e 3 o f t he De l eg a t i o n of F i n a nc i a l Rules^ 1978 but f o r t he purposes of sec t i on 123 of the Ev idence A c t , i t is S e c r e t a r y to PM who can f i l e a f f i d a v i t c l a i m i n g p r i v i l e g e c o n t e m p l a t e d

»-S‘ S o # f - S ' - - 'o*vc...<\y]

Office of MLJ&CA Dy. No.Date. ii

under thi s sect i on.4 . In v i e w of the above a s u p p l e m e n t a r y a f f i d a v i tc l a i m i n g p r i v i l e g e - in r e s p e c t o f c l a s s i f i e d papers on p e h a l f o f S e c r e t a r y t o PM as obs e rv ed by h o n ' b l e j u s t i c e M u k h e r j e e seems n e c e s s a r y .

JS & LA ( S n . B . A . Ag, awa I )

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(ABDUL AZI Z) DEPUTY LEGAL ADVISER

9.1.2001

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INTERNAL

An affidavit was filed with Justice Mukherjee Commission of /nquiry appointrd to enquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose at Calcuta on the 30th November, 2000. The Affidavit was signed by JS(J)PMO. In the Affidavit, besides explaining the factual position with regard to the availability of files, missing/destroyed files, the stand of PMO with respect to the notes/correspondence which had originated in the PMO, was also articulated. It was also stated in the above Affidavit that our stand would be formulated and intimated to the Commission once we hear the views of the National Museum and Government of Orissa about their decision on declassification of classified papers which had originated from them. Bases on the stand of Ministry of Home Affairs that certain documents which had originated from that Ministry that those be continued to be classified, this Office too had claimed privilege in the Affidavit.

The Central Government Counsel appointed by M/Law Justice & Company Affairs (Calcutta Branch) came to this Office in the first week of January, 2001. He informed that during the course of hearing on 22.12.2000, Justice Mukherjee had observed that the Affidavit of PMO, claiming privilege ought to have been signed by an officer of the rank of Secretary to Government of India, although he did not take the issue further. In the proceedings of the Commission, received in the PMO, there is no specific direction in this regard, although the arguments regarding the matter relating to the privilege claimed by MHA/PMO is to be resumed tomorrow (17.01.2001) at Calcutta. In anticipation of the directions about filing of affidavit by Secretary to PM, we had sought the legal opinion of M/Law, Justice & Company Affairs, on 3.01.2001. The advice of M/Law,Justice & Company Affairs has just now been received and is placed below for perusal. Law Ministry have advteed filing of supplentary affidavit by Secretary to PM. When the earlier draft Affidavit was got vetted by Law Ministry, for filing by JS(J), that Ministry had not opined on these lines.

Draft of the Supplementary Affidavit to be signed by Secretary to PM has been attempted and placed below for his approval/signatures.

I

(P.S.Lally)

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Internal

Vide FR, the Ministry o f Home Affairs have enclosed photocopies o f five

classified UO's written by this Office to Ministry o f Home Affairs. Two UOs have been

categorised as "Top Secret". The subject matter o f the two communications is

"Controversy regarding Netaji's death and bringing his ashes to India from Japan." It has

already been decided, with the approval o f JS(A) at page 17/N o f Top Secret file No.G-

16(4)/2000-NGO, that all notes/correspondence originating from PM's Office, copies of

which have already been made available to the Mukherjee Commission appointed to

enquire inrto the alleged disasppearance o f Netaji Subash Chandra Bose, may be

declassified as confidential. The Commission may, however, use their discretion to

make all/any o f these documents public. 2. The above stand was conveyed to the

Commission also. It may, however, be mentioned that we have claimed privilege, vide

affidavits filed by JS(J) on 29.11.2000 (pages 153-161) and Shri N .K Singh, then

Secretary in this office, on 16.1.2001 (pages 223-227/C), in respect o f the two Top Secret

comunications originating from MHA, since that Ministry had advised us that their Top

Secret letters at SI. No. 1 and 2 o f para 2 o f their U.O. dated 3rd November, 2000 (pages

66-67/C) may continue to be classified. Privilege was also claimed by us for the notes

portion only ( and not correspondence portion) on PMO files in which MHA Top Secret

communications were examined . With regard to the correspondence portion, as already

mentioned in para 1 o f this note, these two Top Secret papers originating from PMO files,

stand declassified as Confidential but the Commission may use its discretion to make

any/all these communications public.

3. The above position may be intimated to Political Section for framing appropriate

response to the communication received from the Ministry o f Home Affairs after adding

tiie position with regard to the other three communications enclosed wi$i MHA U.O.,

referred to above.

t ^1 I j u [P. S. Laity) I I* T TnilorUnder Secretary(NGO)

Dir(A)

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POLITICAL SECTION

Please find enclosed copies o f two letters dated 26/28/og J a i X^T^August, 2001j 3rd September, 2001 from Shri Tarkeswar

Pal, Senior Standing Counsel to the Govt, o f India in Justice Mukherjee Commission, Kolkata for information and necessary action.

(Alok Mukhopadhyay) „ . , Under Secretary (Pol)

6- i lV i / 19.9.2001

N.G.Q. S ectio n

US(Pol) has forwarded to NGO S e c t io n co p ies of two l e t t e r s dated 2 6 /2 8 th August, 2001 and 3rd September, 2001, from Shri Tarakeshwar P a l , Sen ior Standing Counsel to th e Govt, of India in J u s t ic e Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry, in q u ir in g in to the a l l e g e d death /d isappearance of N e t a j i Subhas Chandra Bose, fo r in form ation and n ecessa ry a c t io n . Both the l e t t e r s have been addressed to M in is try of Home A f fa ir s with a copy th ereo f endorsed to PMO as w e l l .

2 . The p o in ts r a i s e d in the f i r s t l e t t e r dated 26 /28-08-2001 r e fe r t o th e a v e r m e n ts /c o n te n t io n s /a l le g a t io n s made in a f f i d a v i t dated 31-01-2000 by Shri B ijan Ghosh (Deponent N o .19 b efo re the Hon'ble Commission). The second l e t t e r d t.A u g .29 / S ep t . 3 ,^ 2 0 0 1 , r e f e r s to the a v erm en ts /co n ten t io n s / a l l e g a t io n s of another deponent S h r i A n il Krishna Mukherjee, on h i s b e h a l f , and on b e h a lf o f A l l India Forward B lock , a p o l i t i c a l party ( a l s o shown as Deponent N o .1 9 ) .

3 . In the f i r s t l e t t e r d t .2 6 /2 8 -8 -2 0 0 1 , Shri Tarakeshwar Pal has asked for our comments and a ff irm by due A f f id a v i t to be f i l e d b e fo re the H on'ble Commission on sub-paragraphs (a ) and( c ) to ( e ) mentioned in the ^ ir s t paragraph of th e sa id l e t t e r . B efore going in to th e s p e c i f i c p o in t s , i t may be s ta te d here th a t NGO S e c t io n have on ly 7 (sev en ) Top S e c r e t /S e c r e t f i l e s on the s u b je c t and p h o to co p ies of a l l th e seven f i l e s have already been forwarded to th e J u s t ic e Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry, K olkata , v id e our l e t t e r dated the 24th J u ly , 2000 ( 0 /c a t page 6 /c o r o f F ,N o.G -l6( 4)/2000-NG0 r e f e r s ) . P r iv i l e g e has been cla im ed only in r e s p e c t of papers which had o r ig in a te d fromthe M in is tr y of Home A f fa ir s and r e la t e d papers on PMO f i l e s .

4 . NGO S e c t io n ’ s comments on sub-paragraphs (a ) and ( c ) to( e ) o f f i r s t paragraph of l e t t e r dated 2 6 /2 8 -8 -2 0 0 1 , are given below .

" (a ) That no u s e f u l and e f f e c t i v e purpose can be had out of the p r e se n t J u s t ic e Mukherjee Commission of Inqu iry i f th e docum ents/records c l a s s i f i e d are not produced b e fo re th e Hon'ble Commission, p a r t ic u la r ly th ose lea d in g d e c is s io n of th e Govt, o f India in 1992 fo r con ferr in g "Posthumous Bharat Ratna" upon the N e ta j i ."

" (c ) The Govt, of India has a l s o not produced "somefu rth er contemporary o f f i c i a l documentary records" r e ly in g on which the H on'ble Prime M in is ter of India informed on 28th August, 1978 th e Parliam ent th a t doubts and c o n tr a d ic t io n s cropped up and as such the r e p o r ts o f Shah Nawaz Committee and J u s t ic e Khosla Commission were d ec lared not d e c i s iv e ."

"(d ) The Late M orarji D esa i, Ex-Prime M in is ter of India (ex cep t whom - even no M.P. was a llow ed) examined th e b o x es /d ip lo m a tic cambis bags f u l l of go ld ornaments and J e w e l la r ie s ( o f th e Ajad Hind Government) as were kept in N ation a l Museum a f t e r i t were brought

C o n td .. . . 2 / -

Eram ,py?pa,gg,

from one’ s personal custody where the same were co llec ted from the spot of th e a l le g e d p lan e crash k i l l in g the N etaji (on 18th August, 1945). Those a r t ic le s should be ordered to produce b e fo re the Hon'ble Commission along w ith demand for accounts as to the money and treasu re o f the la w fu l Ajad Hind Government Bank."

"(e) The N eta ji , being a War C rim inal, i s not a c i t i z e n of India as per Part I I o f the C o n st itu t io n o f India, and to face t h i s the records as to d ec la r in g such War Criminal be produced, and the N e ta j i being a War Criminal of HInternationa l" ca tegory , th e working of the present J u s t ic e Mukherjee Commission to know t h is whereabouts, i s im p o ss ib le , a lthough the Hon'ble Orissa High Court Ordered on 23rd October, 1998 d irectin g the Govt, o f India to take a l l steps to remove the name of th e N e ta j i from the War Criminal l i s t . "

(*>&

C o m m e n t I nTG.0 . has no papers.

5. With regard to the second l e t t e r dated 3rd September, 2001, i t may be stated with reference to paragraph 2 , th a t N.G.O. has no papers. Photocopies of a l l papers a v a i la b le w ith th e N.G.O. on the subject matter have a lready been sen t to the Commission.

G. ~i —

J U

SE C R E T

S to-1 ( i ) .Prime Minister’s Office

No. 915/1 l/C/2/2000-Pol 4th July, 2000

From : Ms. Archana Ranjan,DirectorPrime Minister's Office South Block,New Delhi.-! 10011.

To: Shri P.K. SenguptaWBHJS (Retd.)Secretary,Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry B ’ Block, (Third Floor)11/A Mirza Ghalib Street, Calcutta 700 087.

Sir,

I am directed to refer to your letter No.JMC/Meeting/48/95 dated 23rd May, 2000 and to forward the photocopies o f the files/records concerning Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose/INS as per the list enclosed. Two files which are classified as Top Secret, are being sent separately.

2. The file No.l2(226)/56-PM which contained agenda paper/cabinet decision regarding “Investigation into the circumstance leading to the death o f Shri Subhash Chandra Bose” was destroyed in 1972 in course o f routine review/weeding o f old records since records of Cabinet proceedings are kept permanently in Cabinet Secretariat, from where they may be procured.

3. Certain documents o f F.No.23( 156)/51-PM required by the Commission have been destroyed while recording that file in 1969. The list o f the papers destroyed may kindly be seen in that file.

Yours faithfully,

OyUXJh—fQU-[Archana Ranjap ]

Director

List of files on Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose located in PMO records:

SI.No._____Files Number___________________Subject

1. 23(156)/51-PM Disposal o f properties o f Indian(Secret) National Army in the far East.

*2. 23(ll)/56-57-PM (Top Secret)

I.N. A Treasure.

*3. 2(64)/56-66-PM (i) Death ofSh. S.C.Bose.Vol. I,III,IV&V (Secret) (ii) Appointment o f an Enquiry CommitteeVol.II - (Top Secret) to go into the circumstances o f the death

4. 2(64)/78-PM(Secret) - do-

5. 2(64)/79-PM(Confidential) - do-

6. 2(64)/80-PM - do-7. 2(64)/81-PM - do-8. 2(64)/82-PM - do-9. 2(64)/84-PM - do-10. 2(64)/86-PM

(Secret)- do-

11. 800/6/C/3/88-Pol(Secret)

-do-

12. 800/6/C/l/89-Pol(Secret)

Netaji Subhash Bose

13. 800/6/C/l/90-Pol Netaji Subhash Bose14. 800/6/C/l/91-Pol Disappearance ofNetaji Subhash Bose15. 915/1 l/C/6/96-Pol Disapperance/death o f Sh. S.C.Bose.

16. 5/1 l/C/9/99-Pol [ Vol. I,II & III] (Vol.I-Secret)

Disappearance/death o f Shri S.C. Bose.

♦Regarding F.Nos. 23(1 l)/56-57-PM and 2(64)/56-66-PM (Vol.II) being Top Secret a further communication will follow.

f . N *.5. f x )

Most- -A lA\Aj £->Yc£e.

Secret

D.O.No.915/1 l/C /2000-PoiyA/60 July 5, 2000

Dear Shri

In response to DO letter No.2(64)/56-63-PM dated 23.5.1963, addressed by Shri K.Ram, the then PPS to PM to Shri B.N.Mullik, the then Director, IB, requesting him to have suitable enquires made and to send a report, about the letter sent to the Prime Minister by Shri Ramani Ranjan Das, Secretary, Shaulmari Ashram, in connection with Shri Subhash Chandra Bose, IB had sent a Top Secret Note vide No. III(51)/63(6) dated12.6.1963 on one Shri K.K.Bhandari.

2. On a further Top Secret reference made by this Office on 7.9.1963, and reminder dated 11.11.1963, IB had sent a Top Secret reply on 16.11.1963.

3. As per the Departmental Security Instructions, ‘Top Secret’ classification shall be applied to information and material, the unauthorised disclosure of which could be expected to cause exceptionally grave damage to the “national security or national interest”. This category of classification is reserved for the Nation’s Closest Secrets and is to be used with great reserve.

4. As IB is, no doubt, aware, Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry has been set up by Government of India to inquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. The Commission have issued directions on 23.3.2000 that Government of India shall produce before the Commission, within 6 weeks from the date of communication of the orders/directions “all files relating to Netaji SubhashChandra Bose and/or I.N.A. in the Prime Minister’s Secretariat,........ ”. TheCommission has futher directed on 13.6.2000 that their directions for the production of files should be complied with by July 31, 2000.

5. This Office intends to produce, among others, the file on which the correspondence mentioned in paras 1 and 2 is contained before the Commission. Before this is done, we feel that with the passage of more than 3 decades, and the nature of the IB’s reports, the same may be downgraded from ‘Top Secret’ to ‘Secret’.

6. I shall, therefore, be grateful if IB’s concurrence to the downgradation of theiv letters mentioned in paras 1 and 2 above, is conveyed, urgently.

Yours sincerely,

Shri P.Mahendroo,Joint Director, Intelligence Bureau, New Delhi.

(Archana Kanj an)

I

5T.#.f>r. (M30)^lO/lssued...r^-.-«.......... ........fa ir * / Date.....Cf ........

Justice Mbknerjec Commission of Inquiryfor inquiry inlo the alleged d isa p p ea ra n ce o f

Ncla ji S u b h a s C h a n d r a Uosc ‘B ’ Block (3rd floor)

1 I/A Mirza C ha lib Street. C a lc u l ta -7 0 0 087

• • - f r - e x r

Phons i033-2I6-27G5/6U 033-216-2835.Tex »OJJ-216-27G5

No. JMCI /..Rmsxmmte/9.9.r2000/37/153/ AS (<yCalcutta, dated, the ...?-A?.P.7.t.?.Q59.?

From t Shri M. Roy, IAS (Retd*), Officer on Special Duty

To : Ms* Archana Ranjan, Director,P*M. *8 office,.South Block,New Delhi-110011.

Madam,With reference to your letter No.$15/ll/2/C/2000-

Pol* dated 4th July, 2000, I am directed to acknowledge receipt of the photo-copies of 20 files including part- files as per list enclosed with your aforesaid letter, the contents of which are under scrutiny in the office of the J,M.C.I«

I am further directed to request you to expedite your further communication regarding top secret File Nos, 23(ll)/56-57-PM and 2(64)/56-66-PM (Vol.II).

Yours faithfully,n - f(M. Roy)

Officer on Special Duty

r>/>

y & kNo (

SSCHET

\ P. Mehendru Joint Director X.A/o, v IP)

No. a -INTELLIGENCE BUREAU (MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS)

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

New Delhi, the« r ...' V 5 J U L 2000

19

■Wa Mi. Qjk

Please re fe r to /our D.O. l e t t e r No. 915/11/(5/2000- Pol/IJGO dated July 5, 2000 seeking IB 's concurrence to the downgrading of two of i t s Tcp Secret D.O. l e t t e r s dated12.6.1963 and 16.11.1963 issued from f i l e No. I I I (51)/63(6).

2. The n a t te r has been examined a t our end. Weconcur with the view of the PMD that the two comruni cat ions referred above may be downgraded from 'Top Secret ' to 'S e c re t ' .

4. ttsjJt M j i u

%\Ms. Archana Ranjan,

I ' Tii i*nr«+i r e c to r ,Prime M in is te r 's Office, NEW DELHI.

«• i . /O y .

9 1 M o w ) si ^

Yours sincerely,

(P. Mehendru)

§yj5 e m .£ S S lW LM S U Bi

PRIME MINISTER* S OFFICE

No. G-16( 4)/2000-NG0 Dated the ^ C j u l y , 2000.

FremJ Ms. Archana Ranjan,D irector,Prims M inister's O ffice,Ssuth Bl*ck,MiffwPdJ&TjJQQU.

Ts: Shri P.K. Sengupta,WBHJS(Retd.),Secretary,J u stice Mukherjee Commission e f Inquiry, B-Bleck (Third F leer), l l /A , Mirza Ghaiib S treet,Cfi Acutti ! j PQ-Q82a.

fcv Ack

l^\c .

S ir ,

In centinuatien ef my le t te r N e .9 1 5 /li/C /2 /2 0 0 0 -P e l dated 4th Ju ly , 2000, the phete-capies e f the fo llow ing Tep S e c r e t / Secret f i l e s are ferwarded:-

Sl. N-ft. Filt.N.f.

1.

3.

4,

5.

6.

7.

23(ll)/56-57-PM (T .S .) - I.N .A . Treasure.2. 0 >> 2(64)/56-66-PM (T.S. )

(V e l.II )

o

/ G-12( 18)/94-NGO ( T.S. ) -

/G-i6(3)/95-NGO (T .S .) -

(T .S .) -

T-2(64)/78-PM (Secret) -

1. Death e f Shri Subhash Chandra B ose.

2 . Appointment e f an Enquiry Committee togo in to th e c ircu m st- ^ ances o f the death.

Controversy regarding N eta ji* s death and bringing h is ashes to India from Japan.Proposal to bring the mortal remains e f N e ta ji Subhash Chandra Bose from Japan to In d ia .Proposal to bring the mortal remains o f N eta ji Subhash Chandra Bose from Japan to India - (Cabinet M eeting).Transfer o f th e Ashes of N eta ji Subhas Chandra Bose to In d ia .Death e f N e ta ji Subhas Ch. Bose - Appointment of an inquiry cenm issien to go in to the circum stances »f death. . . . 2 / -

2 ©2. Please acknowledge receipt.

3. It is further requested that while information contained in the *Tep Secret* papers may be made use of by the Cemmissien, in camera, since these are classified as 'Top Secret*, they may kindly consider not publishing the same.

h> .

,-ciM

Yours faithfully,

^ s (Archana Ranjan ) / Director

#

( kn POLITICAL SECTION / t .

There are some recorded Top Secret files in Political Section which we propose to transfer to NGO.

2. The files listed in the attached list may now be transferred to NGO. Other files will follow.

Under Seeretarv(Pol) b i t ■-------7 ^ ----- H ^ ‘ .

srfent *1 ........ 'M'ef 7 / 1 0

S.No. File No.1. T-2(64)/78-PM

Subject

2. 2(911)/81-PM

m )ln~u->r- No.£.hk)ly(,-**>- ™pm (v'st.irJ iUt U f ) ,,

J > ^ c U - f t . V2 / f t .

Death of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose - Appointment o f an Inquiry Commission To go into the Circumstances of death.

Supervision over the activities of voluntary institution/organizations which are receiving Govt. Funds either directly or Indirectly - PM’s minutes About.

Classification

Top Secret

3. 2(1098)/84-PM Assassination o f the Prime Minister Smt. Indira Gandhi Correspondence regarding.

-do-

^ 4 . 2(1098)/84-PM Ashes of late PM Smt. Indira Gandhi - arrangement for.

-do-

^ 5. 8(375)/66-PM Prime Minister’s Projected visit abroad.

-do-

v - 6. 8(532)/71-PM PM’s visit to Moscow in September, 1971.

-do-

„ 7. 8(29)/75-PM Visit of Foreign Dignitories to India.

-do-

^ 8. T-8(29)/76-PM Visit to India o f Foreign Dignitories.

-do-

U - 9. T-8(29)/76-PM Visit to India o f Foreign Dignitories - 1976.

-do-

' ^ • 1 0 . T-8(29)/78-PMV

Visit of India o f Foreign -do-

\M'T?

Dignitories - 1978.

* /7c*-YC-<Arvv4 -&j_ cL-Z-akb ,

f<2-. V-No .<5.3 (ji)jsX— 1 fi.A -

pt-eJiir> xn_i-M r.lf^-zcrcrv

t y - i t - r j y I

/

/ \ m . tV i

J ustice Mukherjee Commission of InquiryFor Inquiry Into the Alleged Disappearance of

Neta ji Subhas Chandra B o se .‘B’ Block, (Third Floor)

11/A Mirza Ghalib Street, Calcutta 700 087

n o

Phone:216 -2765-68 & 216-2835

Fax :216-2765e-mail

[email protected]

No. JMCI/Meeti ng-Proceedings( Follow Up)/ Calcutta, dated, the 02 ,08* 2000,48/181.

From : Shri M. Roy, I .A .S . (R etd . ) , O fficer on Specia l Duty

To : Ms. Archana Ranjan,D irecto r ,P.M. %s o f f i c e .South B lock ,New D elhi-110011.

Madam,

I am d irec ted to acknowledge th e r e c e ip t o f th e photo-cop ies o f seven S ecret/T op S ec r e t f i l e s sen t under your l e t t e r $fo.G-16(4)/2000-NGO dated24.07 .2000 and the photo-cop ies o f ten more f i l e s sen t under your l e t t e r N o .9 1 5 / l l /c /2 /2 0 0 0 -P o l . d a ted25.07 .2000 which are a l l aw aitin g sc r u t in y a t t h i s end .

Yours f a i t h f u l l y .

o v - ■‘S • X »(M. Roy)O f f ic e r on S p e c ia l Duty

- ^ , IcaJtie A" ^ r

(^ .s fh ^ /P M O (NGO* J'',j*■ it/O y. No • • /.V. i?. Z A U-s I QrC ), ’ W e -'

r\ C\(xJ}Da rvU~~~L/

~~ ( Jrf/ 'Lv’vrO

mailto:[email protected]

J u stic e M u kh e r je e C om mission of InquiryF o r Inquiry Into the Alleged Disappearance of

N e t a ji Su bh a s C handra Bo se .‘B ’ Block, (Third Floor)

11/A Mirza Ghalib Street, Calcutta 700 087

r

Phone:216 -2765-68 & 216-2835

Fax:216-2765E-Mail

jmcinscb@cal3. vsnl. net. in

No. JMCI/Meeting-Proceedings(Follow-up)/48(Vol.II)/243(5) Calcutta, dated, 06.09 2000

REGISTERED W!TH A/D.

From : Shri P.K. Sengupta, WBHJS (Retd.),Secretary

ToThe SecretaryPrime Minister’s Secretariat, South Block,New Delhi 110 001

\ \ -

Subject Strict compliance with the orders/directions contained in the proceedings dated 31.08.2000 read with the proceedings dated 23.03.2000 and 13.06.2000 of Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry.

Sir,

I am sending herewith a copy of the proceedings dated 31.08.2000 of the Commission

containing its orders and directions for your perusal and compliance thereof as directed by the

Commission.\

Copies of the proceedings dated 23.03.2000 and 13.06.2000 of the Commission were

sent to your office earlier.

Yours faithfully,

(P.K. Sengupta) Secretary

Proceedings dated 31.08.2000 (Third)Held at tht Seminar Hall, Annexe Building, Mahajati Sadan,

466, Chittaranjan Avenue, Calcutta 700 007

A ugus t 31, 2000 After perusal of Ihe files/documents still now made available to the

Commission and hearing the parties and/or their representatives present,

the following directions are given to the authorities noted be low :

A. PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE/SECRETARIAT

Secret/Secret’ with a forwarding letter No. G-16(4)/2000-NGO dated

July 24, 2000 (also marked Top Secret/Secret') addressed to the

Secretary of the Commission, a Director of the Prime Minister’s

office, South Block, New Delhi has made the following request:

"It is further requested that while information contained in the

'Top Secret’ papers may be made use of by the Commission, in

camera, since these are classified as ‘Top Secret’, they may kindly

consider not publishing the same.”

to adduce specific reasons as to why privilege is being claimed

against the disclosure of the contents thereof, more so, when the

Commission is holding a public enquiry and its report will be a public

document and the contents of those files may have an important

bearing.

The above office will let this Commission know whether any of

the files/records relevant to the terms of reference of this Commission

has been destroyed and, if so, details thereof and why, when and

l where they were destroyed and whether copies of the documents

contained therein have been kept or maintained.

paragraph (b) of the order of this Commission dated March 23, 2000

read with the order dated June 13, 2000, the above office/Secretariat

has not filed any affidavit regarding the availability of files/documents

mentioned in the aforesaid paragraph a(i).

(i) While sending photocopies of seven files marked as Top

Viewed in that context, the above office/secretariat is directed

In spite of directions contained in paragraph a(i) read with

Contd...p /2

B. MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS

In spite of the directions of the Commission contained in its

orders dated March 23, 2000 and June 13, 2000, the complete

original records of the entire proceedings of Justice Khosla

Commission of Inquiry, including the evidence recorded by and

documents produced before the said Commission, have not been

sent.

In his affidavit dated June 20,2000, the Director (IS-I) attached to

the Ministry o f Home Affairs has stated, inter alia, that in their Ministry

only the files regarding bringing back of the presumed ashes of Netaji

kept in Renkoji Temple in Tokyo in Japan and posthumous

announcement o f award of ‘Bharat Ratna’ to Netaji are available, and

according to the deponent, those files do not have any direct bearing

on the on-going inquiry of the Commission. Notwithstanding the

above observation, the Ministry of Home Affairs is directed to submit

those files before the Commission immediately.I

C. MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS

In spite of earlier directions of the Commission contained in the

orders o f the Commission dated March 23, 2000 and June 13, 2000,

the complete original records o f the entire proceedings of Shah Nawaz

Khan Committee of Inquiry including the evidence recorded by and the

documents produced before the said Committee, have not been sent.

Along with his letter No. 25/4/NGO-Vol.V dated March 1, 2000

(marked 'Top Secret’), Joint Secretary (CNV) has given a list of some

files marked 'Top Secret’. The Ministry is directed to produce the said

files in original before the Commission for its inspection and also

explain why those files are still being treated as 'Top Secret’, more so,

when the Commission is holding a public enquiry and its report will be

a public document and the contents of those files may have an

important bearing.

Co»td...p/3

D. GOVERNMENT OF WEST BENGAL

Secretary to the Home Department, Government of West Bengal, is

directed to produce the original Index Books, together with xerox copies

thereof, relating to the files detailed in Annexure 'B' to the affidavit dated July

28, 2000 filed by Shri Aloknath Bhattacharyya, Special Secretary to the

Government of west Bengal, Home (Political) Department. The Index Books

shall not be taken back without the leave of the Commission.

E. COMPLIANCE WITH THE ABOVE ORDERS/DIRECTIONS

All informations to be furnished in terms of the above

orders/directions must be supported by affidavits of competent officers,

not below the rank of a Joint Secretary to the Government of India, and

filed by September 26,2000. All files/documents, in terms of the above

orders/directions, must be produced also by the same date.

F. EXAMIN ATIO N O F W I T N E S S E S

(i) The Government of India is directed to produce its witnesses, if

any, on the next date of hearing for their examination, before the

Commission examines witnesses cited by other parties.

(ii) Of th,e witnesses cited by the other parties, let the following

witnesses be summoned to appear on the next date of hearing :

1. Dr. Sisir Kumar Bose, Chairman, Netaji Research Bureau, Calcutta

2. Shri Suman Chattopadhyay, Executive Editor, Ananda Bazar

Patrika, Calcutta.

3. Shri Ardhendu Sarkar, formerly of Bharat Heavy Engineering Corpn.

4. Shri Anindya Sengupta, Columnist, The Statesman, Calcutta.

5. Shri Nilanjan Basu, Reporter, Bartaman, Calcutta.

(iii) As regards the other witnesses cited by them, appropriate

directions as to who of them will be examined and when, will be

notified in due course.

G. NEXT HEARING

The next hearing of the Commission will be held on September 28, 2000 at 11 A.M. in the Seminar Hall, Annexe Building, Mahajati Sadan, 166 Chittaranjan Avenue, Calcutta 700 007.

■v,r > Ak'-i(t5(M.K. Mukherjee)

Chairman.

G rBefore the H o n ’ble Justice M ukherjee Com m ission

o f Inquiry at Calcutta.

IN THE M A TTER O F C O M PL IA N C E W ITH THE O RDER S/

D IR EC T IO N S O F TH E C O M M ISSIO N AS PASSED IN ITS

PR O C EED IN G S H ELD O N 23.3.2000 AT CALCUTTA.'k'k&’k

A F F I D A V I T

I, A.K. Paitandy s/o Late Dr. P. Paitandy, working as Director

(Internal Security-I) in the Ministry o f Home Affairs do solemnly affirm and

state as under:

That the follow ing Ministries/Departments/Organisations seem to be

concerned with regard to the availability o f old files/documents

connected with the alleged disappearance o f Netaji, INA and the

record o f proceedings o f the Shah Nawaz Khan Committee, 1956 and

the Khosla Com m ission o f Inquiry, 1974 which earlier went into

similar inquiries as is presently being conducted by the H on’ble

Justice Mukherjee Commission o f Inquiry

(a) Prime M inister’s Office

(b) Cabinet Secretariat

(c) Ministry o f Home Affairs

(d) Ministry o f Defence

(e) Ministry o f External Affairs

(f) Intelligence Bureau

(g) Department o f Culture (National Archives o f India)

(h) Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW)

2 . The above mentioned Ministries/Departments/Organisations were

accordingly provided with the copies o f the Commission’s directions/orders

dated 23.3.2000 for complying with the same. In this connection,

attention is invited to this Ministry’s D.O. letters N o.I-12014/13/2000-

IS(D.III) dated 11.04.2000, written to individual officers, a copy each o f

which has also been provided to the Commission. As already mentioned in

para(v)(b) o f the Commission’s aforesaid orders/directions dated 23.3.2000,

the requisite affidavit is to be filed by the competent persons o f the

concerned Ministries/Departments giving a list o f files available on

Netaji/INA. However, in view o f the fact that some o f the

Departments/Organisations have informed that they do not have any papers

on Netaji/INA, there seems to be some confusion about filing o f Affidavits

to that effect by them. In view of this fact and in deference to the

directions/orders o f the Commission, this Ministry is filing this Affidavit on

behalf of the following and I accordingly further affirm and state that there

are reportedly no files/papers concerning Netaji/INA in their (the under

mentioned Department’s) possession:-

(i) Cabinet Secretariat

(ii) Intelligence Bureau

(iii) Research and Analysis Wing

The Communications received from these organisations have already been

forwarded to the Commission separately.

3. The Prime Minister’s Office have a total o f sixteen files, the details o f

which have already been communicated to the Commission, vide Prime

Minister’s Office letter No.915/1 l/c/2/2000-Pol dated 2.5.2000. This

Ministry, vide its letter N o.I-12014/13/2000/IS(D.III), dated 31.5.2000 has

requested the Commission, inter-alia, to consider the feasibility o f relevant

files available in Prime Minister’s Office, being perused/scrutinised at N ew

Delhi. The Commission has, however, requested Prime Minister’s Office to

2

make available to it photocopies o f the files, which according to their

report to the Commission, are available in the Prime Minister’s Office. The

Comm ission’s letter No.JM CI/M eeting/48/93 dated 23.5.2000 refers.

4. Similarly, Ministry o f External Affairs, vide DO letter No25/4/NG O-

Vol.V, dated 24.5.2000 have inter-alia pleaded for scrutiny/perusal o f the

files/records available in M EA at N ew Delhi. In response thereto, the

Commission have, for the time being, asked the Ministry o f External Affairs

to send photocopies o f the follow ing two files on Netaji/INA available with

them, to the Commission

(j) No.C/551/5/72-JP Part-Ill- Netaji Enquiry Commission under

the chairmanship o f Minister Shri Shah Nawaz Khan, 1956

(ii) KW to file N o.C /551/5/72-JP Part-Ill Record o f evidence

tendered before Shah Nawaz Committee-1956.

The Com m ission’s letter No.JMCI/Meeting/48/93 dated 23.5.2000

refers. As regards the nine (9) Top Secret files available in MEA , the

decision o f the Commission is awaited, vide its letter No.JMCI/Meeting/99-

2000/48/107 dated 5.6.2000.

5. The National Archives o f India, vide their DO letter No.F.9-2( 19)99

P.A. dated 24-4-2000 (copy attached), have informed that in addition to 990

files declassified and transferred to them by the Ministry o f Defence on

26.8.1997, about which the Commission have already been informed

separately, some more files are available with them. A fresh list o f files

relating to Netaji/INA have also been furnished. The Commission has,

however, requested the Directorate General, Archives, to send photocopies

o f the files, which according to their report to the Commission in pursuance

o f the orders/directives contain in the proceedings dated 23.3.2000 o f the

Commission, are available at their end. It is presumed that the Director

3

4General, Archives would be taking necessary action in the matter under

intimation to the Commission.

6. The Ministry of Defence(History Division), vide their DO letter

No.2191/NIC/99, dated 9.5.2000 (copy attached ) have informed that they

have already apprised the Justice Mukherjee Commission o f Inquiry that all

the files/documents pertaining to INA held by the History D ivision o f that

Ministry had been declassified and transferred to the National Archives o f

India on 26.8.1997. They have also stated to have submitted to the

Commission, vide their letter dated 16.2.2000, a list o f these files. They have

further stated that they do not have any other proceedings in their

possession.

7. So far as the Ministry of Home Affairs is concerned, only the files on

bringing back the presumed ashes of Netaji kept in Renkoji temple in Tokyo

in Japan and posthomous announcement o f award o f ‘Bharat Ratna’ to

Netaji, are available. These files do not have a direct bearing on the ongoing

inquiry by the Commission. However, the record o f proceedings o f the

Khosla Commission of Inquiry are available. Arrangements are being made

to produce these proceedings before the Commission at C

I, A.K. Paitandy, s/o Late Dr. P. Paitandy, declare and affirm that

what is stated above is true to my knowledge. No part o f this Affidavit is

false and nothing material has been concealed.

earliest.

VERIFICATION

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4, 8 - 2 / 4 7 - F o l l . C o u n c i l o f S t a t e ~ Qu e s t i o n - B u d g e t _ s e s s i o n , 1 9 47 9 p a g e s .The H o n ’b l e R a j a Yuv r a j D u t t a S i n g h r e - a r r e s t o f t u o I t a l i a n f r o m t h e h o u s e o f a f o r w a r d B l o c u o r k e r , I n d u Dev o n s u s p i c i o n t h a t t h e y h a d b e e n d e p u t e d b y N e t a j i S u b h a s C h a n d r a B o s e t o t h e P u n j a b w i t h s o Tie m y s t e r i o u s m i s s i o n , ,

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CONFIDENTIAL

34 The Indian Evidence Act, 1872

'[This section applies also, with any necessay modifications, to finger-impres-sions.

COMMENTSUnder the law the court has power to compare signatures /handwriting strengthening its finding

based on other cogent material and evidence on record; Satish Jayanthilal Shah v. Pankaj Mashruwala, (1997) 2 Crimes 203 (Guj).

Public Documents74. Public documents.—The following documents are public documents:—(1) Documents forming the acts, or records of the acts—

(i) of the sovereign authority,(ii) of official bodies and tribunals, and(iii) of public officers, legislative, judicial and executive, 2[of any part of

India or of the Commonwealth], or of a foreign country ;(2) Public records kept 3[in any State] of private documents.75. Private documents.—All other documents are private.76. Certified copies of public documents.—Every 4public officer having the

custody of a public document, which any person has a right to inspect, shall give that person on demand a copy of it on payment of the legal fees therefor, together with a certificate written at the foot of such copy that it is true copy of such document or part thereof, as the case may be and such certificate shall be dated and subscribed by such officer with his name and his official title, and shall be sealed, whenever such officer is authorised by law to make use of a seal ; and such copies so certified shall be called certified copies.

Explanation.—Any officer who, by the ordinary course of official duty, is authorized to deliver such copies, shall be deemed to have the custody of such documents within the meaning of this section.

77. Proof of documents by production of certified copies.—Such certified copies may be produced in proof of the contents of the public documents or parts of the public documents of which they purport to be copies.

78. Proof of other official documents.—The following public documents may be proved as follows:—

(1) Acts, orders or notifications of 5[the Central Government] in any of its departments, 6[or of the Crown Representative] or of any State Government or any department of any State Government,—by the records of the departments, certified by the head of those departments respectively,or by any document purporting to be printed by order of any such Government 6[or as the case may be, of the Crown Representative];

1. Ins. by Act 5 of 1899, sec. 3.2. The original words “whether of British India, or of any other part of Her Majesty's dominions”

have successively been amended by the A.O. 1948 and the A.O. 1950 to read as above.3. Subs, by the A.O. 1950, for “in any province”.4. A Village-officer in the Punjab has been declared for the purposes of this Act to be a public officer

having the custody of a public document— see the Punjab Land Revenue Act, 1887 (17 of 1887),section 151(2).

5. Subs, by the A.O. 1937, for “the Executive Government of British India”.6. Ins. by the A.O. 1937.

(2) the proceedings of the Legislatures,—by the journals of those bodies respectively, or by published Acts or abstracts, or by copies purporting to be printed '[by order of the Government concerned];

(3) proclamations, orders or regulations issued by 2Her Majesty or by the Privy Council, or by any department of 2Her Majesty’s Government,—by copies or extracts contained in the London Gazette, or purporting to be printed by the Queen’s printer;

(4) the acts of the Executive or the proceedings of the Legislature of a foreign country,—by journals published by their authority, or commonly received in that country as such or by a copy certified under the seal of the country or sovereign, or by a recognition thereof in some J[Central Act];

(5) the proceedings of a municipal body in 4[a State],by a copy of such proceedings, certified by the legal keeper thereof, or by a printed book purporting to be published by the authority of such body;

(6) Public documents of any other class in a foreign country,—by the original, or by a copy certified by the legal keeper thereof, with a certificate under the seal of a Notary Public, or of 3[an Indian Consul] or diplomatic agent that the copy is duly certified by the officer having the legal custody of the original, and upon proof of the character of the document according to the law of the foreign country.

STATE AMENDMENTWest Bengal :A fter section 78, following new section has been inserted:—

78A. Copies of public documents, to be as good as original documents in certain cases.— Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or any other law for the time being in force, where any public documents concerning any areas within W est Bengal have been kept in Pakistan, then copies o f such public documents shall, on being authenticated in such manner as may be prescribed from time to time by the State Government by notification in the Official Gazette, be deemed to have taken the place o f and to be, the original documents from which such copies were made and all references to the original documents shall be construed as including reference to such copies. Vide W est Bengal Act No. 29 o f 1955 as amended by West Bengal Act No. 20 o f 1960, section 3 (w.e.f. 5-1-1961)].

Presumptions as to documents79. Presum ption as to genuineness o f certified copies.—The court shall

presume s[to be genuine] every document purporting to be a certificate, certified copy or other document, which is by law declared to be admissible as evidence of any particular fact and which purports to be duly certified by an officer 7[of the Central

The Ind ian E vidence Act, 1872 35

1. Subs, by the A.O. 1937, for “by order o f Government”.2. The words "Her Majesty” stand unmodified see the A.O. 1950.3. Subs, by the A.O. 1937, for “public Act o f the Governor General of India in Council” .4. Subs, by the A.O. 1950, for "a Province".5. Subs, by the A.O.'1950, for “a British Consul” .6. Ins. by the A.O. 1948.7. The original words beginning from “in British India” and ending with the words “to be genuine”

have been succesively amended by the A.O. 1937, A.O. 1948 and A.O. 1950 to read as above.

50 The Indian Evidence Act, 1872

Illustrations

(a) A, on his trial before the Court o f Sessions, says that a deposition was improperly taken by B, the Magistrate. B cannot be compelled to answer questions as to this, except upon the special order o f a superior court.

(b) A is accused before the Court o f Sessions of having given false evidence before B, a Magistrate. B cannot be asked what A said, except upon the special order o f the superior court.

(c) A is accused before the Court o f Sessions of attempting to m urder a police officer whilst on his trial before B, a Session Judge. B may be exam ined as to w hat occurred.

122. Com m unications during m arriage.—No person who is or has been married shall be compelled to disclose any communication made to him during marriage by any person to whom he is or has been married, nor shall he be permitted to disclose any such communication, unless the person who made it, or his representative in interest, consents, except in suits between married persons, or proceedings in w hich one m arried person is prosecuted for any crime committed against the other.

''H S . Evidence as to affairs of State.— No one shall be permitted to give any evidence derived from unpublished official records relating to any affairs o f State, except with the permission o f the officer at the head of the department _concerned, who shall give or withhold such permission- ! ? he thinks fit

^ 124. Official communications.— No public officer shall be com pelled to disclose communications made to him in official confidence, when he considers that the public interest would suffer by the disclosure.

'[125. Information as to commission of offences.—No Magistrate or police officer shall be compelled to say whence he got any information as to the com mission o f any offence, and no Revenue officer shall be compelled to say whence he got any information as to the commission o f any offence against the public revenue.

Explanation.— “Revenue officer” in this section means an officer em ployed in or about the business o f any branch o f the public revenue.]

126. Professional communications.— No barrister, attorney, pleader or vakil shall at any time be permitted, unless with his client’s express consent, to disclose any communication made to him in the course and for the purpose o f his em ploym ent as such barrister, pleader, attorney or vakil, by or on behalf o f his client, or to state the contents or condition o f any document with which he has become acquainted in the course and for the purpose of his professional employment, or to disclose any advice given by him to his client in the course and for the purpose of such em ploym ent :

Provided that nothing in this section shall protect from disclosure—

(1) any such communication made in furtherance of any 2[illegal] purpose.

(2) any fact observed by any barrister, pleader, attorney or vakil, in the course o f his employment as such, showing that any crime or fraud has been com m itted since the commencement o f his employment.

It is material whether the attention of such barrister, ][pleader], attorney or vakil was or was not directed to such fact by or no behalf of his client.

1. Subs, by Act 3 of 1887, sec. I, for the original section 125.2. Subs, by Act 18 of 1872, sec. 10, for “criminal”.3. Ins. by Act 18 of 1872, sec. 10.

The Indian Evidence Act. 1872 51

Explanation .— The obligation stated in this section continues after the employment has ceased.

(a) A. a client, says to B, an attorney— “1 have committed forgery and I wish you to defend me”.

As the defence o f a man known to be guilty is not a criminal purpose, this communication is protected from disclosure.

(b) A, a client, says to B, an attorney— “I wish to obtain possession o f property by the use o f forged deed on which I request you to sue” .

This communication, being made in furtherance o f a criminal purpose, is not protected from disclosure.

(c) A, being charged with embezzlement, retains B, an attorney, to defend him. In the course o f the proceedings B observes that an entry has been made in A ’s account book, charging A with the sum said to have been embezzled, which entry was not in the book at the commencement o f his employment.

This being a fact observed by B in the course of his employment, showing that a fraud has been committed since the commencement o f the proceedings, it is not protected disclosure.

127. Section 126 to apply to interpreters, etc.— The provision o f section 126 shall apply to interpreters, and the clerks or servants o f barristers, pleaders, attorneys, and vakils.

128. Privilege not waived by volunteering evidence.— If any party to a suit gives evidence there at his own instance or otherwise, he shall not be deemed to have consented thereby to such disclosure as is mentioned in section 126 ; and if any party to a suit or proceeding calls any such barrister '[pleader], attorney or vakil as a witness, he shall be deemed to have consented to such disclosure only if he questions such barrister, attorney or vakil on matters which, but for such question, he would not be at liberty to disclose.

129. Confidential communications with legal advisers.— No one shall be compelled to disclose to the Court any confidential communication which has taken place between him and his legal professional adviser, unless he offers him self as a witness, in which case he may be compelled to disclose any such communications as may appear to the Court necessary to be known in order to explain any evidence which he has given, but no others.

130. Production o f title-deeds of witness not a party.— No witness who is not a party to a suit shall be compelled to produce his title-deeds to any property, or any document by virtue o f which he holds a property as pledgee or mortgagee or any document the production o f which might tend to criminate him, unless he has agreed in writing to produce them with the seeking the production o f such deeds or some person through whom he claims.

i j i . Production o f documents which another person, having possession, could refuse to produce.— No one shall be compelled to produce documents in his possession, which any other person would be entitled to refuse to produce if they were in his possession, unless such last-mentioned person consents to their production.

132. W itness not excused from answering on ground that answer will crim inate.— A witness shall not be excused from answering any question as to any

1. Ins. bv Act 18 of 1972. sec. 10

Illustration

Top SecretMost immediate

Noi16(4)/2000-N GO PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE

SOUTH BLOCK, NEW DELHI-110011.

Dated: September,2000.To

The Chief Secretary, Government of West Bengal, Calcutta

(Attention:Shri Aloknath Bhattacharyya,Special Secretary, Home(Political) Department.)

,P Sub:- Declassification of records.r

Sir,

I am directed to say that Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry has been set up by Government of India to inquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subash Chandra Bose. The Commission have directed various Ministries/Departments of Government of India, including this Office, to produce all files/documents by 26th September, 2000. One of the Top Secret files with Office contains the letter written by the then Chief Minister of West Bengal, Shri P.C. Sen, to the Prime Minister (copy enclosed).

2. It is quite possible that the Government of West Bengal have already taken a view regarding desirability or otherwise of declassifying the above letter and making it available to the Commission of Inquiry. If so, the decision taken may kindly be intimated to this Office urgently. If, however, a view has not yet been taken, you are requested to kindly let us know the views of the Government of West Bengal regarding declassification of the Top Secret letter in question, and making a copy of the same available to the Commission of Inquiry.

3. An early response is requested, keeping in view the fact that files/documents have to be made available to the Commission of Inquiry by 26th September, 2000, positively.

Yours faithfully,

Director

TOP SECRET MOST IMMEDIATE

PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE

Sub:- Declassification of records.

The Government of India has appointed the Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry to inquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subash Chandra Bose. In response to the communication received from the Commission of Inquiry Wde letter No.JMC/Meeting/48/95, dated 23.5.2000, copy of seven top secret files pertaining to this Office were sent to the Commission with the request that while the Commission may make use of the top secret papers, in camera, they may kindly consider not publishing the same, since these are classified as top secret.

2. The Commission have vide their letter dated 6.9.2000 directed this Office to adduce specific reasons as to why privilege is being claimed against the disclosure of the contents of the Top Secret files, more so, when the Commission is holding a public inquiry and its reports will be a public document and contents of these files may have an important bearing. It also appears the Commission has been in touch with the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of External Affairs, Government of West Bengal etc. for production of records relevant to the terms and conditions of the Commission of Inquiry.

3. Copies of the classified communications which originated from your Ministry/Department are enclosed. You are requested to kindly let this Office know immediately the view, If any already taken, regarding their declassification and production before the Commission. If a view is yet to be taken, the same may please be expedited and complete

rT T lr~\ V /

information intimated to this Office latest by the forenoon of 18th September, 2000.

0(Archana Ranjan)

Director ^^ ^ ^ S h r i R.D.Choudhury .Director General, National Museum, f r

1 Janpatrh,New Delhi-110011. 3 +• J '£/. 'I

Shri P.Mehendru, Joint Director, Intelligence Bureau(MHA),New Delhi. ^eJ ■

C Shri A.K. Paitandy, Director (IS-I), Min&tfy of Home Affairs. 2»Jl. •

£rpi fbty Shri G.BvSingh,Director, Ministry of Defence,History Division,West Block No. 8,R.K.Puram, New Delhi-110066. £v^. ^

H* -v- 11Shri Ravi Mittal, Director, Cabinet Secretariat,New Delhi. -? V

0-1M MMA - "T-5 '^ /y^£S hri Thomas, SO(NGO) Ministry of External Affairs. A>o

' /PMO U.O.No.16(4)/2000-NGO dated 149.2000.

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Top Secret Most Immediate

D.O.No.l6(4)/2000-NGC) September 19,2000

Dear

A copy of this Office UO of even number dated 14/15.9.2000 which was sent to Shri Thomas, Section Officer(NGO), Ministry of External Affairs, regarding declassification of records made available to Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry, appointed by Government of India to enquire into alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, is enclosed (Copy No.7/8- without enclosures). The communication was sent to Shri Thomas in your absence.

2. We shall be grateful for a very quick response, as we have to respond to the communication received from the Commission well before the next date of hearing fixed for 26.9.2000 positively.

Shri Jayant Prasad,Joint Secretary(CNV), Ministry of External Affairs, Room No. 163,1st Floor, South Block,New Delhi-110011.

Yours sincerely,

(Archa anjan)

T O P S E C R E T

NATIONAL MUSEUM

Dr. R.D. ChoudhuryDirector General

Dear Mrs. Ranjan,

D.O.NO.F .DGNM-2/2000

September 16, 2000

Kindly refer to your letter No.16(4)/2OOO-NGO, dated 14th/15th September, 2000 regarding declassification of records.

In this context I would like to inform you that in consultation with Department of Culture, Ministry of Tourism & Culture, which is our administrative Ministry, we shall let you know regarding the decision to declassify the record in question.

With regards,

Yours sincerely,

(R. D. T?noudhury)

Mrs. Archana Ranjan DirectorPrime Minister Office New Delhi

(<F .A t /„ i./Oy................................................................................................................. 1 3 ^

t

«FOT, ^ f'^ 1 tml-110011; m ■■ W I M ; : 091-11-3QJ1159, 3018046; : 091-11-3019821

1

TOP SECRETMOST IMMEDIATE

Tele:6102067

No.2191/NIC/H/99 / g Sep 2000

MINISTRY OF DEFENCE (History Division)

SU BJECT:DECLASSIFICATION OF RECORDS

Reference PM OUO No. 16(4)/2000-NGO dated 14/15.9.2000.

2. All tiie records (990 files) relating to INA held by this office have been declassified and transferred to National Archives o f India. Janpath. New Delhi on 26 August, 1997. A complete list o f these records has been forwarded to the Justice Mukherjee Commission o f Inquiry to inquire into tlie alleged disappearance o f Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

3. The matter relating to DMI/5118/135/GSI (e) GHQ India is beingreferred to DGMI AHQ. the originator, for appropriate action in the matter.PM*s Office will be informed immediately after we receive a reply from them.

r i»/D y. No- rs^S/Data......

SECRET/M OS T I MM EDI A TE

CABINET SECRETARIAT RASHTRAPATI BHAVAN

Subject:- Declassification of records.

Kind reference is invited to PMO UO No. 16(4)/2000-NGG dated 15.9.2000, on the above subject.

2. The background notes for consideration of the Cabinet on ‘Proposal to bring the mortal remains of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose from Japan to India’ (dated 2.2.1995), ‘Fresh inquiry into disappearance of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in 1945 - Demand for' (dated 18.2.1970) and the Core Group on ‘Controversy about Netaji’s death and allegations that he was an Mi-6 Agent’ (dated 16.5.1994) were received from MHA.

3. The minutes will have the same grading as the notes which have originated from MHA. This Secretariat has no objection to whatever grading MHA may wish to give these background papers. It is, therefore, for MHA to decide the grading of these papers.

(RaDirector.

PMO. [Ms. Archana Ranjan, Director].Cabinet Secretariat ID Note No. 281/12/1/2000-TS dated 18.9.2000.

sr.*t.*r. (NGQJT! y. No.....to tt/D a l*......


Ministry of External Affairs NGO SECTION

Please refer to PMO U.O. No. 16(4)2000-NGO dated 14.09.2000 regarding view taken by this Ministry in regard to documents originating in this Ministry required by Justice Mukherjee Commission, inquiring into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

As regards copies of papers originating from this Ministry above note are concerned, this Ministry have no objection for these to ‘confidential’. As to which of these may be made public, if any, we may have to leave to the discretion of the Commission. As regards documents being produced before the Commission by this Ministry, we intend to take the same stand.

enclosed wrtfTthe be declassified to

PRASAD) tary(CNV)

No. 3011357

Ms A rchana Ranian. Director. PM’s O ffice. South Block. New Deihi. M E * U.O .No.25/4/NGO Vol. V dated Septem ber 19, 2000.

sj.*T. r■ji* ~ .>/ y. No

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TIME BOUND


SOUTH BLOCK NEW DELHI-110011.

Subject:- Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry appointed to enquire into alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose- Declassification of records.

Reference is invited to this Office U.O. of even number date 14th/15th September, 2000, on the subject mentioned above.

2. Keeping in view the fact that the next date of hearing of the Commission has been fixed on 28.9.2000, by which date the stand of the Government in the matter of claiming privilege regarding classified documents contained in this Office classified files, copies of which have already been made available to the Commission, is to be made known to the Commission, it has now been decided that the Ministry/Department/Agency concerned, should take a decision regarding the desirability or otherwise of the references originating from their respective Ministry/Department/Agency(copies were sent alongwith our U.O. dated 14^/15th September, 200(5 anc* convey it to the Commission, direct, at the following address, under intimation to this Office:-

Shri P.K. Sengupta,WBHJS(Retd.)Secretary,Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry,'B' Block(Yhird Floor),11/A,Mirza Ghalib Street,CALCUTTA-700087.

2. It is requested that early action may kindly be taken in

_ z -

the matter, under intimation to this Office.

(ARCHNA RANDAN) DIRECTOR Tel. No.301393

Shri R.D.Choudhury,Director General,National Museum, Jan path, New Delhi-110011.

Shri P.Mahendru.Jt.Director,IB(MHA)New Delhi.

Shri A, K, Paitandy, Director(IS-l)MHA (alongwith a copy of the reply sent by Cab.Sectt)

Shri G.B.Singh,Director,M/Defence,History Division,West Block No,8,R.K.Puram,New Delhi-110066.

Shri Ravi Mittal,Director, Cabinet Secretariat,New Delhi.

P.M.O.U.O.No.G.16(4)/2000-NGO dated: AI -9-2000.

Copy for information to Shri Jayant Prasad, JS(CNV)M/External Affairs,South Block,New Delhi, w.r. to MEA U.O.N0.25/4/NGO (Vol.V) dated 19.9.2000.

TOP SECRET TIME BOUND

NO.G.16(4)/2000-NGO PRIME MINMISTER'S OFFICE


Dated:X\ September, 2000.

To

The Chief Secretary,Government of West Bengal,Calcutta.

(Attention :Shri Aloknath Bhattacharyya,Special Secretary, Home(Political)Department)

ISubject:- Declassification of record.

Sir,

I am Directed to refer to this Office letter of even number dated 14.9.2000, on the subject mentioned above and to say that keeping in view the fact that the next date of hearing of the Commission has been fixed on 26.9.2000, and the Commission has already directed, among others, the Government of West Bengal, to produce some records before it, the Government of West Bengal may please convey their views/stand regarding declassification and making public the letter(copy of which had been enclosed with this Office letter of 14.9.2000) to the Commission, direct, under intimation to this Office.

A

.or

Yours faithfully,

aL(ARCHNA RANJAN)

DIRECTOR

t o p S e c r e t

INTELLIGENCE BUREAU(Government of India)

Sub: Declassification of Records

Reference is invited to PMO UO No. 16(4)/2000-NGO dated September 14/15, 2000 on the above subject.

2. The seven documents along with their enclosures, all currently classified as 'Secret', enclosed with the above-mentioned UO note have been examined at our end. There is no objection from the security angle to their being declassified. PMO may like to take further action in the matter.

(P. Mehendru) 1 Joint Director

PMO (Ms. Archna Ranjan, Director)IB U.O. No. 111-6(1)/2000(2)- 105" dated September 22, 2000

................... ■ S g V f r l* * '

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IOtt '..'EF'IF iCAT ION REFV Fr

25 /3M 1 i 1 ' .:iC: i" 5 :-LI *

, .| JI

TIMEN*ME

TEL

25/09/2000

rS'"

)MOST IMMEDIATE

No. G. 16(4)/2000-NGO — -------------- --PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE


Dated:25.9.2000-09-25

Shri P.K.Sengupta.WBHJS(Retd.),Secretary,Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry,B' Block(Third Floor),11 A.Mirza Ghalib Street,

CALCUTTA-700067.

Subject-Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry appointed to enquire into alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose-Declassification of record.

Sir,

*4 C&. In continuation of this Office letter No. 915/11/C/2/2000-Pol -V ^LX ,• dated 24-9-2000, enclosing the Affidavit on behalf of the Prime

Minister's Office, in connection with the above subject matter, I am x directed to inform that since the signing / despatch o,f the

y U aforementioned Affidavit, the Intelligence Bureau have informed this Office that there is no objection to the seven communications available on the files sent by this Office to the Commission, being declassified. It has accordingly^been decided that the IB communications may be treated as^ciassified and that there is no objection to these communications being made public by the Commission, if necessary. As already mentioned in the Affidavit of this Office sent on 24.9.2000, other Departments have been requested to inform the Commission, direct, of their views about declassification of their communications available on PMO Files, copies of which are already available withr the Commission.

WL'AYours faithfully,

wjSr*'%I (SUNIL JAIN) a QIRECTOR

v/Cw

-

SECRET

f Xf 1 K-

* j I) V . . MOST IM M EDIATE

( S ' V V

PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE

Subject: Declassification of records.

The Government of India has appointed the Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry to inquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subash Chandra Bose. In response to the communication received from the Commission o f Inquiry-' Vide letter No. JMC Meeting 48 95. dated 23.5.2000. copy o f seven top secret files pertaining to this Office were sent to the Commission with the request that while the Commission may make use o the top secret papers, in camera, they may kindly consider not publishing the same, since these are classified as top secret.

2. The Commission have Vide their letter dated 6.9.2000directed this Office to adduce specific reasons as to why privilege is being claimed against the disclosure o f the contents o f the Top Secret files, more so. when the Commission is holding a public inquiry and its report will be a public document and contents o f these files may have an important bearing. It also appears the Commission has been in touch with the M inistry o f Home Affairs. Ministry of External Affairs. Government o f W est Bengal etc. for production of records relevant to the term s and conditions of the Commission of Inquiry.

SECRETMOST IMMEDIATE


Subject: Declassification of records.

The G overnm ent o f India has appointed the JusticeM ukherjee Com m ission o f Inquiry to inquire into the alleged disappearance o f N etaji Subash Chandra Bose. In response to the com m unication received from the Com mission of Inquiry Vide letter No. JM C M eeting 48 95. dated 23.5.2000. copy o f seven top secret files pertaining to this Office were sent to the Commission with the request that w hile the Commission may make use o the top sec-ret papers, in cam era, they max' kindly consider not publishing the same, since these are classified as top secret.

2. The Com mission have Vide their letter dated 6.9.2000directed this Office to adduce specific reasons as to why privilege is being claimed against the disclosure o f the contents of the Top Secret files, more so. when the Commission is holding a public inquiry and its report will be a public document and contents of these files may have an important bearing. It also appears the Com mission has been in touch with the M inistry o f Home Affairs. M inistry o f External Affairs. Government o f W est Bengal etc. for production o f records relevant to the terms and conditions o f the Commission o f Inquiry.

3. Copies of the classified comm unications whichoriginated from your Ministry Department are enclosed. You are requested to kindly let this Office know immediately the view, if anv already taken regarding their declassification and production before the Commission. If a view is yet to be taken, the same may please be expedited and complete information intimated to this Office latest bv the forenoon of IS111 September. 2000.

Ran j an ] Director

1. Secretary, Ministry of Urban Development2. Secretary, Deptt. of Economic Affairs3. Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting4. Secretary, Deptt. of Food and Public Distribution

[ Archana

P M O l.O . No. 915/1 l/C/2/2000-Pol D dated: Sept 15, 2000

& \ O'S IX K ! I>SI i M \ I h i ) I \ i i

Nv».915/li ( : '2UOO-Poi(^^l )PRIM r OI-'Vli I

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i ne Cm ei !>ecretarv. Governm ent oi’ Orissa. Bhubneswar.

bjcel: D eclassification of recurd*

bir.

I am directed to sa y that Justice M ukherjee Commission of Inquiry' has been set up by Governm ent of India to inquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji SubasJi Chandra Bose. The Commission have directed various M inistries D epartm ents of Governm ent o f India. including this Office. to produce all files docum ents by 26 th September. 2000. Some o f the Secret files with Office contain the letters written by the Chief M inister . Orissa to the Prime M inister (copies enclosed i.

2. It is quite possible that the Governm ent o f Orissa have already taken a view regarding desirability or otherwise o f declassifying these letters and m aking it available to the Commission o f Inquiry. If so. the decision taken may kindly be intimated to this Office urgently. If. however, a view has not yet been taken, you are requested to kindly jet us know the views o f the Government o f Orissa regarding dec’assification o f the Secret Confidential letters in question, and making a copy o f the same available to the Commission o f Inquiry.

3. An early response is requested, keeping in view the fact• hat files docum ents have to be made available to the Commission of Inquire bv 26 th September. 2000. positively.

Yours faithfuilv.

. L, ~ ehana Ranjan jDirector

^ >

n M<?- c) 15/ Cl\ s fJ)SJ \ f ]■ |) JA [T

PRIME M IN IST ER 'S O K FK ¥

Tie Chief Secret o r Oovernmem oi <\ cst i3ongui.

u tiniicuna

( Attention : Shri Aioknath Bhattacharyva. Sneciat Secretary, Home ( Political) Department')

Subject: Declassification oi records

Sir.

I am directed to say that Justice Mukherjee Com m ission o f Inquiry- has been set up by Government of India to inquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subash Chandra Bose The Commission have directed various Ministries D epartm ents o f Government of India, including this Office, to produce all files documents by 26Ui September. 2000. Some o f the Secret files with Office contain the letters written by the Chief M in is te r . W est Bengal to the Prime Minister (copies enclosed).

2. It is quite possible that the Government o f W est Bengalhave already- taken a view regarding desirability or otherwise o f declassifying these letters and making it available to the Com m ission of Inquiry. If so. the decision taken may kindly be intim ated to this Office urgently , if. however, a view has not yet been taken, you are requested to kindly let us know the views of the Governm ent o f W est Bengal regarding declassification of the Secret Confidential letters in question, and making a copy of .he same available to the Com mission of Inauirv.

3. Ail early response is requested, keeping in view the factthat files documents have to be made available to the Commission of Inquiry by 2(>tn September. 2000. positively.

Yours faithfully.

Jj.V

Arc liana Ranjaji^ Director

The C hief Secretary, G overnm ent o f Orissa Bhubneswar.

Subject: Declassification of records

Sir.I a ir directed to refer to this Office letter o f

even num ber dated lS'* 9.2000. on the subject mentioned above and to say that keeping in view the fact that the next date o f hearing o f the Commission has been fixed on28.9.2000. the G overnm ent o f Orissa may please convey their views stand regarding declassification and making public the letter ( copies o f which had been enclosed with this Office letter o f 15.9.2000) to the Commission, direct, at the following address under intimation to this Office:y

S h n P .k . S engupta. \Y B H JS (R eid .)Secretary.Justice M u k h erjee C o m m issio n o f Inquiry;B ‘ B lo ek iT h ird F loor).1] A. M irza G halib Street. C alcu tta-700087

Y o u r s l a i t h f u i i v .

( k .Archana Ran?an j Director

rO

S r ( KM O S T 'M M E D M T K

! LOl >.D•,f- \ j i \ j sTI'.R’1-- ;

> \V> J i .n K' i -V : '■)! J iTI-1 ] I «ji 1

.Suri Ju stice M uknerjee C om m ission o f In q u iry a n p o u itm e ru to en q u ire in'iu alleged d isap p ea ran ce of N e ta ji S u b h a sh C h a m 'r a Bose- D eclassification o f record.

R eference is invited 10 this Office T .O . o f even n u m b er dated 15 September. 2000. on the subject m entioned above.

K eeping in view the fact that the next date of hearing o f theCom m ission has been fixeu on 28.9.2000. by w hich date the stand o f the G overnm ent in the m atter o f claim ing privilege regard ing c lassified docum en ts contained in the this Office classified files, copies o i w inch have already been m ade available to the C om m ission . is to be made know n to the C om m ission , it has now been decided that the N&ni.*try D epartm ent A gency concerned, should take a decision regarding the desirability or otherwise o f the re feren ces o rig inating from ihcir respective Ministry D epartm ent Agency (copies w ere sent along w ith o u r U .O . dated 15" Septem ber.2000). and convey to the C om m ission, direct, at the follow ing address, under intim ation to this Office

Shri P.K. Sengupta. \VBHJS(Retd. >Secretary.Justice M ukherjee Com mission of Inquiry 'B ‘ B lock(Third Floor),11 A. M ira Ghalib Street. Cakutta-700087

2. I;- is requested that early action may kindly N taken in the m atter, u n d er intim ation to this ■ i l ’.c .

D i r e c n rei. No.301393

0 ^

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\ v ' 5 7 IX '/2'2dQ0- Vol. 21s’ September. 2000

o.

Shri P .k . Sensrupta. V\ 1311.1 S (Retd.). Secrcrary,Justice M ukherje Com m ission of Inquiry, ' B* Block (3 l ! Floor),11/A Mirza Ghalib Street.Calcutta - "00087,

Sir.

I am directed to refer to your letter No. JMCI Records ND 99-2000 37 230 dated 25.8.2000 4.9.2000 and to state that no order as such regarding destruction of files documents could be located However the relevant page of the File Register showing destruction of the file in 1972 is enclosed There is also a note at p.151 C of File No. 2(64) 56- 70-PM (Voi.V) about the destruction of the lile in question. (photo-copy o f the tile has already been sent to JMCI vide letter of even number dated 4.7.2000). A copy of the page is enclosed for readv reference.

2. As regards destruction of documents while recording the File No. 23i 3 56) 51 -PM a copy of the documents destroyed has been kept in that file (photo-copy of the me has already been ->ent to the Commission ide letter of even number dated -4.7.2000).

75^v V

yS\

[y

Yours faithfully.

(Archana Ran]an) Director

£UsJ12j-

12( f04)/56-PM

V

Subject.

R atification of the Treaty cf Cession of the French Bstablishments of Pondicherry, Karikal, Mahe and Yanam,

c ®Date of recording.

12.4.2957.

12(205)/56-PM National Film Board and Film FinanceCorporation - Establishment of. -do-

12(206)/56-PM Construction of a Hotel in the Ca**^Diplomatic Enclave by Ashoka Hotels Ltd. -do-'

12(209)/56-PMvoi«. i & i i .

12C2lO)/56-PM

12( 21D/56-PM

12(212)/56-PM

12(2l5)/56-PM

12(219)/56-PM

12(223)/56-PM

12(225)/56-PM

Industrial Relations B i l l , 1954. /

National Book Trust - Establishment of an Autonomous. .

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Construction of a Central ConferenceHall in New D elhi. • * <^do-

Lav relating to Copyright-Legislation v u "'

for amending and consolidating the - /*■_ f -do-

Indian Citizenship B i l l . /

Monetary Reward to the workers of Sindhrl F e r tiliz e r Factory.

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Coal Miners - New Housing Scheme for- < / »do-

Indifln Delegation to H.R.H. the Duke *" of Edinburgh’ s Conference on the s o c ia l ( \ responsib ility of Industry. ^ v * d o -

12(226)/56-PM Investigation into the circumstances 'leading to the death of Shri Subhash \ .£>"> '7^- Chander Bose. “ -do-

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12( SS0)/56-PM

Loan of Bs. 1.45 crores granted by the U.P. Govt, to M/S Sahu Jain Ltd. for a Soda Ash and Aasnonium Chloride factory in U.P. - objection raised by the Central Govt. aboutIt* |» ea*i of - -d o .

Continuance of grants in -aid granted .under a r tic le 278 of the C onstitution <, to the Part 'B' f t a tea a fter the *7/ y - -re-organisation of States. -dew

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PRIMK MIMSTKR-S O V I K I. South Block

New Dcihi-1I iiu] ]

Dated Seplen* her

Sitri P.K. Sengupta. YCBHJSfRstd.) Secretary.Justice Niukheijee Com mission o f Inquiry ■3' B lo c k d ’nird Floor).11 A. M irza Ghaiib Street. Calcutta-700087

Subject: Compliance with the orders/directions

No.JMCi Meeting-Proceedings (Foiiow-up 148’. Vol.il i 243? 5)

enclose an ailida^'it. duly verified by the Notar> Public, onb e h a l f o i ’. i b e P r i m e M i n i s t e r ' s Of f ice .

contained in the proceedings dated 31.8.2000 read with the proceeding dated 23.3.2000 and13.6.2000 of Justice M ukherjee Com m ission of Inquiry.

a m d i r e c t e d to r e f e r to v o u r je t t e i

Y o u r f a i i h f u l l v .

V

9 .

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BEFORE THE HONOURABLE JUSTiCE MUKHERJEE COMMISSION OF INQUIRY AT CALCUTTA

0

IN THE MATTER OF COMPLIANCE WITH THE ORDERS/DIRECTIONS OF THE COMMISSION AS PASSED IN THE PROCEEDINGS HELD ON 31.8.2000 AT CALCUTTA.

AFFIDAVIT

I, Pradip Kanti Roy , son of Shri Praphulla Kumar Roy, working as Under Secretary in the Prime Minister's Office, do solemnly affirm and state as under:1) That in so far as documents/ Notes which originated from the PM's Office on the flies already forwarded to the Commission are concerned, these may be treated as declassified to confidential. It is left to the discretion of the Commission to make all/any of these documents, public.2) That so far as the classified letters/references which originated from the other Ministries/Departments, like the National Museum, the Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Urban Development, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Department of Food & Public Distribution, Cabinet Secretariat, intelligence Bureau, and Governments of West Bengal and Orissa, are concerned, since the declassification of those references/letters can only be done, as per the extant instructions,with the concurrence of the concerned Ministries/Departments/State

ernments, reference has already been made to the concerned ■tries/Departments/State Govts, on 14/15th September, 2000, to let Office have their views regarding the declassification of the

ers/references for apprising the Commission about the justification or

A

- Z-

otherwise of declassification of classified records for use by the

Commission. So far,while the Ministry of External Affairs have conveyed

their no objection to their references being declassified to confidential,

the Ministries of Urban Development and Information & Broadcasting

have conveyed that their documents have been declassified. The Ministry

of External Affairs have also conveyed that they leave it to the discretion

of the Commission as to which of these documents may be made public,

if any. With regard to the other documents which are to be produced by

the Ministry of External Affairs before the Commission, that Ministry

would convey their stand to the Commission, directly. This Office has no

objection to the documents which originated from the Ministries of l&B

and Urban Development being declassified and made public. The

remaining Ministries/Departments have been requested to convey their

stand to the declassification of documents pertaining to them, and to

communicate with the Commission, directly.

3) That with regard to file No.12(226)/56-PM! which contained

Agenda Paper/Cabinet decision regarding "Investigation into the

circumstances leading to the death of Shri Subash Chandra Bose", it

may be mentioned that as per the record in this Office, it was destroyed

in 1972 in the course of routine review/weeding out of old records.

Photocopies of two notes relating the destruction of the file are at

Annexure-1 & 1A. respectively. It is further certified that no copy of the

file was retained in this office at the time of its destruction.

4) That certain documents of file No.23(156)/51-PM required by the

Commission were destroyed while recording that file in 1969. The list of

papers destroyed are already available in that file. No copy of the file

^as retained in this office.

^ \ \ That the file (No..2(381 )/60-66-PM) opened in 1960,dealing with a I

proposal to bring Shri Subash Chandra Bose's ashes from Tokyo and

put up a memorial to him in front of the Red Fort in Delhi, is not

traceable. Renewed efforts are being made to trace the same. As soon

as the file is traced, this Office would get in touch with the Commission.

SV

6) That file No.2(64)66-70-PM (Vol-Vi) regarding death of Netaji

Subash Chandra Bose - Appointment of an Enquiry Committee to go into

circumstances of Death, is also not traceable in this Office. Renewed

efforts are being made to locate the file, early. As soon as the file is

traced, this Office would get in touch with the Commission.

7) That with regard to Sr. Nos.5 of File No.G.12(3)/98/NGO and

SI.No.127A of file No.2(64)56-66-PM (Vol.il), it may be stated that

although the letters have been marked as Confidential and Secret,

respectively, these may be treated as declassified since these two letters

had originated from private individual/party, and it is not possible, at this

stage, to get in touch with them to get their concurrence for

declassification of these letters. This office has no objection to the

disclosure of the contents of these two letters also by the Commission.

8) That there are no other files with this Office, other than already sent

to the Commission or mentioned above, relevant to the terms of the

Commission. v / f

I, Pradip Kanti Roy, declare and affirm that what is stated above is

true to my knowledge. No part of this Affidavit is false and nothing

material has been concealed.

DeponentVerification

% Verified at New Delhi on 22nd September,2000.

Deponent

XUa as«-12(f0i)/56-PM

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T""v\Vs.C?-y: i^ u e

5 \ )v3Pete orec5h L * .R ati/ieation of the Treaty of 'Cession of the French Establishments _ of Pondicherry, Karikal, Mabe and / * ' r"Tana*. 12.4.3957.

12( 205)/56-PM Rational 711b Board and 711b Finance Corporation - Establishment of. - d o -

12(206)/56-PH

12(209)/56-PM y d s . "1 * i i .

12( 2lO)/56-PM

12(211)/56-PH

1S( 222)/56-PM

12( £15)/56-PM

12( 219 )/56-PK

12( 223)/56»PM

12(226)/56-PM

12( *28 J/66-PM

Construction of a Hotel In theDiplomatic Enclave by Ashoka Hotels Ltd. -do-

\ { r< J Vo L. I (• h - 7 Industrial Relations B i l l , 2954. / 7 , -dew

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l a t io n a l Book T ru st - E s ta b lish m e n t ' ^ ^ v . 1.72 o f an Autcnaaous. * -- d o -

C onstraetlon o f a C e n tr a l C onference ~c JH all in Hev D e lh i . f f / f do-\JLav r e la t in g to Copyrl f h t - L e c l s l a t i e nfo r amending and c o n s o lid a t in g th e f -d o -

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Monetary Bsvard t o tb s w orkers o f Sindhri F e r t i l i z e r F a c to ry . -do-

Coal Miners - Nev Housing Scbeae f o r - t / . /c, 7r d o -

Indian D e leg a tio n to H.R.H. th e Duke o f Edinburgh* s C onference on the s o c i a l A — V) , 0 r e s p o n s ib i l i t y o f I n d u str y , y/y^fdeL.

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In v e s t ig a t io n in to th e c ir c t * s t a n o e s lea d in f to the d e e th o f S h r i Subhash ^L_Chander B ose . /(r^ - d o -

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Loan of h . 1.45 cvorea gran tod by the U - 11U.P, Oort* to M/8 Sftba Jain Ltd. for ra 7^ a Soda Agh and A stasias Chloride fa cto ry t t /U/~>)in U.P. - objection raieed by the 1 iCentral Oort, aboutM * |W < o f - -d o -

- - £ ..Continuance of grants in -a id rrantodunder a r tic le STS of the C on stitu tion £ Vto the Part ’B* I ta te s a fte r the 'V/ss>/ ' ro»orf«iisatlan of S ta tes.

asADirectorate Oenerel o f end

wps--*V

Tele:6102067

N0.2191/NIC H/99

'S^ M' f f f * Q€c ' t 0

~~~ L Sep 2000

MINISTRY OF DEFENCE (Histoiy Division)

S U B : DECLASSIFICATION OK RECORDS

Reference is invited to the PMO U.O. No. G 16(4) 2000-NGG dated21.09.2000.

2. It is stated tliat the DGMI. originator o f the letter has intimated that the document No. DMI/51l8/l35/GS/(e) dated 07.10.1943 could be treated as unclassified. You are requested to intimate the Commission accordingly.

(G.B. Singh) Director

Ms. Archna Ranjan Director PM’s Office Soutli Block,New Delhi-110011

-------------------- ------------------------------------------------- 7 3 7 * 1 /

- h>* W5s OQce Dy. cj \<§e^ (j>Ds-iC- * c A a• o.,# e #4 o o o GioZl

......

MOST IMMEDIATE

® BY FAX/SPEED POST

No.G.16(4)/2QOO-NGO PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE

& SOUTH BLOCKi _ n e w DELHI-110011.

M rDated:27.9.2000.

T oShri P.K, Sengupta,WBHJS(Retd.),Secretary,Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry,B' Block,(Third Floor),

11/A,Mirza Ghalib Street,CALCUTTA-700 087.

Subject:- Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry appointed to enquire into alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose - Declassification of record.

Sir, , , , > ycyiI am directed to refer to this office letter of even number dated

, 25.9.2000, on the abpve subject, and to enclose a copy of letter C? 1 No.2191/NIC/H/99 dated 26.9,2000, addressed by Shri G.B, Singh,

' 7 Director, Ministry of Defence(History Division), to Ms ArchnaRanjan, Director in this Office, regardipg declassification of DGMI document No.DMI/5118/135/GS/(e)r dated 07.10.1943, for your

Y u information/ record. The above document may please be treated as declassified and there is no objection to make it public, at the discretion of the Commission.

Yours faithfully,

& (R.P.SINGH)

" DIRECTOR.

SECRET/AT ONCE

CABINET SECRETARIAT RASHTRAPATI BHAVAN

Subject:- Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry - Declassification of records. .*v>

Reference is invited to21.9.2000, on the above subject.

PMO UO No. G. 16(4)/200Q-NGO dated

2. The documents of Cabinet Secretariat forwarded to the Commission by the PMO are:-

Cabinet Meeting Notice No. 6/CM/95(iii) dated 6.2.199/5.Background note No. l/12014/27/93-IS.(D.III) dated 2.2.1994 received from MHA.Record note of discussion of the meeting held on 20.7.1994 regarding ‘Controversy about Netaji’s death and allegations that he was an MI-6 ** agent’.Background note on ‘Controversy about Netaji’s death and allegations that he was an MI-6 agent’ received from MHA vide OM No.1/12014/27/93-IS(D.III) dated 17.5.1994.Cabinet Secretariat UO No. 13/CM/70 dated 24.2.1970 forwarding Cabinet note on ‘Fresh inquiry into disappearance of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in 1945 - Demand for’, received from MHA.

3. It is requested that MHA may take appropriate action regarding declassification, downgrading of security classification or otherwise of documents mentioned at (ji| & (iv) above. MHA may also take a similar decision in respect of backgrouncfnote sent by them in regard to (iii) and the Cabinet note in regard to (v) above. The grading of letters at (i), (iii) & (v) above will be identical to the background notes.

4. Urgent necessary action may please be taken to inform the Commission as per PMO’s request.

(J.P. Prakash) Director.

MHA. [Shri A.K. Paitandv. Director],Cabinet Secretariat ID Note No. 281/12/1/2000-TS dated 26.9.2000.

Copy to Ms. Archana Ranjan, Director, PMO.

J f-

i j>. a

(J.P. Prakash) Director.

>"SV

TRANSM2SSI0!! VERIFICATION REF’OF

t i m e:NAMEFAXTEL

0 3 /2 0 0 0 IS : 30

DATE,TIME FAX M U ./NAME DURATIONPAGE \ S')RESULTCHECH READa EILI’ MODE

3F TRANSMITTED PAGE'S.'

2 o / u 1 i 11 i .: 2 c0332 .. 62 ?65 0 8 : 6 :.: 5 cj 02 Or01STAN-

_

MOST IMMEDIATE

BY FAX/SPEED POST

No.G.16(4)/2000-NGO PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE


Dated: 27.9.2000.To

Shri P.K. Sengupta,WBHJS(Retd.),Secretary,Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry,'B' Block,(Third Floor),11/A,Mirza Ghalib Street,CALCUTTA-700 087.

Subject:- Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry appointed to enquire into alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose - Declassification of record.

Sir,

I am directed to refer to this office letter of even number dated 25.9.2000, on the above subject, and to enclose a copy of letter No.2191/NIC/H/99 dated 26.9.2000, addressed by Shri G.B. Singh, Director, Ministry of Defence(History Division), to Ms Archna Ranjan, Director in this Office, regarding declassification of DGMI document No.DMI/5118/135/GS/(e) dated 07.10.1943, for your information/ record. The above document may please be treated as declassified and there is no objection to make it public, at the discretion of the Commission.

Yours faithfully,

(R.P.SINGH) DIRECTOR.

Tele:6102067

NO .2191/NIC H. 99 ------- ^ S e p 2000

MINISTRY OF DEFENCE (History Division)

S I B : DECLASSIFICATION OE> RDS

Reference is invited to the PMO U.O. No. G 16(4) 2OOO-NGO dated21.09.2000.

2. It is stated that the DGMI. originator o f the letter has intimated that the document No. DMF5118T35/GS/(e) dated 07.10.1943 could be treated as unclassified. You are requested to intimate rhe Commission accordingly.

Ms. Archna Ranjan Director PM’s Office South Block- New Delhi-110011

(G.B. Singh)Director

r-s

V

DATE,TIME FAX MU. ''NAME DURATION F'AdE 1 b ;RESULTCHECK READABILI' MODE

TRi4 , •• -:SI0N VERIFICATION REF-'OFT

OF TRANSMITTED PAGEX

TIMENAMEFAXTEL

28/ 0‘ it 15:14 0?:!2: 62765 03:02:20 M2 OK 01,02 STANDARD

28/ 09/2006 X

f . '

Dr. R.D. ChoudhuryDirector General

S i r ,

K in d ly r e f e r t o t h i s o f f i c e d . o . l e t t e r No. DGNM-2/2000, d a te d Septem ber 1 8 , 2 0 0 0 r e g a r d i n g d e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n o f r e c o r d s in c o n n e c t i o n w ith t h e i n q u i r y i n t o th e a l l e g e d d i s a p p e a r a n c e of N e t a j i Subhash Chandra Bose which i s b e in g i n q u i r e d i n t o by J u s t i c e Mukherjee Commission. Y e s t e r d a y I have t a l k e d t o Mr. S. S a t h y a m o o r t h y , J o i n t S e c r e t a r y , Department o f C u l t u r e and a s p e r h i s a d v i c e I c o n t a c t e d S h r i R .B . S in g h , D i r e c t o r , PMO. He s a i d t h a t th e c o n c e r n e d M i n i s t r y o r Department w i l l have t o t a k e d e c i s i o n in t h e m a t t e r o f d i s c l a s s i f i c a t i o n o f t h e r e c o r d s . S i n c e th e c a s e i s long pending and we have not seen what i s t h e r e in s e a l e d t r u n k , I t h i n k i t w i l l be n e c e s s a r y t o open t h e s e a l e d t r u n k in y o u r p r e s e n c e o r y our r e p r e s e n t a t i v e in t h e N a t i o n a l Museum so t h a t t h i n g s can become c l e a r . Mr. Singh has a l s o r e q u e s t e d me t o b r i n g t h e m a t t e r o f y o u r n o t i c e and i f n e c e s s a r y open i t and g i v e n e c e s s a r y i n f o r m a t i o n t o t h e C o m m iss io n e r . Mr. S a th y a m o o rth y i s w a i t i n g f o r y o ur d i r e c t i o n .

With r e g a r d s ,

TOP SECRET

NATIONAL M U S EU M

D.0 . NO.F.DGNM-2/2000

Sep tem ber 2 8 , 2 0 0 0


(R .D . Choudhury)

Dr. R .V .V . Ayyar S e c r e t a r yD epartment o f C u l t u r e New Delhi

"Copy t o S h r i R . B . S i n g h , D i r e c t o r , P r i m e M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e ,

S o u t h B l o c k , N e w D e l h i .

(R .D ? ^ C h o u d h u r y )

.......l l 'lo wWii$/Dat0‘ • *• ••• *

/7-sferft-noon/wr :

Janpath. New Del hi - 1 1 0 0 1 1 : Gram : N

: fHJsrrTCT; TTHltr : 0 9 1 - 1 1- 30I8159, 3018046 ; : 091- 11-3019821 v > 1 .

Gram : M U S E U M : Tel : 0 9 1 - 1 1 - 3 0 1 8 1 5 9 . 3 0 1 8 0 4 6 ; Fax : 0 9 1 - 1 1 - 3 0 1 9 8 2 1

Tele:6102067S ' ^ - n ( A )

ftt'CO 'MINISTRY OF DEFENCE History Division West Block 8, Wing 1 R.K.Puram.New Delhi - 110066

N0.2191/N1C/H/99 Sep 2000

Ms, Archna Ranjan Director PM’s Office South Block,New Delhi-110011

1 SITSUB ; DECLASSIFICATION OF RECORDS

Reference your note K0. PMO U.O. No. G 16(4) 200G-NGO dated 14/15.09.2000 and21.09.2t

2 You are requested to confirm that your notes mentioned in Para 1 above can be downgraded to unclassified for our records and necessary action.

(G.B. Singh) Director

IV"-/ v- ft*I*jDat0.......^

2

Secret Immediate

N o.I-12014/13/2000-IS(D.III)Government of India

Ministry of Home Affairs IS-I Division

Dated, the 28th September, 2000.

.Justice Mukherjee Com m ission of Inquiry set up by the Government in connection with the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhas Chandra bose has conveyed some directions to various Ministries/Departments/Authorities for production of classified files/documents before the Commission. In this connection, this Ministry has received certain references from various quarters like PMO, M EA, Cabinet Secretariat and others. Taking into consideration, the reflected view points of these quarters and the perception of MHA also in the matter, we have since mentioned to the Commission that all aspects pertaining to the subject matter are under our examination and we will let the Commission know about the final position shortly. In fact, we have sought time from the Commission till 15th of November, 2000 while mentioning at the same time that most likely we will respond to the Commission even earlier.

2. Having regard to this background, it has been decided that all of us ^ should join hands to sort out matters in proper perspective on the basis of

our cumulative wisdom. Accordingly, there will be a meeting in the Qo Chamber of Joint Secretary(IS-I) in room No.192,1st floor, North Block,

v>yc New Delhi on 4,10.2000 at 11 a.m. which should be attended by all ^ ^ concerned. Your presence in the meeting is requested. Kindly come up with

adequate brief in respect of matters at your end.

\ 1 . >t t »(A ^ - Paitandy)

Director(IS-I)1 Shri Jayant Prasad, Joint Secretary(CNV), M EA, New Delhi.

Ms. Archana Ranjan, Director, PMO, New Delhi.3. Shri Ravi Mittal, Director, Cabinet Secretariat, Rashtrapati Bhawan,

New Delhi.Shri P.P. Nautiyal, Addl. Deputy Director, IB, New Delhi.

Copy to JS(IS-I) for her kind information.vA\

(iT=r « f V ^ . )/ P M O ( N G Q )

ft*T$/Date...........

T O P S E C R E T M O S T IM M E D IA TE

V\s

NO.G.16(4)/2000-NGO PRIME M INISTER'S O FFIC E

To

S O U TH B L O C K N EW DELHI-110011. Dated: 16.10.2000.

The Chief Secretary,Government of West Bengal,Calcutta.

(Attention:Shri A.Bhattacharyya,Special Secretary, Home(political)Department).

Subject:-Declassification of records.

Sir,

% I am directed to refer to this Office letters of evennumber dated 14.9.2000 and^21.9.2000, on the above subject, and to request that the decision of the Governm ent of W est Bengal about declassification of the To p Secret letter written by Shri P .C .Sen , the then CM of West Bengal to the then PM, a co p y of w hich had been enclosed with this Office letter dated 14.9.2000, m a y please be conveyed to Justice Mukherjee C om m ission, direct, under intimation to this Office, very early.

Y o u rs faithfully,

£, \ / C ^R .P .S ingh)

DirectorK l Tel.No.301-2815.

r^ C o py to: The Principal Secretary to Chief M inister, W est

Bengal,Calcutta.

wr* 7'“ hl

SECRET

Government of West Bengal Home Department

Political

N o c 7206/SS(P)/2000 Dated Calcutta, the 19th Oct«2000.

From: A. Bhattacharyya,Special Secretary to the Govt, of West Bengal.

T o : S m t . Archana Ranjan, Director,Prime Minister's Office, Govt, of India,N e w Delhi.

I am directed to refer to your letter No.G-16(4)/2000-NG0

dated 14th S e p tember,2000 and to inform you that this State Govt,

have no obj e c t ion to declassification of the correspondences made

by the t h e n Chief Minister of West Bengal with the then Prime -

Minister of India copies of which were enclosed with your letter

under reference.

Sub : Declassification of records

~7~

Madam,

Yours faithfully

(A .B h a t x a c n a r y y a j

Special Secretary to the Govt, of West Bengal.

w.ft (NG O t

! i

£ . Kh v ? ( t )

Government of West Bengal Home Department

Political

N o . 4 1 9 / 3 S ( P ) / 2 0 0 0 . Dated Calcutta, the 30th O c t o b e r ,2000,

From: A. Bhattacharyya,Special Secretary to the Govt, of West Bengal

To : Shri R.P. Singh,Director,Prime Minister's Office, Govt, of India, South Block, New Delhi-110 011 .

tv

■=>ub : Declassification of records

Sir, f i v f j '

I am directed to refer to your letter No.G.1 6 (4 )/2000- NGO dated 16-10-2000 addressed to the Chief Secretary, Govt, of West Bengal and to say that the views of the State Govt, as asked for have already been comm unicat ecUto S m t . Archana Ranjan, Director, P.M.O. vide this office secreiDletter No.7206/SS(P)/

October, 2000. I am further directed to inform State Govt, has received no communication from

Inquiry for conveying t h e views matter necessary action in this your end.

2000 dated 1 9th you that as the Justice Mukherjee Commission of of the State Govt, in the above regard may kindly be taken from

Yours faithfully,

W

* 1-3 #/ Dy . N o J . 5 3 j . S j

frfto/Dat

<L%<1 J W (

—

( A. Bhattacharyya )Special Secretary to the Govt, of West Bengal.

w * ( f )

A

Secret Most Immediate

Ministry of Home Affairs IS-I Division

****

Subject: Declassification of records on INA/Netaii Subhas ChandraBose- „ ^

PMO may please refer to their UO note N o.l6(4)/2000-N G O dated 14/15.9.2000 on the above subject. This Ministry has since considered the matter and has no objection to the under mentioned documents (photocopies attached) being declassified and produced before the Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry :-

M HA’s UO Note N o.V I/11034/114/97-IS(D.III) dated 10.9.98.M HA’s UO N o.VI.l 1034/114/97-IS(D.III) dated 24-25.8 .98. /M HA’s DO letter N o.5293/JS(A )/93 dated 27.9.1993(along with its enclosures).M HA’s DO letter No. 1/27/91-Public dated 5.10.1993. - c M HA’s UO N o.I/12014/6/80-IS(D.III) dated 27.10.1980.M HA’s UO No.65/80-PM S/D.III/IS dated 29.8.1980.M HA’s DO N o.V I/11034/18/98-D.III dated l63A999.n^t5ll,L U M - M va1- I M HA’s DO N o.V I/11034/18/98-D.III dated 12.3.1999. J '' 1 Writ Petition No.281 of 1998 dated 16.6.1998. JM HA’s Note N o.S-122/87-FCRA -I dated 28. 4. 1988. — , _ M HA’s DO No.F.25/48/70-Poll-II dated 18.11.1970. ^ c\ )lM HA’s U O N o.D y.S-122/87-FCRA -I dated 27-30.11.1987. ,M HA’s DO N o.21/52/78-T dated 21.11.1978. ^ > /M HA’s DO N o.24/6/71.Poll-I dated 10.11.1971.- U j * /^ '7 o -? v vef.v.

1 5 .^ M HA’s Note for the (Cabinet No.32/132/69-Poll.I(A) dated 1 .9 .1 9 6 9 .--

attacheMinistry feels that the documents indicated below (copies y continue to be treated as classified:-

’s DO No.I/12014/27/93-IS-D.III dated nil ' - ^ yM HA’s UO N o.I/12014/27/93-IS(D.III) dated 9 .8 .1 9 9 4 ^ - ^M HA’s UO N o.I/12014/27/93-IS.D.III dated 20.4.1994. - ^ / 1M P / 'c / - M HA’s UO N o.25022/109/79.F.V II dated 6.2.1980(with enclosures). Cab.Sectt. ID Note N o.281/12/l/2000-T S dated 18.9.2000

rf

i«<ir\ A

2 -

This has the approval of Home Secretary.

The action taken by PMO with reference to the compliance of the directions of the Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry may please be intimated to this Ministry.

(V.P. BHATIA) Under Secretary to the Government of India.

Tele. No.301 5700

PMO (Smt. Archana Ranjan. Director) South Block. New Delhi MHA ID Note No.I. 12014/13/2000-IS(D.III) D ated,3rd Nov., 2000.

Secret

SECRETPRIORITY

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS

r . g « # * * 1 ' V/I y\‘ \ ■ •-

.\ V?)\ PMO may k i n d l y r e f e r to t h e i r l e t t . e r Nq . G . 1 2

( 3 ) / 9 8 -NGO, d a t e d 1 6 t h / A p r i l , 1 9 9 8 and l '6 t l / j u l y , 1998 on the s u b j e c t o f a news i te m from th e ' H i n d u s t a n Tim es ' r e p o r t i n g t h a t the C a l c u t t a High C o u r t h a s r u l e d t h a t a s h e s s h o u l d not be brought back u n t i l N e t a j i ' s d e a t h has been c o n c l u s i v e l y p r o v e d . D e p t t . o f L e g a l A f f a i r s , C a l c u t t a h a s f o rw ard ed a c e r t i f i e d copy o f the o r d e r d a t e d 7 . 4 . 1 9 9 8 ( c o p y e n c l o s e d ) w h e r e i n i t h a s been s t a t e d t h a t ' t h e Government o f I n d i a s h a l l o b t a i n f u l l p a r t i c u l a r s and e v i d e n c e and s a t i s f y i t s e l f abou t the

| g e n u i n e n e s s o f the c l a i m t h a t the a s h e s k e p t a t the R e n k o j i Tetnple o f Ja p a n a r e t h a t o f N e t a j i Subhas Chandra B o s e and t a k e the p e o p le o f I n d ia in c o n f i d e n c e ,

....... A.J?(A.fev* P a i t a n d y )

Di r e c t o r ( I S . 1)

S h r i P . P . S h u k l a , J o i n t S e c r e t a r y to PM, PM's O f f i c e MHA U . O . N o . V I / 1 1 0 3 4 / 1 1 4 / 9 7 - I S ( D . I l l ) D a te d , the 1 0 . 9 . 9 8

\ l i I*

/ jjt yCS)/ f&/

/

y , 6-f L cr e

/

n t 1A

Government o f I n d i a p M i n i s t r y o f Home A f f a i r s

PMO may k in d l y r e f e r to t h e i r l e t t e r No . G . 1 2 ( 3 ) / 9 8 -NGQ d a t e d 1 6 t h J u l y . 1 9 9 fl__on t h e s u b j e c t o t a news i t e mfrom'TTTo rHindustan Tim es ' r e p o r t i n g t h a t t h e C a l c u t t a High Court has r u l e d that a s h e s s h o u l d n o t bo b r o u g h t back u n t i l N e t a j i ' s d e a t h has been c o n c l u s i v e l y p r o v e d . F o r n e c e s s a r y f o l l o w up we have been p u r s u i n g t h i s m a t t e r w i t h o u r

—CeiLtcal-------- Govcrnmen t------- Advo c a t e ---------i n --------Ca 1 cu 11 a------- ( S m t .S. Bha t t a c h a r y a ) . We h a v e r e q u e s t e d h e r f o r a c o p y o f t h e judgement in Wri t P e t i t i o n No. 1 8 0 5 / 9 7 i n c a s e Aslm Kumar Ganguly Vs . Union o f I n d i a . T h e r e h a s been no r e s p o n s e from the C e n t r a l Government A d v o c a t e so f a r . We h a v e e v e n w r i t t e n to R e g i s t r a r , C a l c u t t a H ig h C o u r t r e q u e s t i n g him f o r a copy o f the jud g e m en t . The l a s t c o m m u n i c a t i o n to o u r C e n t r a l Government A d v o c a t e h a s bee n s e n t t h r o u g h IB b a g . We have w r i t t e n to h e r a g a i n . As s o o n a s a c o p y o f t h e

11 judgement i s r e c e i v e d , we w i l l be a b l e to r e p o r t t h e K f a c t u a l p o s i t i o n in d e t a i l to PMO.

L ' 'yr-'-* t ~\ 2-'l - 3 . 1 v.

( A\. K. Fa i t a n d y ) Di r e c to r ( I S . I )

i

-till. I’-J-'-^Sliuk-la-,__J o i n t S o c r o t a r y to FM, FM 's Q f f l c o . N . D o l h lMHA U. O.NO .VI .1103 4 / 1 1 4 / 9 7 - l S ( Q . I I I ) D at ed 2 4 . 8 . 9 0

, ./ V * V

WVl

I c. p' -r . - j '

7

M. V E N K A T E S W A H A I Y E H

ji;n-i JOINT SECRETARY

F’lionn: 303 57flfi

P.O .N o. 5 2 9 3 / J S ( A ) / 9 3

L>ear S h r i V i j a y K u m a r ,

MUST 1MMEU1ATE/UY SPECIALCOURT CASE \■ ^nwiRTrr \

G O V E R N M E N T OF I N D I A

*]J. IT^rrTrr M I N I S T R Y OF H O M E A F F A I R S

NO RT H BLOCK. N E W D E L H I - 1 10001 Septem ber 27 , 1993 .

I enclose a copy of the judgement dated 4 M a r c h , 19 8 7 , d e l i v e r e d "by Hon'ble Ju s t i ce Mr. S.N. Bh arg ava of the High Court of J u d i c a t u r e , Rajasth an. As you will s p r , t h is judgement r e l a t e s to the inquiry into the c ir c u m s ta n ce s in which Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose d i e d . The f i r s t inquiry in this matter was o r d e r e d by the Ministry of External A ff a i r s who se t up the Netaji Inquiry Committee under the chairm anship of^Shah Nawaz Khan.

2. The a f o r e s a id judgement has been r e l i e d upon in a writ pet i t ion filed in the Calcutta High Court by one Shri Bijan Ghosh and c e r t a i n o t h e r s who have joined him as added-" resp on d en ts .

3 . According to the judgement of the High Court of R ajas th an , the Ministry of E x t e r n a l A ffa irs were required to look into the m atter once again and examine all the a v a i l a b l e evidence including all the p a p e r s and o ther materia ls which the p e t i t io n e r had claimed that he had at h is d i s p o s a l . The concluding part of the judgement may please be seen in th is r e g a r d .

4 . As we h a v e to g ive p a r a - w i s e comments in r e s p e c t of the writ petition pending in the High Court at Calcutta , we a r e i n te r e s te d in knowing immediately what ac tion was taken by the Ministry of E x te r n a l A ffa i rs in pursuance of the judgement of the High Courtj of Rajasth an.

5. We shall he grateful if you will c o n s id er the m atter and send us areply imm ediately . If you a r e not dealing with t h i s m a t te r , k indly pass it on to the concerned Joint S e c r e t a r y with the req u est to send me a r e p l y urgently. Also, k indly let me know who is the o f f ic e r concerned so that Ican be in t ouch with him.

With r e g a r d s ,Yours s i n c e r e l y

(M. Venkateswora I y e r )

Shri Vijay Kumar,Joint S e c r e ta r y ( Coord ), Ministry of E x ternal Affairs New iv.ihi.

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1 e n c l o E e a c o p y o f nriy D . O . l e t t e r N o . 5 2 9 3 / J S ( A ) / 9 3 d a t e d S e p t e m b e r 2 7 , 1 9 9 3 . a d d r e s s e d t o S h r i V i j a y K u m a r , r e g a r d i n g t h e j u d g e m e n t d a t e d 4 t h M a r c h , 1 9 8 7 , d e l i v e r e d b y H o n ’ b l e S h r i J u s t i c e S . N . B h a r g a v a o f t h e H i g h C o u r t o f J u d i c a t u r e , R a j a s t h a n , r e l a t i n g t o t h e i n q u i r y i n t o t h e c i r c u m s t a n c e s i n w h i c h N e t a j i S u b h a s C h a n d r a B o s e d i e d .

7. S h r i V i j a y K u m a r t o l d me t h a t h e h a s p a s s e d o n myl e t t e r t o y o u a s y o u a r e c o n c e r n e d w i t h t h e s u b j e c t .

3 . May I r e q u e s t y o u k i n d l y t e r e x p e d i t e y o u r r e p l y ? Wea r e d e a l i n g w i t h a w r i t p e t i t i o n i n t h e C a l c u t t a H i g h C o u r t i n w h i c h t h e a f o r e s a i d J u d g e m e n t h a s b e e n r e l i e d u p o n a n d we h a v e t o t e l l t h e C o u r t w h a t a c t i o n h a s b e e n t a k e n i n p u r s u a n c e o f t h e J u d g e m e n t . A n y d e l a y w i l l e m b a r r a s s u s a n d w i 1 J. r e s u l t i n C o n t e m p t o f C o u r t p r o c e e d i n g s .

Wi t h r e g a r d s .

Y o u r s s i n c e r e l y .

S h r i D i l i p I al i i r. i ,J o i n t : Seer e t a r y ( AP ) .M i n i s t r y o f [ i n t e r n a l A f f a i r s ,f i . M o | h i - ! 1 m o m ; .

I YEN)

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Mil;13TRY OF HOME AFFAIRS( i.s.d i v i s i o n / d e s k i i i ;

Subject: Arrangonents to bring ashes of Ketajl Subhas Chandra Bo.se to India.

T^O Prime Minister's Office may kindly refer to their U.O.NO.F.2(64;/80-PM, dated 22*10.1980 on the subject noted above.

2. The matter Is still under consideration, Afurther communication vill follow as soon as a decision is reached.

( 'S. RANlkSWAKI I;1 DESK OFFICER Tel: 372050

■ - A y ; , .PMjs. A f f l c e l g h J Ll N. S , f f i e g yaman , Dy. S e c r e t a t y JMHA* s U. O. NO. I T / I S O 1 4 / 6 / 8 0 - 1 S ( D . I l l d a t e d 2 | . 1 0 . 1 9 8 0

SECRET

t1\

r

/SECRET/

JiXNl s T i ^ , ujL .a m A g f.A I.R g I .S . D iv isio n s .Ill

*******

Subject: Arrangements to bring ashes of Netaji Sub has Chandra Bose to Jndia.

------------

The Prime Minister's Office may kindly re fe r

to their U.O* No* F.2(64;/80-PM dated the 25th August 1980

on the subject noted above.

2o The matter is under consideration* A further

communication will follow as soon as a decision i s reached.

r^ l Q^,------------------------ --------------------------( Dwarka Hath ___

Desk Officer 1*1:372050.

yO» PM's Office(Shri N.S, Sreeraman, Dy* Secretary)\ v - --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

v ° M.H.A. UO 210. 6 5 /80 -rMS/D.III/IS; dated the 2 p t h August'80v / ' f - ____________________________

. T ' VC\ • • .........- - -----------■!' \ r/tj 11

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S K C K E T / M O S T IM M E D IA T E O U T T O D A Y

J r

^ c T ?rf R JOINT SECRETARY

S A N G I T A G A I R O L A J O I N T S E C R E T A R Y ( I S - I ) Tel: 301 5736

I D.O. No. V I / 11034/18/98- D.III

0.

T O 9TVR G O V E R N M E N T OF

^ VTTvrq" MI NI STRY O F HOME AFFAIF

/ 9 b)

March 16, 1999

j] ; I O

vi/V-\Kindly refer to my D.O. letter o f even number dated March 12,

1999 requesting you to kindly attend a meeting on 24'" of March, 1999 at 12 P.M. in the Chamber o f Union Home Minister in North Block, Ministry o f Home Affairs, New Delhi

2. Due to unavoidable reasons this meeting has been postponed and will now be held oil 2 5 th of March at 12 P .M . The venue will rcr.iiin the same. The inconvenience caused to vou <s deeply regretted.

-r~r>

. 4 ' )

Yours sincerely,

WA>( S a n g h a G airola)

>hri B rajcsh Mis l ira,Principal Secretary to PM,

^ V; Prime Minister’s Office,r Ti !„„l,

New Delhi.''T'

I! •!>..- b/\ L. , ' i . I to P .M

DY :■ ? /CJfico of J . S. (J)/ / i

/ J j f A z UV.

I'ou.

u? I■iw

S E C R E T /M O S T I M M E D I A T E O U T TO D AY

SANG IT A GAIROLA JO IN T SEC'RETARY(IS-I) Tel: 301 5736

'T-fRT ?Tf^JOINT SECRETARY

D.O. No. V I/11034/18/98-D.III

G O V E R N M E N T OF I NDI A ' V'J'/i

MI NI STRY OF H O M E AFFAI RS

q . t

March 12, 1999

?L-/

Dear ,

As you may be aware, the Calcutta High Court in its judgement dated 30'" April, 1998 on a Writ Petition No.281 o f 1998 filed by one Shri Rudra Jyoti Bhattacharjee and Another Vs. Union o f India & Others in the form of a public interest litigation has directed that the Central Government shall launch a vigorous enquiry into the disappearance of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. A copy o f the judgement is enclosed.

The Government proposes to examine all aspects relating to the nature and mechanism of the new enquiry. Towards this end the Union Home Minister has convened a meeting on 2 4 th o f M a r c h , 1999 at 12.00 P.M. in his C h a m b e r in North Block, M in is t r y o f Home Affairs, New Delhi, to elicit the considered views o f eminent opinion makers like you.

I shall, therefore, be grateful, if you kindly make it convenientto attend the meeting. ----------- :---------

D

V- \0r' V* I

' tcv «o VM- / ;

< J2 r-± J?/ / ,

Shri Brajesh M ishra ,, j . Principal Secretary to PM, — - Prime Minister’s Office,

Yours sincerely,

(Sangita G a ir o l a )

C ' |,7'i South Block,

Cfiico of .7, B.c (Jflew Delhi.

, /^/vuc^cR^'yo.

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p r a l . b a Uhank c r t11 s h r a , c , J . i

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p e t i t i o n y e t , a f t e r o u r s e v e r a l a t t e n p t s a n d a f t e r h e a r i n g t h e

p e t i t i o n e r i n p e r s o n a n d t h e l e a r n e d A d v o c a t e r e p r e s e n t i n g t i l e

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Prece ding t o the p e t i t i o n e r requires d i r e c t i o n i n t e r a l i a , t o tliei > • ■ • ' • . .

r e s p o n d e n t s h e r e i n ( 1) t o c l a s s i f y and d i s c l o s e a l l documents r e l a t i n gi • * *• i ' ' : : \

to n e t a j i ouUias ch^ndra DOse including t h e xndian N a t i o n a l lUNiiy/.1 ' ’ .!

( ;>.) to n.iko a c a t e g o r i c a l o t a tenant whether name of N e t a j i was and

3 l i l l l ; i i i i t h e l i s t o f w a r c r i m i n a l s d r a w n u p a f t e r t h e t>e c o n d w o r l d• • ••

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a n y ayoncy o r p u b l i s h e r or any person to p u b l i s h t h e s t o r y of t h e death■ i: .

of ti a t«i J i jubhas cha ndra nose in the a l l e g e d p l a n e c r a s h on 1 0 . 0 . 1945 ;• . ’ i •. ! • 1 * * * *

( 4 ) to d i a c l o j o the s tand of the Government Of indi^ r e g a r d i n g N e t a j i; . i ; !

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ol. i ' 11 • i wi l l welcane 1»-Lm or hand over hijn t o t h e a l l i o d f o r c e s f o r

u I as war criminal and make a press ccnuiuniqoo t o t h a t e f f e c t "i :• )

<n to pirodica and or t ransmit a l l tho r e c o r d s , f i l e s and documents• • i. . • 1 • ' \ ; *. J •• * _ -.1,

* '■ nti.oned In Annexure 'F ' t o the p e t i t i o n abou t d i s a p p e a r a n c e ofa ' i u i •• :.••• i ! ' i . t ,

N't ' j i f;iblias diandra ij.tsc s in ce August l 8 » 1945 and s u bsequent t h e r e t o .. l i t

p e t i t i o n e r lias s taged and in doing so he has o n l y echoed*

an \ i .ioined a multi tu de of Indians t h a t : £ o r h i s g a l l a n t deeds f o r

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i ‘oranee on and f ran August 1945 i s s t i l l wreaking and '

>. ' '.•'Ci Uie iiiJnds I the c i t i z e n s of India and t h a t the s t o r y

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3 .

u n u B r i t i s h i n t o l l l y o n c o o f f i c e r a l l e g e d l y i n f o r m e d o n o

Anir . lk y i n g h o 1 1 1 , w h o w<^3 a w a i t i n g e x e c u t i o n o f d e a t h s e n t e n c e ,

o n 19 tli , > u y u s t , 1 9 4 b t h a t M e t a j i . d i e d i n a n a i r c r a s h on 1 8 t h

a u g u s t , 1 9 4 5 . G i l l p u b l i s h e d t h e s a i d i n f o r m a t i o n i n a m a g a z i n e

o f N e t a j i c e n t r e p u b l i c a t i o n a t K u a l a l a m p u r . i h e s a m e y a s r e

p r i n t e d i n j a y c h r e o , a B e n g a l i M a g a z i n e , . i n i t s Azaid. H i n d c o l d a n

j u b i l e e m u n b o r An O c t o b e r , 1 9 9 3 . . D e l h i R a d i o , o n 2 . 1 s t A u g u s t ,

1945 m a d e t h e a n n o u n c e m e n t t h a t . N e t a j i d i e d i n a n a i r c r a s h on

1 0 t h <\ugu s t , 19 4 5 ( R e f . , "A S p r i n g i n g T i g e r '1 b y IIUq T o y , a

M i l i t a r y i n t e l l i g e n c e O f f i c e r o f B r i t i s h A r m y ) . Q u i t o . u f e w

p u b l i c a t i o n s a n d i n f o r m a t i o n to t h e a b o v e e f f e c t f o l l o w e d a n d

w h e n tli e c o n t r o v e r s y t h i c k e n e d a n d m y s t e r y , d e e p e n d , t h e G o v e r n

m e n t o£ I n d i a c o n s t i t u t e d N e t a j i E n q u i r y - c c m m i t t e e i n t h e y e a r * ’

1 9 5 6 w 1 Iii S r i S h a h n w a z ‘K h a n a s t h e p r e s i d e n t a n d s ^ i S u r e s h

Chandra Dose a n d S r i s .N . M o l t r a M e m b e r s .• ri h i 0 w a s f o l l o w e d

b y a p p o i n t m e n t c £ a c a n m i s s i o n o f i n q u i r y i n , t h e y e a r 1 9 7 0 .

Netaj l Enquiry com m it tee a 3 well a s the commission of ^irqulry■\

s u b m i t t e d t h e i r r e p o r t s . . On 28th A ugust , 19 7 8 , howev e r , . th e

th,_.n p r j j n e M i n i s t e r o f m d i a made.a s t a t e m e n t a t the fLoor a£\ •

t h e L o k rf^-bha t h a t , " S h a h w a w a z c c m m i t t o e and . K h o s l a ( c o i m i s s i c n

l i c i t ! t h e r e p o r t o f N e t a j i o u b h a g C h a n d r a Q O s e ' s d e a t h f o l l o w i n g

a p l a n e c r a s h a s t r u e . S i n c e th cn r e a s o n a b l e ttoubts hav t been

c a s t on t h e c o r r e c t n e s s of the two r e p o r t s and v a r i o u s juportant

co n t r a .di r t l ox s—in—Ui-e--test iincny af t h e w i t n e s s e s have been

no;, i c e d , s a n e f u r t h e r contem porary o f f i c i a l r e c o r d s h ave a l g o

b ' . cau c a v a i l a b l e , m t h e l i g h t of t h o s e doubts and c o n t r a l i c -r < > .

t i o n s and t h o s e r e c o r d s , Government f i n d i t d i f f i c u l t t o Jccept-

t n a t the e a r l i e r c o n c l u s i o n s a r e d e c i s i v e . " A cc o r d in g t o Ihe

p o t J t t e n <?r, t h e a b ov e s t a t csnen t o f t h o t h e n p r i m e M i n i s t e r o f

i 1 •'5 •1 v i r t u a l a n d s b fu 1 t a n e c u a . b u r l a 1 o f t h o N e t a j j E n q u i r y

C t t . m l t t . j i ! a n d EIK1U I r y c « n m i S 3 i o n r e p o r t s . H o w e v e r , o n n n

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(«;>t. 1 1 «-ri: . i i t o n U i e L o k s <>bl ia i n r e p l y t o a . q u e s t i o n t h a t w a s r a i s e d

o n U' • r e q u e s t b y g e n e r a l p u j i * a r a o f j a p a n f o r b r i n g i n g t h e

a l l y c d a s h e s o f l i e t a j i f r an f t e n k o j 1 . T e m p l e t o . I n d i a , "111 t h e

J I , )h t o f r e a s o n a b l e d o u b t s c a s t ' o n t h e c o r r e c t n e s s o f t h o c o n -

c 1 u s i o n s r e a d i e d i n t w o e n q u i r y r e p o r t s , on t h e d e a t h o f N e t a j i

: , u b t i a s c h a n d r a u o s e , t l i e G o v e r n m e n t f i n d s i t d i f f i c u l t t o a c c e p t

t h a t t l i e e a r l i e r c o n c l u s i o n s a r e d e c i s i v e . I t w i l l / t h e r e f o r e ,

n o t b e p o s s i b l e t o t a k e a n y a c t i o n a t t l i e p r e s e n t o n t h e s u g g e s

t i o n o f o e i u F u j i w a r a t o b r i n g t l i e a s h e s . " A c c o r d i n g . t o t h e

p e t i t i o n e r v a x i n g a n d w a n in g a t t i t u d e . a n d b e h a v i o u r o f t h e

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i • *..r a y o d t h e d e s i g n o f p r e c i p i t a t i n g a n d p e r p e t u a t i n g t l i e my t i l

Lh t» d e a t h o f N e t a j i s u b h a s Ctian d r a B O s e i n t h e a l l e g e d p l a n e

o . v . . h a y r e a l i t y w i t h o u t t l i e r e b e i n g a n y s e r i o u s e f f o r t t o

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i m . l n a l a n d f o l l o w i n g t l i e i n d e p e n d e n e o. a n d a l m o s t a - u i i u l t a n e o u s l y

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t > y a n i o a t i o n r a t i f i e d a n d a g r e e d t h a . t w a r c r i m i n a l s o f f r i e n d l y

■ ' i n t r i e s w o u l d b e d e l i v e r e d b y t l i e c o u n t r y h o l d i n g t h e m ;

h i t s a g r e e i n g t h a t I n d i a w c u l d d e l i v e r a l l wa r c r i m i n a l s o f t h e

• e c o u d w o r l d w a r t o U i o G over ran e n t o f G r e M t B r i t a i n , a n d s i n c e

t .H . iy r j i a r i d i a B o s e w a s d e c l a r e d a w a r c r i m i n a l b y t h o G r e a t

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i j u b h - j s U i a n d r a j j o s e a 0 w a r c r i m i n a l , l h e p e t i t i o n e r , i n s h o r t ;

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1,1 ! 1 • hold oUbhas Chaiiura Bose as a war c r i m i n a l and

•! *i i t b^i' .vo the Gov'-rrment to t r e a t sublias s h a b b i l y

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1 " " -J •• ; true I ndian f o r a l l f e l l o w I n d i a n s .

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w i t h r e s p e c t t o e i t h e r s t a t e m e n t s o r w o r K a £ > b c u t t h ^ d e a t h o f• , " In e t a j i a s a l l e g e d and the m y s t e r i o u s d i s a p ^ ^ t a n c e / o r on the

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U iat N e t a j i i 3 a war c r i m i n a l . N a r r a t i o n 0£ t h e f a c t g , h^v^everf

s h a l l r e m a i n i n c o n c l u s i v e i f we do n o t r e f ^ t o a r e c e n t c a s e

( Vi ,t> .14 0 . iuoi> o t i y y 7 ) w h i c h l>t*s b ^ e n d i s p O ^ i ! o f b y a B e n c h qC

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Copy t o t h e Ministry of Finance w.r.t. their II0.36/22/S7-B.O.III dated the 14th July, 1987, alongv/ith aJ.1 t n e original papers anu 1.3. 's report for settlement o f t n e c l a i m and to sena a suitaDle reply to the PrimeMinister's office.

' ' ' ■ r i ' 1

(Li u IRA tolaRA)00IiiT SECRETARY TO THE GOVT.OF IKDIa. ^ ?.

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r J . r i " r e f e r to . t a j y a 3abha J t c t r r s ' 1 Q u e s t io n T>y.No. 4. CP cn tho s u b j e c t o f Iii A Treasure which t h e M i n i s t r yo r ’fairs i s s a i d to have t r a n s f e r r e d to the

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2. The Ministry of External .iffairs had requested us to ch-: ch up whether the subject of IN A Treasure was at ir.r stags brought to tha notice of the Khosla Commission in* v i t w ° o f oart (g) of the Question. A perusal of tlie records i n t h i s Ministry shows that whatever documents were required by trie Commission were furnished by the Mini . t r i e s concerned either directly or through thisM: ni t r y and th e papers had, after the winding up of the Jo:. m i - s io n , been returned to the respective Ministries J i r e c t . I t i s n o t , t h e r e f o r e , possible to indicate how much o f th* record s pertaining to IN A Treasures were made a v a i l a b l e to the commission. It is however observed that the i . l n i s t r y o f i&cternal A f f a i r s 1 s file No. 25/4/NGC-51 cn t h 3 s u b j e c t was specifically asked for by the Commission in March, 71 . whether it was actually f u r n i s h e d to the Commission or not may have to be checked up with r e f e r e n c e to the c o rrespondence In the Ministry o-f ^.eternal A f f a i r s ' s file No. C/551/8/70-JP and C/551/4/72-JP. Ci... iloj . 'ly file No. 2o(. .l l)/56-57-EM on the subject of "Ii. i T r e a s u r e " had been furnished by the P.M. Jectt. to the Comi.ission. It was returned by the Commission and acknowledge-3 in yctir D.O.Wo. 2/64/74-PM dated 2 7 . 7 . 7 4 .

3. In view of the above and since a mention has been K a ’e to the subject in para. 3 . 5 1 of Its Report by the Commission it appears that the records pertaining to the IN A Treasure were made available to tiie Commission.

4. a copy of the final answer that may be given to theHouse may k i n d l y be x’urnished to us also for our record.

Yours sincerely,“r'\

T j T ^ 8'

(3# liiiadyopar^hyay)

o ; i r i ? # 3 - P - i *r •

1 \lx

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m i n i s t r y o f h o m e a f f a i r s .

JIjN I - 1 ’.OCOl,

.24/6/7I-Po11.1

.Vm (Vft .y ) SECRETSECRET

T ORGOVERNMENT OF INDIA

| M I | B.K. GOSWAMI H U M DEPUTY SECRETARY M IN IST R Y O F H O M E A F F A IR S

NEW DELHI NOVEMBER , 1971

. iDear Shri Tanaon

Kindly refer to your letter no.PMS 23774 dated 23rd October, 1971, addressed to Shri Srinivasavaradan, regarding the visit of the Netaji Inquiry Commission to Talhoku.

Commission to Taiwan was examined towards the close of 1970 on a suggestion from the Commission itself. The Ministry of External Affairs Informed us, after enquiries from our Commission in Hong Kong, that the Taiwan Government are not willing to extend facilities to the Commission unless an official request in that regard-was made to them by the Government of India.It was also clarified by that Ministry that the Government of India would not be in a position to take up the matter officially with the Taiwan Government because we do not recognise the Government of Taiwan. In tho circumstances it has not been possible to arrange for Commission's visit to Taiwan.

2 . The question of the visit of the Netaji Inquiry

Shri B.rT. Tandon, Joint Secretary to Prime Minister,

Yours sincerely

/P.M.'s Secretariat

COPY NO, S E C R E T

Note for the Cabinet

Subject:- Disappearance of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in 1945.

In April 1956, in response to tho public

demand, Government of India appointed an Enquiry

Committee to ascertain the circumstances concerning

Net a j i’s departure from Bangkok on 16.8.1945 and .his

alleged death In an air-crash. The Committee —r—

consisted of the following:-

(i) Shri Shah Nawaz Khan, M.P., \Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Railways and Transport; *

(ii) Shri Suresh Chandra Bose, elder1brother of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose;

—— and

(iii) Shri S.N. Maltra, I . C . S . f o r m e r l y Chief Commissioner, Andamans and Nicobar.

The Committee examined witnesses in Delhi, Calcutta,

Bangkok, Saigon, Tourane and Tokyo. They also examined

books and articles about Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and

studied relevant classified records pertaining to the

matter,

2. The members compared and discussed the state

m e n t s o f t h e witnesses whom they had personally *

interviewed and took into consideration the evidence

s o u r c e s . Tho three members of tho

Cc • ' ; a o t h e n a r r i v e d at certain broad conclusions and

MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS

unanimously agreed that tho report should bo written on

the basis of these conclusions. The so were summarised

in a list entitled "Principal points agreed to for'Draft

Report dated 30.6.1956". This was signed by all the

three members of the Committee on 2.7.1956.

3. Shri Suresh Chandra Bose had agreed with the

principal conclusions and signed the documents contain

ing these on 2.7.1956. Tho conclusions confirmed that

Netaji had, in fact, met his death in the crash on the

18th August, 1945 at Taihoku. Shri Suresh Chandra Bose,

however, submitted a dissentient report stating that

there had been no plane crash involving Netajl's death'

as concluded in the Committeels Report.

4. The Cabinet considered tho Report of the

Enquiry Committee signed by Shri Shah Nawaz Khan and

Shri S.N. Maitra on 9th September, 1956 and accepted the

finding that Netaji had, in fact, met his death as a

result of the air-crash on 18th August, 1945. The

Cabinet also decided that "the question of bringing over

Netaji’s ashes to India might be left for future

consideration". A copy of the Report was laid on tho

'Table of the House by late Prime Minister Nehru on lith

September, 1956 when he informed the House that the

Government had accepted the findings of tho Committee.

v:io di::r;ontlont report too was placed on the Table of

’i'V’r on 12th December, 1956, and in doing so the

Prime Minister again confirmed that the Government had

a c c o p t o d t h e .ma4o.ivlt y report. ____

5. Briefly, the conclusions of the majority were

that about the spring of 1945 the defeat of the A x i s •

Powers became likely, and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

began thinking of the future activities of himself on

the one hand,^and of the Indian Independence League and

the Indian National Army on the other. As regards him

self, he decided to leave South East Asia and to take

refuge in Russia, whence, in due course, he could re-

emerge and continue the struggle for India's freedom

against the British. As regards the Indian Independence

League and the Indian National Army, he appeared to be

undecided and desired to consult with his allies, the

Japanese, beforo imparting final instructions.

6. With a view to implementing these intentions

he loft Bangkok on the 17th August, 1945, for Saigon,

whence he had been promised passages for himself and

6 companions by a Tokyo-bound Japanese military plane.

7. At Saigon, however, there was a serious dis

appointment: only two passages in an Air Force bomber

were offered by the Japanese Military Command, which, as

a consequence of Japan's surrender to the Allies on the

15th August, 1945, found itself short of air transport.

After some discussion Netaji found himself obliged to

accept the 2 passages offered, and with the approval of

h 5 o :: "Hanlons s e l e c t e d Col. Habibur Rehman to accompany

N e t a . i i and C o l . Rehman accordingly took off for

"r\

Dissentient He r>ort

S E C R E T _f

Tokyo, by the bomber about 5.00 p.m. on the 17th August,

1945.

8. Apart from Netaji and C o l t Rehman. the bomber

included 6 Japanese Service Officers as passengers, and

a crew of 5 or 6 persons.

9. The bomber landed for the night at Tourane on

the Indo-China coast at about 7.30 p.m., and took to the

air again with the same inmates at 5.00 a.m. tho next

morning. The next brief stop was at Taihoku in Formosa

in the early afternoon of 18th August, 1945. While

taking off from Taihoku later in the afternoon, however,

the propeller and the port side engine of the bomber

which appears to have been defective even from the start,

suddenly dropped out, with the result that the plane

immediately crashcd about 50 metres off the run-way and

burst into flames. Suffering from severe b u m s Netaji

was carried into the Taihoku Military Hospital, where

after some hours he passed away.

10. Two days later, on the 20th, his body was

cremated in the Taihoku Crematorium. His ashes were

collected and temporarily kept in the Nishi (West)

Honganji Temple in that city until the 7th September,

1945, when they were flown to Tokyo. There they have -

since been lyin* in the Renkoji Temple.

________ The main burden of Shri B o s e’s dissentient

report is that late Prime Minister Nehru had already

r.v:.- up his mind and had agreed to the enquiry only in

r e s p o n s e to a pressing demand from a large section of the

p e o p l e . S e c o n d l y , Shri Bose has charged that two o f t h e

members o f 3 -man Committee were under a "mandate" to

arrive a t findings which would conform with the pre

c o n c e i v e d notion of the late Prime Minister Nehru that

Netaji was dead. He has also charged that he was not

t a k e n i n t o confidence by the other two members and was

n o t shown all the relevant material to institute an

impartial enquiry. The Committee, he has asked was

dominated by the two official members and considered

o n l y selective evidence which would only enable them to

arrive at the pre-conceived conclusion that Netaji had

died in the crash at Taihoku. Shri Bose has gone further

to charge t h a t some of the officials of the Government of

I n d i a had tried to harass and pressurise him into accept

i n g t h e conclusions of the other two members.

12. Shri Bose mainly picked up small contradictions

i n d e t a i l s relating to the height of the aircraft, timing

of t h e aircrash, etc. He also maintained that there was

e v i d e n c e contradicting that there was any aircrash at all.

T h i s dissentient report was carefully examined by the

G o v e r n m e n t and when laying the report on the table of the

House on 12.12.1956, Prime Minister Nehru said that

G o v e m r . o n t - a d h e r ed to. their acceptance of the majority

r e p o r t

Thor-’ have been repeated demands for under-

-•'.king another enquiry ever since the Shah Nawaz Khan

iir .n lt t o o , Report was'published. However-,—Govcrnment—

. . . / -

having accepted the findings of the Committee, have

taken the position that unless fresh evidenco or new

facts were brought to light a further enquiry was not

warranted. Rumours about Netaji's survival and w^ore-

abouts, etc., have cropped up repeatedly. Each of

these, whenever brought to Government's notice, has been

investigated and generally found to be baseless. In

1962, rumour was spread that a Sanyasi of Shaulmari

Ashram was in fact Netaji. The Sanyasi, Swami Shradha-

nand himself denied the rumour. Another claim made by

Dr. 3.N. Sinha that Netaji was incarcerated in Cell

No. 46 of Yakutusk prison in Siberia has not been

corroborated by any tangible evidence. Lt. Gen. Fujiwara

of Japan who came to India to present Netaji*s sword,

while urging for further investigation, did not produce

any evidence to contradict the findings of the Shah

Nawaz Khan Enquiry Committee. Recently a press report in

a Bengali D^.ily, "Jugantar", based on information given

by an ex-Indian army personnel, presently employed In

Wc::t Bengal Police (as Inspector of Police, Security

Control, Calcutta), that Netaji left Singapore by

submarine towards the end of 1945 was Investigated and

found to be hearsay and vague information. The latest

instance is of the news report claiming that Netaji

Subhas Chandra Bose had spoken from Radio Moscow after

:' !v? Tashkent Agreement. On checking up with Radio

' o s o c ; a ' . i t h o r i t i e s , it was discovered that a student by

• • ■ /“■

S E C R E T

t h e name of Subhas Chandra had in fact made the

broadcast.

[o r r o s p c n d e n c e 1 4 . It has been claimed by Shri Amiya Nath Bone

that Prime Minister Nehru, in his letter of April-22,

1964, to him, had accepted that "something should be

done to finalise the question of Netaji’s death".

However, there is nothing to suggest, in the context of

the entire correspondence, that at any time Prime

- 7 -

be twoon P r im eMinis -cer N ehruand Shri Amiyao r; n

bv 350 M.Pr?

’■rl ofMinister Nehru had entertained any doubts.about tho

ofconclusions./the Shah Nawaz Khan Committee Report.

Presumably, what Shri Nehru had in mind was that some

thing should be done to persuade those who still

doubted this fact to accept the finality of the

conclusions that Netaji was no more. Shri Amiya Bose

h a s h o w e v e r claimed that a month before his doath,

Pandit Nehru had agreed that a proper enquiry

Conmi-sslon s h o u l d -be formed*______________________

Memorandum 15, On December 26, 1967, about 350 Members of

P a r l i a m e n t sent a memorandum to the President demanding

a f r e s h enquiry into the reported death of Netaji

^-.’rlias C h an d ra Bose. They had urged that further

e n q u i r y be made in collaborotion with the Governments

o f Japan and Taiwan. This memorandum was discussed

at a M ootin g of Secretaries held under the Chairmanship

r:f. .ho C a b i n e t Secretary on 16th February, 1968 to

o i n o the v a r i o u s points raised. As far a s the

question o f a f r e s h enquiry was concerned, t h e meeting

w'ir' of tho view that this was not warranted as no frosh

evidence had been brought to light. This recommendation

was brought to the Prime Minister's notice in connection

with a question in the Lok Sabha on 21.2.1968. The

Pl«ime Minister, in reply to the question, stated -that

"sines no new facts have been brought to light,

Government do not consider that any fresh enquiry is

warranted.

1<3, Shri Samar Guha wrote’ in May this year to the

Pfrime Minister requesting for a judicial enquiry on the

analogy of the enquiry being conducted in regard to

Gandhi ji's assassination 20 years after Mahatmaji's deatli.

The Foreign Minister in reply to this letter informed

Shri Guha that the terms of reference of the enquiry

b^ing conducted into Mahatma Gandhi's assassination did

not sodc to establish Gandhi ji's death. In the letter

to the Prime Minister by 44 M.Ps., dated August 7,

the request for the appointment of a fresh enquiry

Corr^-ission, consisting of retired Supreme Court Judges

and eminent public men, has been made on the ground that

a frssh probe was being conducted in regard to the

assassination of Mahatma Gandhi and that a judicial

enquiry was also being conceded in response to a number

of M.ps' request into the cause of death of the Jan

Leader Shri Dindayal Upadhyay. It Is quite

o^-.-ious t h a t t h e s e two examples that have been cited are

rn.’. a l l f o u r s with t h e demand for an enquiry to

e s t a b l i s h the d e a t h of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

1 7 The question of inquiry was again raised in

- 9 -SECRET

the Lok Sabha on August 22, 1969 during the course of

interpellation on Starred Question No.8 Shri S.M.

Banerji wanted to Imow why the Government could not

appoint another Commission to inquire into the "whole

thing. The Home Minister replied "This matter is under

the active consideration of the Government. The Prime

Minister has recently received certain memorandum from

Members of Parliament and we are .very actively

considering this."

13. It is for consideration whether a Commission

of Inquiry should be appointed. In case it is decided

that such a Commission should be appointed, it may

consist of a single Ju£crc of the Supreme Court*

Minister of Home Affairs and Minister of External Affairs

have seen tt'A,; nvfco.

( JL. P. Singh; Secretary to the Govt, of India

/H52/132/69-Poll, I(A)[y

HEM DELHI-1 „

The 1st September, 1969.

i ' lUfo .0 .No . 1/ 120 14/27/O3-IS-0 I I I

ttritfevft-^ooa^

HOME MINISTER INDIA

NEW DELHI-110001

X<? P V '*/aAxi

E a r l i e r t h i s year, , t he q u e s t i o n w h e t h e r m o r t a l r e m a i n s o f N e t a j i S h r i _ Subhash Chandra Bose s h o u l d be t a k e n p o s s e s s i o n o f i n T o k y o and b r o u g h t to I n d i a had a c q u i r e d some u r g e n c y s i n c e t h e b i r t h c e n t e n a r y — y e a r of N e t a j i i s due i n 1 9 9 7 . On t h i s i s s u e , rny—

. . M i n i s t r y had t a k e n a note t o t h e C a b i n e t . T h e C a b i n e t , w h i l ed e f e r i n y __t h e s u b j e c t i n i t s ~ m e e t l T i g ~ d n ' 8 ."2 . 1 9 9 5 d e c i d e d t h a t t h eM i n i s t r y o f Home A f f a l Y s may’ examiTTS Ttve d e p e n d a b i l i t y o f a r r a n g e m e n t s i n J a p a n _and_ d r a w “ u p ‘ a c o n t i n g e n c y " p l a n f o r t h e ' p r o p e r u p - k e e p o f the m o r t a l r e m a i n s and o u r A m b a s s a d o r be s p e c i f i c a l l y r e q u e s t e d t o l o o k i n t o t h e s e a s p e c t s . A l o n g s i d e , i t was d e c i d e d t h a t e f f o r t s be made f o r c r e a t i o n o f a f a v o u r a b l epublic opinion;---- trr— c a s e— a d ec i s i o n i s taken t o b r in g back thea s h e s to I n d i a .

2 . The M i n i s t r y of E x t e r n a l A f f a i r s e x a m i n e d t h e m a t t e r i nc o n s u l t a t i o n w i t h I n d i a n Ambassador i n T o k y o and h a v e g i v e n t h e f o l l o w i n g o p i n i o n / s u g g e s t i o n s -

i )

V<V\ w

i i )

//J ■/*}.

The ashes o f N e t a j i seem t o be h o u s e d i n an a d e q u a t e manner i n t he R a n k o j i T e m p l e , T o k y o , J a p a n . H o w e v e r , a c c o r d i n g t o the J a p a n e s e t r a d i t i o n , t h e r e i s no s e c u r i t y at the Templ e a g a i n s t a n y d e l i b e r a t e a t t e m p t t o c r e a t e p r o b l e m s . I t i s p e r c e i v e d t h a t a n y r e q u e s t f o r s t r e n g t h e n i n g of s e c u r i t y may n o t go down w e l l a s t h e R a n k o j i T e mp l e where t he a s h e s a r e k e p t , i s a p l a c e o p e n t o a 1 L .

The p r e s s u r e f o r s h i f t i n g o f t h e a s h e s f r o m J a p a n t o I n d i a i s m a i n l y f rom the o l d a s s o c i a t e s o f N e t a j i who a r e a d v a n c i n g i n age and who f e e l a p e r s o n a l s e n s e o f r e p o n s i b i 1 i t y for the a s h e s . R e v . M o c h i z i k i , P r i e s t I n c h a r g e o f t he t empl e has s t a t e d t h a t he h a s a b s o l u t e l y no p r o b l e m i n c o n t i n u i n g t o l o o k a f t e r t h e a s h e s a n d t h a t he has no i n t e n t i o n o f d o i n g a n y t h i n g w i t h o u t t h e f u l l c o n s u l t a t i o n and a p p r o v a l o f t h e G o v e r n m e n t o f I n d i a . I t w ou l d t h u s appear t h a t the_ o v e r a l l s i t u a t i o n i s s u c h t h a t i t does not . wa r r a n t any p r e c T p I t f a t ' e a c t i o n f o r m o v i n g t h e a s h e s l i t may, h o w e v e r , be d e s i r a b l e i f t B e c o n t r i b u t i o n o f ' Y e n 6 l a k h per a nnum d o n a t e d b y G o v e r n m e n t o f I n d i a f o r t he u p - k e e p of the ashes i s r a i s e d t o Yen 1 M i l l i o n T "

The F o r e i g n o f f i c e o f J a p a n G o v e r n m e n t h a s on a number o f o c c a s i o n s e n q u i r e d wh e t h e r i n t h e l i g h t o f t h e f o r t h c o m i n g

0 t h a n n i v e r s a r y of N e t a j i ’ s d e a t h and ' t h e c e n t e n a r y y e a i t h e r e i s any p r o p o s a l f o r s h i f t i n g t h e s e a s h e s t oin 190 7

i

rri

*Tff TTTTT

HOME MINISTER INDIA

NEW DELHI-110001

I n d i a . T h e a c t i o n o f t h e J a p a n e s e G o v e r n m e n t has b e e n mo r e i n n a t u r e o f an e n q u i r y t h a n a s u g g e s t i o n . MEA f e e l s t h a t t h e F o r e i g n o f f i c e o f J a p a n i s u n l i k e l y t o t a k e a n y a c t i o n i n t h e m a t t e r w i t h o u t c o n s u l t i n g t h e G o v e r n m e n t o fI nd i ,3 .

i v ) R e g a r d i n g t h e c o n t i n g e n c y p l a n , MEA h a s s u g g e s t e d t h a t i nt h e e v e n t t h e a s h e s a r e t o be r e m o v e d f r o m t h e t e m p l e b u t n o t s h i f t e d t o I n d i a , t h e o n l y l o c a t i o n t o h o u s e t h e a s h e s w o u l d b e t h e I n d i a n M i s s i o n i n T o k y o , w h e r e i t c o u l d be k e p t i n a s t r o n g r o o m . T h i s w o u l d , h o w e v e r , a mou nt t o a c c e p t a n c e b y t h e G o v e r n m e n t o f I n d i a t h a t t h e a s h e s a r e t h o s e o f N e t a j i . F o r t h i s r e a s o n , i t h a s b e e n s u g g e s t e d t h a t s t a t u s qu o s h o u l d be m a i n t a i n e d t i l l a c o n s e n s u s i s w o r k e d o u t i n I n d i a f o r b r i n g i n g t h e a s h e s .

3 . I n t h e l i g h t o f t h e a b o v e o p i n i o n / s u g g e s t i o n s o f t h e M i n i s t r y o f E x t e r n a l A f f a i r s , a n d i n a b s e n c e o f a n y p e r c e p t i v e p r e s s u r e e i g h t e r i n J a p a n o r I n d i a , i t i s f e l t t h a t t h e r e d o e s n o t a p p e a r a n y i m m e d i a t e need f o r d i s t u r b i n g t h e s t a t u s quo t i l l s u c h t i m e we a r e a b l e t o c r e a t e a f a v o u r a b l e p u b l i c o p i n i o n i n t h e c o u n t r y t o b r i n g b a c k t h e a s h e s o f N e t a j i t o I n d i a .

4 . I n v i e^J o f t h e f a c t s e n u m e r a t e d i n p a r a s 2 and 3 o f t h i s n o t e , PM may k i n d l y c o n s i d e r t h e m a i n t e n a n c e o f ’ S t a t u s Q u o ’ i n t h ema t t e r .

S h r i P . V . N a r a s i m h a R a o , Pr i me Mi n i s t e r ,S o u t h B l o c k ,NEW D E L H I .

1 J '

n TOP SECRET, Copy No. £ l

MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS

Sub.: Controversy regarding Netaji's death and bringing his ashes to India from Japan.

Princioal • Secretary to Prime Minister may please refer to his UO No. 870 /1 1 / P /10 / 9 3—Pol. dated the 13th October, 1993 and this Ministry's UO of even number dated 20th April , 1994on the above subject.

2. The matter was placed before the Committee ofSecretaries which discussed it in its meeting held on 20th July, 1994. After deliberations, it arrived at the followingconclusions:

(i) Since the Articles had not attracted any media attention so far, it was unlikely that such a contingency would arise in the future. Even in the unlikely event of these Articles appearing in the local media, its r ipple effects were likely to be minimal since the basic thrust of the Articles did appear to project Netaji in a patriotic light as an opponent of fascism. However, some sensitivity did attach ir. this very suggestion of an association - presumably even if false - such as Netaji with MI-6 . Prudence demanded, therefore, that GOI response on this issue should be minimal and as low key as possible. In fact , the issue is best left alone and if possible, allowed to be forgotten.

As regards the question of taking possession of the ashes was concerned, no particular advantage lay in taking a decision on this at this juncture since the birth centenary celebrations were due only in 1997. Therefore, a view could be taken in the matter in 1996-97 and till such time status quo should be maintained. The temple management may be persuaded to continue with the upkeep of the ashes- and, if necessary, the maintenance charges being paid to the temple may be suitably increased to meet the increased cos t .

J.S.p ) ' (iii) Since it was best that as l it t le publicity as;

' ' ( V p o s s i b l e was given to the entire issue, it was — • .. ^It that it may not be necessary to place this

____ ______ _______ matter' before the Cabinet. PM may be a pprised

u • 7 : / r s ( ^ > !; 1J " -'S-') \t-. i r • ■ . '■1 v

’!.. , , Contd.......... 2 1-I , ?.-/,Jf W

h A ~ •’ 'i- •' ’ / ' / TOP SECRET

TOP SECRET

- : 2

accordingly and his directions obtained.

3. PM may kindly be apprised of this for his direct ions.

( v ...

/(K. PADMANABHAIAH)

Home Secretary

Shri A.N. Varma, Principal Secretary to PM

MHA UO No.I/12014/27/93—IS(D.III) dated 9th August, 1994.

TOP SECRET

gMINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS

Subject: Controversy regarding N etaj i ' s death andbringing his ashes to India from J a p a n . , •

Principal Secretary to Prime Minister may p le a s e r e f e r to his' U.O. No. 8 7 0 / 1 1 / P / 1 0 / 93—P o l . dated 13th October , 1993 on the above subject.

2. The matter was examined af ter obtaining cop ies of- thetwo ar t ic les ( three issues) that appeared in the bi-monthly magazine "Asia arid Africa Tod ay" , in Moscow, in September, November and December, 1993. It was found t ha t the second art ic le by Mr. V. Touradjev (two iss ues) en t i t led "Whom Subhash Chandra Bose Fought against during the Second World War Years" was mainly intended to show that Netaji cooperated with the Brit ish Secret Service MI-6 and was a B r i t i s h plant in the heart of the Axis powers . Although the a l legat ions are based on indirect evidence and are more or le ss s p e c u l a t i v e , yet they have serious potential of whipping up popular sentiments in India. The ent i re findings are based on a l leged Soviet intelligence reports from Afghanistan and o t h e r p l a c e s . There is reportedly no separa te file on Netaji in the KGB Archives.

3. Views of MEA, IB and R&AW were a sc e r t a i n e d . MEA feels that there is no need for o ve r - re ac t i n g to the publication of such allegations, as there has been no p u b lic i ty of thes e art ic les e i ther in Russia or India. Mr. Touradjev has told our Embassy in Moscow that he has no plan to write any fu r t h er ar t ic les unless further a rc h i v a l material becomes a v a i l a b le to him from KGB Archives. IB is of the opinion th a t such publications, alleging links of Netaji and his a s s o c i a te with MI- 6 and KGB, will evoke wide- apread reactions and could cause discomfiture to the Government. People in India would con side r it to be a sinister design to tarnish the image of Netaj i . R&AW has expressed similar views and is of the opinion that the possible replay of these write -ups in the Indian media has explosive potential.

4. In view of the s e n s i t i vi ty of the m a t te r , we feel i t would be prudent to take pr e-emptive action to f o r e s t a l l f u r t h e r publications of such a r t i c l e s . MEA h as , t h e r e f o r e , been aske d to take up the matter with the Russian au th o ri t i e s at an appropriately high level to prevent publication of s i m i l a r ar t ic les in future.

v'-V

1/

5. As for the controversy about Netaj i ' s dea th and hismortal remains at Renkoji Temple in Tokyo, t h e mat ter has indeed assumed considerable urgency. It is being pla ce d before the Committee of Secretar ies (Core Group) for ev olving a s t rategy , whereafter the mat ter would be place d before the Cabinet. i;

/Shri A .Nv 'Varma,Pri cipfrl S e c re t a ry to P.M

/

( N.N. Vohra ) Home S e c r e t a r y

"t 2{ Is

s> fNVS OFFICE " ,

. ny No--••'7'""

MHA u- ° - Ho- I/12014/27/93—IS. Dili Dated: Apri l 20 , 1994 .

I ■r-s,

A

R e f e r e n c e e n c l o s e d c o p y o f l e t t e r d a t e d 1 - 9 —7 9 and o f i t s e n c l o s u r e s , f rom S h r i T . t J . S i n g h , G o v e r n o r o f B?est B e n g a l , a d d r e s s e d t o t h e Home S e c r e t a r y , r e g a r d i n g e s t a b l i - shn.ent o f i d e n t i t y o f M r s . ANITA PFAFF ( d a u g h t e r o f M e t a j iS u b h a sh Chandr a Bo s e ) .

2 . T l i is M i n i s t r y h a v e no r e c o r d s p e r t a i n i n g t o N e t a j i ' s r e p o r t e d m a r r i a g e , t o a f o r e i g n l a d y o r b i r t h o f a f e m a l e c h i l d by t h a t m a r r i a g e . I n t e l l i g e n c e B u re a u h a s a l s o been

; c o n s u l t e d and t h e y h a v e no r e c o r d i n t h i s r e g a r d . B e f o r e I s e n d i n g a r e p l y t o t h e G o v e r n o r on t h e a b o v e l i n e s , t h i s

M i n i s t r y •vrould l i k e t o be s u r e w h e t h e r a t any s t a g e t h e t h e n P r i m e M i n i s t e r ' s S e c r e t a r i a t {now P r i m e M i n i s t e r ' s

\ O f f i c e ) o r t h e M i n i s t r y o f E x t e r n a l A f f a i r s o r t h e C a b i n e t S e c r e t a r i a t (R-* A, W. ) h a v e been a w a r e o f v i s i t t o I n d i a o f r - ; i ss A n i t a i n I 9 6 0 and i n f o r m a t i o n s u p p l i e d i n t h i s c o n n e c t i o n o r i f t h e r e a r e any p a p e r s t o i n d i c a t e N e t a j i ' s r e p o r t e d m a r r i a g e t o a f o r e i g n l a d y and b i r t h o f a f e m a l e c h i l d by t h a t m a r r i a g e . We s h a l l be g r a t e f u l t o h a v e an u r g e n t r e p l y t o t h i s n o t e .

(V lfy ^ T v A S INAY VAS3UNDER SECRETARY ( j O THE GOVT. OP INDIA

T e l x 6 1 1 9 8 4 .

P r i m e M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e ( S h . P r ^kcish Shah, J o i n t S e c y * t o P . M . )

M i n i s t r y o f E x t e r n a l A f f a i r s ( S h . N . R a v i , US (EE)

C a b i n e t S e c r e t a r i a t ( R e a r c h and A n a l y s i s Wing) ( S h . ii. D. D i t t t e a , D eputy D i r e c t o r )

MHA U . O .No.2 5 0 2 2 / 1 0 9 / 7 9 - F , V I I D a t e d 6 - 2 - 1 9 8 0 .4 '

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R . u7 31 ’• iV . ii I

Calcutta 3;,

Sc. tej.ij.er 1, 1979.

L/i- ir Shri Vara*.; a;i,

To the Lest o- try recollection, Sarclar I'a te l in ids l i f e t ire cai:.c to hnow of a daughter lorr. to " e t a j i iiubauii CuanUcr .Oj~ in Gerhtony as a resu lt o f marriage with a foreign g i r l . There must be Sv;rne record in the lone l.inistry as some roney was remitted to her fo r her education and maintenance. One 3r.it. anita F fa f f cane here and

net me. She './as introduced to r.ie by Dr. S is i r Dose as the

daughter of iietaji. I h.ad no reason to d isbe lieve him. how

I have received a letter fron one Shri -\run Ghose wliich

causes doubts on the vliole position. I hope i t should be ossihle to trace from the records o f the rbrr.e l . in is try about

the real facts. I am enclosing a copy o f the le t t e r which gives

details in this regard.

l/ith best wishes,

Yours sincerely ,5c:/-

( T. h. Singh )

Shri T.C. .v. Srinivasavaradan, S e c r e t a r y ,

; in istry of Ior;ic <u:fairs, horth ElcCh, lieu Delhi 110001.

/ c o r y /

Exclusively personal and Private____ 30 Aug. 197 9.

’iieverod v. . S inghji,I cane to learn from the Calcutta d a i l ie s that you

have c o rd ia l ly received I re. .-unita F fa f f , the so ca lled daughter o f n e ta j i Bose. You have been m iscarried by clieajS sentiment, because you do not :.now the bach—ground o i th is canard as w e ll .s the character o f Bose family o f the day.

You are a freedom f ig h te r and I being an executive' i..ember o f -»11 India Freedom F igh te r 's Sanity (Regd.) i t i s ny duty to bring you into l ig h t to e s tab l ish the truth. The said g i r l i s a posthumous ch ild o f one Go.Erizette o f the then .^si:<

lower. Her mother l.rs. Bri*;ette died a fte r a few months o f de live ry . H iss Erv.die Shenkle was intimate fr iend and close

door neighbour to th is Brizette family and she took up the

orphan as adotped daughter. A conspiracy duly hatched up by the A l l i e s in Colaboration with P ro -B r it ish Congressmen to

assasin the j»AAus character o f ardent bachelor I leta ji Bose.For your personal sa t is fac t ion I vd.ll request you to

c o l le c t the O f f i c i a l data o f l.rs. Anita and her rea l identy

in the decade o f s ix t ie s v/hen she was I.rought to India by Hr. Behru, the then r.l . o f India, fo r the f i r s t time. V/hut w ;S in

l:er passport and v isa papers ? Just enquire fron the Home Deptt and External , J;..airs r in is t ry . Also you should contact the• xustrian authority to ’ now whether any such, g i r l did go through

any qjfool or University o f Vienna o r .Austria wl'ose fa th e r 's

name was Sri Subhas Chandra Bose. Don't be misguided by any

member o f so c a lled Dose Family o f the day. I was deeply

connected with senior members o f I£ose family o f the past .

With, best wishes,Yours sincerely,Sd/- (.urun^Ghose)

------------------- ------

15, Jadu Dhattacharya Lane,■ >.!. c 1111a — 7 C CO 2 ').

CABINET S E C R E T A R IA T RASHTRAPATI B H A V A N

Subject:- Declassification of records.

Kind reference is invited to P M O UO No. 16(4)/200C )-N G O dated15.9.2000, on the above subject.

2. The background notes for consideration of the C ab inet on ‘Proposal to bring the mortal remains of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose from Japan to Ind ia ’ (dated 2.2.1995), ‘Fresh inquiry into disappearance of Netaji S ubhas Chandra Bose in 1945 - Demand for’ (dated ’ 18 .2 .1970 ) and the C ore Group on ‘Controversy about Netaji’s death and allegations that he w as an M I-6 A g e n t’ (dated 16.5.1994) were received from MHA.

3. The minutes will have the sam e grading as the notes which have originated from MHA. This Secretariat has no objection to w h atever grading MHA may wish to give these background papers. It is, therefore, for M H A todecide the qradinq of these papers.

W' /PMO. [Ms. Archana Ranjan, Director],Cabinet Secretariat ID Note No. 281 /12 /1 /2000 -T S dated 1 8 .9 .2 0 0 0 .

\ Copy to Shri A.K. Paitandy, Director, MHA.

(R avi M ital) Director.

S E C R E T/>

“X :

f iihxi

r Oawn *7*

NATIONAL MUSEUM

D r . R . D . C h o u d h u r y N o . F . D G N M - 2 / 2 0 0 0D i r e c t o r General

Phone: 3018159 N o v e m b e r 2, 2000

Dear Ms Gairola,

^ Kindly refer to A .K .P a i t a n d y , D ire ct or

the(IS

t el e p h o n i c talk held with1) MHA by me and Shri U.

Shri Das ,

. v~ Ass is tan t D i r e c t o r ( A d m . ) , on 1 .1 1. 20 00 r e g a r d i n g PMO's letter N o . l 6 ( 4 ) 2 0 0 0 - N G 0 for d e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n of t r e a s u r e s of Netaji in c o n n e c t i o n with the inquiry into the alle ge d d i s a p p e a r e n c e of Netaji Su bh ash C ha ndr a Bose which is being i nq ui r e d into by Justi ce M u k h e r j e e Co mmission.

In this cont ex t the D e p a r t m e n t of Cu lt ur e d es ir ed that I may consu lt the M i n i s t r y of Home Affa irs for adv is e in the first i n s t a n c e .

I shall be g rat efu l if you kindly in fo rm w he th er these t r ea s u r e s could be shown to the Com mission.

With regards,

\ Yours sin cerely,

( R . D . C h o u d h u r y )

M s . S a n g i t a G ai rol a Joint S e c r e t a r y ( IS - 1) M i n i s t r y of Home Affai rs No rth Block New D e l h i - 1 1 0 0 0 1

Copy t o :

! Sec retary, D e p a r t m e n t of

S e c r e t a r i a t ,

1. Shri S .S a t y a m o o r t h y , Joint C u l t u r e ,Shastri Bhawan, New Delhi2. Shri Ravi Mittal, Director, C ab in et R a s h t r i y a p a t i Bhawan, New Delhi.3 . M s . H u m e r a Ahmed, Director, D e p a r t m e n t of Culture, Shast ri Bhawan. New Delhi w.r.f. to her letter dated 3.1 0.2000.4. Shri G.B. Singh, Di rector, M i n i st ry of Defence, H is tor y Division. West B Bl ock N o . 8 , R . K . P u r a m Sector-1, New D e l h i - 6 65. Shri P .M ehe nd ru, Joint Director, IB , M i n i s t r y of Home Affairs. North Block, New Delhi.6. Shri S . T h o m a s , S 0 ( N G 0 ) M i n i s t r y of E X t e rnal^—,A f f a i rs , Sout h Block. New Delhi.

/ K Mrs. Archana Ranjan, D i r e c t o r , Prime M in is t e r __^ o f f i c e , South B lock, New D e lh i . , , . v R/urChoudhury)

10011. fTF: 3019272, 3019322; 3019821 rdchoudh@ ndf.V SNL.net.inJanpath. New D elh i-110011; Gram: MUSEUM; Tel: 3019272. 3019322; Fax: 3019821; E-mail: [email protected]

J* J



J j L t o . W W )

No.915/1 l/C/2/2000-Pol(Vol.I) PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE

SOUTH BLOCK NEW DELHI-110011

Dated: November 14, 2000To

Shri P.K.Sengupta,WBHJS(Retd.)Secretary,Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry,B' Block(Third Floor), ll/A,Mirza Ghalib Street,CALCUTTA-700087.

Subject:Compliance with the orders/directions contained in the proceedings dated28.9.2000 read with the proceedings dated 23.03.2000, 13.06.200 and31.08.2000 of Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry.

I am directed to refer to the Commission's letter No.JMCI/Meeting- Proceedings (Folow-up)/48(Vol.II)/289(5) dated 10th October, 2000, on the above subject, and to say that since this Office is yet to receive final reply from a few Ministries/Departments about their views on declassification of the classified papers/ references available on this Office files, copies of which have already been forwarded to the Commission by this Office, it is requested that 15 days' time may kindly be given to this Office to file its consolidated Affidavit before the Commission, covering all the points mentioned in the proceedings of the Commission, from time to time.

Sir,

Yours faithfully,

DIRECTOR

SecretMost Immediate


South Block New Delhi 110 Oil

Sub: Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry - Declassification ofrecords.

Reference is invited to the Cabinet Secretariat’s I.D. Note No.281/12/l/2000-TS dated 26.9.2000, addressed to Shri A.K. Paitandy, Director, M H A and a copy endorsed to this Office, with reference to this Office U.O. of even number dated 21.9.2000.

2. Vide Ministry o f Home Affairs I.D. Note No.I.12014/13/2000-TS (D.III) dated 3rd November, 2000 view of the Ministry were conveyed with regard to 20 references. However, views/ comments o f the Ministry o f Home Affairs about references mentioned in Cabinet Secretariat’s I.D. Note, referred to above, have not been intimated to this Office, either by M HA or the Cabinet Secretariat, so far. This Office has, therefore, not been able to finalise the Affidavit which was supposed to be filed before the Commission by 15.11.2000. As a result o f this, we have requested the Commission to grant us 15 days time for the purpose. As already mentioned in this Office U.O. o f even number dated 21.9.2000, copies of our files, which included classified correspondence, have already been made available to the Commission, with the request that while the information contained in PMO Top Secret files may be made use o f by the Commission, in camera, the Commission may kindly consider not publishing the same. The Commission, however, in its proceedings dated 31.8.2000, inter alia, directed this Office to adduce specific reasons as to why privilege is being claimed against the disclosure o f the contents thereof, more so, when the Commission is holding a public enquiry and its report will be a public document and contents o f those files may have an important bearing.

3. In case M H A ’s advice is that papers, mentioned in Cabinet Secretariat’s ID Note dated 26.9.2000, which originated from M H A or Cabinet Secretariat may continue to be classified, specific grounds for claiming privilege in each case, may please be assigned, while conveying such advice.

4. A very early reply is requested.

(Archana Ranjan)Director

Smt. Sangita Gairola. Joint Secretary. Ministry o f Home Affairs. New Delhi.dated 14 J 1.2000v ^ P M O UO No.G.16(4)/2000-NGO d_14J1

A/- . SECRET^ M OST IM M ED IATE

Ministry of Home Affairs

IS Division (US D.IV)•k'k'k'k

Prime Minister’ s Office may please refer to their U.O.Note No. G. 16(4)/2000-NGO dated 14/15th November 2000 regarding declassification o f certain records for submission before Justice Mukherjee Commission o f Inquiry which were referred to this Ministry by the Cabinet Secretariat.

2. As regards 20 references sent to this Ministry vide PrimeMinister’s Office U.O.Note dated 14/15.09.2000 followed by two further U.O references dated 10.11.2000, views o f this Ministry have already been sent to the Prime Minister’ s O ffice vide this Ministry’ s U.O.Notes o f even number dated 3rd November 2000 and 15th November 2000 respectively.

3. As regards the documents referred to this Ministry by theCabinet Secretariat, these have already been examined in the Ministryo f Home Affairs and the Cabinet Secretariat has been informed vide

• • t l i

this Ministry’ s I.D.Note o f even number dated 13 Novem ber 2000that except Cabinet Note No. 1/18/68-Coin dated 17.05.1968 regarding issue o f commemorative stamps/coins o f Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on 21.10.1968 on the occasion o f the silver Jubilee o f Azad Hind Government (which pertains to Ministry o f Finance, Department o f Economic Affairs and as such its continued classification or declassification may be decided by the Cabinet Secretariat in consultation with Department o f Revenue) the remaining documents pertain to this Ministry and it is fe lt that further action regarding their declassification or submission before Justice

ukherjee Commission o f Inquiry may be left to be decided by this Ministry, especially since Cabinet Secretariat has conveyed that they would have no objection to their declassification i f so decided by this

4 -— ' .. _______ _______________ _________ __________________ ______________________________________

Ministry.

iJ jl

( V.P.BrfATIA) Under Secretary to the Govt, of India

Prime Minister’s Office Ms. Archana Ranjan, Director, New DelhiM.H.A U.O.No. 1-12014/13/2000- IS (D.III) Dated 16.11.2000

(NG O)/ wlh. fpy.

St &A) m * l°ate....mvr^ —

V:"'A! . '•■ISSIC? : V E I'If .

No.G.16(4)/2000-NG() PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE


Dated:20th November,2000.To

The Department of Legal Affairs,Branch Secretariat,19th Floor, nnd MSO Building,Nizam Palace,234/4, A.J.C. Bose Road,CALCUTTA(West Bengal)

Subject;-Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry appointed to enquire into alleged disappearance of Netaji Subash Chandra Bose -production of records- regarding.

I am directed to say that the above Commission has directed this office to produce all the files relevant to the terms of reference o f the Commission with this Offic, and to say that this office had given photocopies o f all the files with it, including classified files. With regard to the Top Secret files, the Commission was requested that while it may make use o f the information, in camera, it may consider not publishing the same. Our files also contain Secret/Confidential correspondence which originated from other Ministries/Departments/States. The Commission have, however, not accepted the plea and observed that in case this Office wants to claim privilege in respect of the classified records, it may adduce reasons as to why privilege is being claimed against the disclosure of the contents thereof, more so, when the Commission is holding a public enquiry and its report will be a public document and the contents of those files may have an important bearing.Under the extant instructions, concurrence o f the concerned Ministries /Departments/States has been solicited to declassify such correspondence so that the Commission can make the same public/publish the correspondence, if it wished to do so. In the meantime, on 14.11.2000, this Office has sought 15 days' time Le.,till 30.11.2000, to file its Affidavit before the Commission.

2. A large number of classified papers which are available in our classified files had emanated from the Ministry of Home Affairs. That Ministry has filed its Affidavit before the Commission separately. In order to ensure that there is nfo contradiction amongst the various departments o f Government o f India, and that correct procedure is followed while dealing with the directions o f the Commission, from time to time, it is requested that a Government Counsel, preferably the one already handling such matters on behalf o f the Ministry o f Home Affairs, may be assigned the task, for this Office, immediately, under intimation to this Office, for timely and proper briefing to the Counsel

Sir,

Yours faithfully,

W i BT 5 0

IN THE COURT OP __j-jljr' bli. J i C l frjcSuit/Appeal No i*i C d k y <i ___ 0^ ___________ of 19

t*u\v$y' St. ^ 10 fb<y*_________________ _________________________________ PHf/Applt/Petitioner/Complalnant

/VUTVt ir Cfcvt’ C. %y£&<K

Defdt/Beept. /AccuM d

KNOW ALL to whom those present shall come that I/We frQ/md- ,

the above-named Cf do hereby appoint

4,1 ’Toj\^k^MA^ /U/, /Amcc v/* , £ir*\Y C t^ '^L 'TyX n T / v ts , f l u * * < « - / > . W , U ^ . C ^

(herein after called the advocate/s) to be my/our Advocate in the above-noted ease authorise him :—

T o act, appear and plead in the above-noted case in this Court or in any other Court in w hich the same may be tried or heard and also in the appellate Court including High Court subject to payment of fees separately for each court by me/us

T o sign, file, verify and present pleadings, appeals cross-objections or petiotna for executions review, revision, w ithdraw al, compromise or other petitions or affidavits or other documents as may be deemed necessary or proper for the prosecution of the said case in all its stages subjects to paymentof fees for each stage.

T o file and take back documents, to admit and/or deny the documents of opposite party,

T o withdraw or compromise the said case or submit to arbitration any differences or disputes that may arise touching or in any manner relating to the said case

T o take execution proceedings.

The deposit, draw and receive money, cheques, cash and grant receipts hereof and to do all other acts and things which may be necessary to be done for the progress and in the course of the prosecution of the said case

T o appoint and instruct any other Legal Practitioner authorising him to exercise the pow er and authority hereby conferred upon the Advocate whenever he may think fit to do so and to sign, the power of attorney on our behalf.

A n d l/wo the undersigned do hereby agree to ratify and confirm all acts done by the Advocate or his substitute in the matter as mv/our ow n acts, as if done by me/us to all intents and purposes

A nd I/we undertake that I/we or my/our duly authorised agent w ould appear in Court on all hearings and w ill inform the Advocate for appearance when the case is called.

And I/we undersigned do hereby agree not to hold the advocate or his substitute responsible for the result of the said case. The adjournment costs whenever ordered by the Court shall be of the Advocate which he shall receive and retain for himself.

A nd I/we the undersigned do hereby a^ree that in the event of the w hole or part of the fee agreed by me/ us to be paid to the advocate remaining unpaid he shall be entitled to w ithdraw from the prosecution of the said case until the same is paid up. The fee settled is only for the above case and above Court. I we hereby agree that once the fees is paid. I/we w ill not be entitled for the refund of the same in any case whatsoever and if the case prolongs for more than 3 years the original fde shall be paid again by me/us.

IN W IT N E S S W H ER E OF l/y/6 do hereuntoset my/gtri hand to these presents the contents of which have been understood by me/y* onthis......... .......................................... day of.... ......................................................................................................... 7 : . £ £ £ . . 1 ^ 9 ................

Accepted subject to the terms of the fees.

Advocate Client Client

f^TT RcrftM IN IS T R Y O F E X T E R N A L A F F A IR S

N E W D E L H I

No 25/4/NGO-V 2 Ist Novem ber 2000

Subject Proceedings before the Hon'ble Mr Justice Mukherjee C om m ission

This is to inform you that we have no witness to exam ine on our behalf before the Hon ble Commission at this stage If such occasion arises later, we shall place the same forthwith before the H o n b le Com m ission

(Jayaat Prasad)Joint-Secret ary(CNV)

Shri T Pal,Advocate & Sr Counsel for the Govt o f India,Before the Hon ble Mr Justice Mukherjee Comm ission

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K NO W ALL to whom these present shall come that l/W « / b W S « X k i '*

the above-nam ed___ ^ v i ' . . - A uvU Ffh'Cm.___________________do hereby appoint " i £

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(herein after called the advocate/s) to be m y/our Advocate in the above-noted caae authorise him :—

To act. appear and plead in the above-noted case in this Court or in any other C ourt in which the same mav be tried or heard and also in the appellate Court including H ig h Court subject to payment of fees separately for each court by me/us

To sign. file, verify and present pleadings, appeals cross-objections or p e tio tn * for executions review, revision, withdrawal, compromise or other petitions or affidavits or other documents as may be deemed necessary or proper for the prosecution of the said case in all its ctap'JS subjects to paymentof fees for each stage.

To file and take back documents, to admit and or deny the documents of opposite party .To withdraw or compromise the said case or submit to arbitration any differences ot

disputes that may arise- touching or in any manner relati ig to the said case

To take execution proceedings

The deposit, draw and receive money, cheques, cash and grant receipts hereof and to do alt other acts and things which may be necessary to be done for the progress and in the course of the prosecution of the said case

To appoint and instruct any other Legal Practitioner authorising him to exercise the power and authority hereby conferred upon the Advocate whenever he may think fit to do so and to sign, the power of attorney on our behalf

And I we the undersigned do hereby agree to ratify and confirm all acts done by the Advocate or his substitute in the matter as my our own acts, as :t done by m e/us to all intents and purposes

And I we undertake that I/we or my our duly authorised agent would appear in C ourt on all hearings and will inform the Advocate for appearance when the case is called.

And I we undersigned do hereby agree not to hold tne advocate or his substitute responsible for the result of the said case The adjournment costs whenever oraered by the Court shall be of the Advocate which he shall receive and retain for himself.

And I we the undersigned do hereby ?qree that in the event of the whole or part of the fee agreed by me us to be paid to the advjeate remaining unpaid he shall be entitled to withdraw frort the prosecution of the said case until the same is paid up. The fee settled is only for the above case and above Court. I we hereby agree that once the fees is paid. I.w e w ill not be entitled for the refund of the same in any case whatsoever and if the case prolongs for more than 3 years the original fee shall be paid again by me/us.

IN W IT N E S S W H E R E OF |/we do hereuntoset my<our hand to these presents the contents of which have been understood by m e/jjs o n th is -.^ (» ir ....................................... day o f

Accepted subject to the terms of the fees.

Advocate Client Client

Ar \Cz ?


Subject:'Jv»stiCe Mukheijee Commission o f Inquiry to enquire intodisappearance o f Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose- declassification o f records.

to their U Q.N°-25/4/NGO Vol. V dated September 19, 2000, on the above subject, afli today’s discussions our Director,Ms Archna Ranjan, had with JS(CNV),MEA on phone, about the stand taken by the MEA with regard to their classified papers before the Commission. It is requested that a copy each of tfre Affidavits) / letters sent to the Commission may please be sent

to this Office, per bearer, for our record and utilising the material to take appropriate stand before the Commission with regard to MEA papers available on our files.

Ministry o f External Affairs may please refer

1Tel No. 3792507

ME A f SMi Bhatti. SO(NGO)PMO U.O.N0-16(4)/2OOO-NGO dated 21.11-2000

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slffii ! s e C r etv / MirjisinvoF-pxinnNAi a h

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< SECRETV / M IN IS in v OF- p x ip h n a l A r r a im„ V / NEW DELHI

<* fJA Y A N T P R A S A D ,J O IN T S E C R E T A R Y (C N V )i

* v>

No. 25 /4 /N G O Vol.V ^ c t o b e r l f i t2QQQ'* Wo'tQJrc\y&T

Dear Shri Sengupta,

Please refer to your letter no. JM C I/M eeting-Proceedings(follow up)/48/187 dated 08.08.2000 and my letter of even no dated 2 6 .0 9 .2 0 0 0 regarding submission of photocopies of the nine classified files of this Ministry to tlie Commission.

As desired by the Commission, the photocopies of the above mentioned nine files are being forwarded herewith for perusal by the Commission. These files have since been downgraded from "Top Secret" to " Secret". However, as the files contain some papers which are still sensitive , it is requested that the Commission may kindly like to use their discretion as to the use of such material in its report.

Kindly acknowledge receipt.

Yours sincerely,

(Jayant P rasad)

Shri P.K.Sengupta, W BHJS(Retd )Secretary,Justice Mukherji Commission of Inquiry,'B' Block, 3 ,d floor,11/A, Mirza Ghalib Street,Calcutta 700 087.

'C opy to Smt. Sangeeta.Gairola, Joint Secretary(lS .I), (Ministry of H om e Affairs, New Delhi for information. ——

{ 5 \ \ ^ , (Jayfant P rasad)' Joint S^q!7e ta ry (C N \/)

AFFIDAVIT

I, Jayant Prasad, Joint Secretary(CNV), Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India, South Block, New Delhi, do hereby solemnly affirms and state as follows :

2. That I have read the Hon'ble Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry letter No.-JM CI/m eeting/99- 2000/48/98(7)-dated 29 /05 /2000 alongwith its enclosure

' and undersood its contents..

3. I would like to state that the matter has been carefully considered and the details of T O P S E C R E T/S E C R E T files available in this Ministry have been sent to Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry vide my letter No. 25 /4 /N G O - Vol.V dated 01 /03 /2000 and 24 /05 /2000 respectively. No other documents/files relating to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and/or Indian National Army are the custody or control of this Ministry.

------ £

□(e j q n e n t

V E R IF IC A TIO N

Verified at New Delhi on this 2 - ^ day of July, 2000, that the contents of the above affidavit are true, and correct to my knowledge derived from the official records. ,

SECRET MOST IMMEDIATE

PRIME MINISTER S OFFICE


Subject:-Justice Mukheijee Commission of Inquiry to enquire into alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose - Declassification of classified records.

Ministry of Home Affairs may please refer to their U.O.No. I-12014/13/2000-IS(D.ni) dated 16. i 1.2000, on the above subject.

2. Since we have to file an Affidavit before the Commission immediately with regard to declassification o f classified papers, including those which had originated from Cabinet Secretariat/MHA, and also to claim privilege with respect to such papers, with proper justification, if any or all of those papers are still to retain any classification, it is requested that final stand of the MHA in the matter may please be expedited. Based on the stand of the MHA, this Office would formulate its own stand to be taken before the Commission regarding the notes portion dealing with such classified documents available on PMO files.

3. A very early response is requested.

l/ ( ARCHNA RANJAN) DIRECTOR

MHA(Ms Sangeeta Goirala, Joint Secretary)

PMO U.O.No.G.16(4)/2000-NGO dated 21.11.2000.

r* MOST IMMEDIATE



Subject:- Justice Mukheijee Commission of Inquiry to enquire into alleged disappearence o f Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose - Declassification o f records.

National Museum may please refer to their No.F.DGNM-2/2000 dated2.11.2000 addressed by Dr.R.D.Choudhuty, Director General, to Ms Sangita Gairola. Joint Secretary, MHA, and a copy endorsed to this Office, on the above subject.

2. The matter has already been delayed considerably' by the Museum. As a result o f this delay, we have been forced to seek 15 days' time from the Commission to fUe our reply and this extension would also be over by 30th November, 2000. Any further delay may invite adverse comments from the Commission/ press individuals.

3. It is once again requested that the comments/views o f the National Museum regarding declassification of papers, a copy o f which has already been forwarded to the Museum, may please be sent, atonce.

DR. R.D. Choudhury, Director General, National Museum, Janpath, New Delhi.

P.M.O.U.O.No.G.16(4)/2000-NGO dated 21.11.2000.

V (ARCHNA RANJAN) DIRECTOR

Tel.No.301-3931

sr.*r.w. (trfr.3rV ft.)/PMO (NGO) sntf/issued... x b Z '........fe IT*'/ Date... %\ b\)'L&3>\....

Before the Hon’ble Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry at Calcutta.

IN THE MATTEROF COMPLIANCE W ITH THE ORDERS/ DIRECTIONS OF THE COMMISSION W ITH REGARD TO THE

PRODUCTION OF THE FILES/DOCUMENTS AS M ENTIONED IN THE MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS AFFIDAVIT FILED BY SHRI

A.K. PAITANDY, DIRECTOR(IS-I) ON 20.6.2000.* * * *

AFFIDAVIT

I, Karnal Pande s/o late Dr. Purushottam Pande, Secretary to the

Government o f India in the Ministry o f Home Affairs, do hereby

solemnly affirm and state as follows:-

1. The Hon’ble Commission, during its hearings held on

31.8.2000 has inter-alia ordered the Ministry o f Home Affairs to

produce before the Commission the following files pertaining to

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose:-

i) Bringing the ashes o f Netaji kept in Renkoji Temple in Tokyo

in Japan to India; and

ii) Posthumous announcement o f award o f ‘Bharat Ratna’ to

Netaji.

2. I, as the Secretary to the Government o f India, in the Ministry

o f Home Affairs, am the Head o f the Department and I am as such in

control o f and in charge o f its records. I am filing the present affidavit

in my capacity as the Head o f the Department.

P.T.O

2

3. I am filing the present affidavit claiming privilege, under

Section 123 and 124 o f the Evidence Act, read with Article 74(2) o f

the Constitution, in respect o f the records as mentioned in para-1

above. I am claiming privilege in the follow ing circumstances:

4. The records as mentioned above which have been ordered to be

produced by the Hon’ble Commission are unpublished official records

relating to affairs o f State and contain communications made to public

officers in official confidence. The disclosure o f the records would

cause injury to the public interest. As such, they are protected by

Section 123 and 124 o f the Evidence Act. The disclosure o f the

records would also be violative o f the mandatory provisions o f Article

74(2) o f the Constitution inasmuch as the records contain advice

tendered by the Ministers to the President.

5. I submit that the records ordered to be produced also belong to

a class o f documents which it is the practice to keep secret for

ensuring the proper functioning o f the public service.

6. I have carefully examined the question as to whether the

disclosure o f the records would cause injury to public interest,

including India’ s relations with some friendly foreign countries and

am bona-fide satisfied that their disclosure would cause injury to

public interest, and that public interest would suffer thereby.

7. In the circumstances, I withhold permission to produce the said

records or to disclose their contents or to give any evidence derived

P.T.O.

3

therefrom, and claim privilege under Section 123 and 124 o f the

Evidence Act, read with Article 74(2) o f the Constitution, in respect

o f the aforesaid files.

8. However, I submit that I have no objection to the records in

respect o f which privilege has been claimed being produced for

perusal by the Hon’ble Commission for satisfying itself about the

bona-fides and genuineness o f the plea o f privilege.

(K A M A L PANDE) DEPONENT

VERIFICATION

I, Karnal Pande, s/o late Dr. Purushottam Pande, declare and affirm

that what is stated above is true to my knowledge. No part o f this A ffidavit

is false and nothing material has been concealed.

Verified at New Delhi on 13th November, 2000.

(K A M A L PANDE) DEPONENT

J L T .0 .

Ii

/ , A n J u s t i c e M u k h e r je e C o m m is s io n o f \Noprff pFo r Inquiry Into the Alleged Disappeara^ ^^o? c

Phone;Chairman — 216-2835

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. secretary - 216-2767‘B' Block, (Third Floor) - 216-2765

11/A Mirza Ghalib Street, Calcutta 700 087 Office - 216-2766/68

REG'STE E? W!TH A UNo. JMCI/Meeting-Proceedings(Follow-up)/48(Vo.II)/289(5) Dated the 10th 0ctober2000

From:Shri P.K. Sengupta, WBHJS (Retd.) Secretary

ToThe SecretaryPrime Minister’s Secretariat,South Block,New Delhi 110 001

Subject Strict compliance with the orders/directions contained in the proceedings dated 28.09.2000 read with the proceedings dated 23.03.2000, 13.06.2000 and 31.08.2000 of Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry.

Sir,

I am sending herewith a copy of the proceedings dated 28.09.2000 of the Commission

containing its orders and directions for your perusal and compliance thereof as directed by the

Commission.

Copies of the proceedings dated 23.03.2000, 13.06.2000 and 31.08.2000 of the

Commission were sent to your office earlier.

Yours faithfully,

v « Lj ( / C (P.K. Sengupta)

Secretary

Enclo: As stated above., EIIUIU. /“VS MOICU auuvc. . . , B

I ~ - f t ? V s

---------------------- ] . L f 4 & p

A -urV ^ __zrr^_____________________ ^j Fax : 0091-033-216-2765 * e-mail : [email protected]~‘ “

September 28, 2000

i

1 H °

Proceedings dated 2 8 .0 9 .2 0 0 0 (Fourth)Held at the Seminar Hall, Annexe Building, Maiiajati Sadan,


At the commencement of the hearing it is found that no .witness on

behalf of-the Government of India is present even though in the earlier order

dated August 31,2000 they were asked to produce their witnesses, if any,

on the next date of hearing, i.e. today, for their examination before

examination of other. witnesses. Since, neither any officer of the

Government of India nor any Counsel on their behalf is present nor has any

communication been received to explain their stand in this regard, the

Commission is left with no other alternative but to presume that the

Government of India do not intend to examine any witness. With this

presumption, the Commission proceeds to examine the two witnesses

present.

2. Examination of Witnesses

(a) Sri Nilanjan Bose and Sri Ardhendu Sarkar are examined on

oath and cross-examined as witness Nos. 4 and 5 respectively.

Xerox copies of a report in Bartaman, a Bengali daily dated March

21,1999 and of a news item in the Sunday Statesman dated January

22,1989 are marked as Y and 'Y(1)j for identification, on admisioni i

by the witness Nos. 4 and 5 respectively.■ i : i ,

(b) Of the other three witnesses summoned to depose today -

(i) ' Dr. Sisir Kumar Bose sent a letter to the Secretary to

the Commission on September 22, 2000 stating, inter-alia, as

follows :i

"Since the end of World War II in August 1945 till

to day I have not received any direct information from

him (Netaji) or about; him. I have no personal 1knowledge as to the issues referred to the Commission.

I am therefore not competent to depose in this matter.";

(ii) Sri Anindya Sengupta also sent a letter intimating that

he was indisposed and as such is unable to be present to

day but has made a request to fix another date for his

examination; and

C o n td . . .R /2

(iii) Shri Suman Chattopadhyaya has not appeared nor sent

any communication explaining; his failure to appear, even

though summons were duly served at his office address by

registered post.

(c) Since from the contents of the letters of Dr. Sisir Kumar Bose it

appears that no useful purpose will be served by examining him he

need not be re-summoned. Let fresh summons be served upon Shri

Anindya Sengupta and Shri Suman Chattopadhyaya for their

examination before this Commission on the next date of hearing

intimating them that if they fail to appear this time as well without any

justifiable reason, appropriate legal action may be taken against them

for their such failure.

(d) The following persons be also summoned to testify before the

Commission on the next date of hearing : |I

i) Shri Barun Sengupta, Editor, “Barta'man",

ii) Shri Pabitra Kumar Ghosh, Journalist, "Bartaman”,

iii) Dr. Purabi Roy, 47C Abdul Halim Lane, Calcutta 700 016,

iv) Shri Jayanta Roy, Hemanta Basu Bhawan, 49C,

Chittaranjan Avenue, Calcutta 700 012,

and

v) Smt. Prabha Jagannathan, Correspondent, Formerly of The

Telegraph and now of the Economic Times, 105/7A, S.N.

Banerjee Road, Calcutta 700 013

3. Further orders/directions -

On conclusion of the examination of the witnesses, the parties/their

representatives who are present have been heard on the status report

prepared on September 26, 2000 and circulated amongst them before

C o n td . . .p /3

/1 \: 3 :

commencement of the hearing today. After such hearing and perusing all

the materials received from the Central Government and the State

Government since the last date of hearing, the Commission makes the «following further o r d e r s / d i r e c t i o n s j

was an express direction that all informations to be furnished in terms

thereof must be supported by affidavit of a competent officer not!

below the rank of a Joint Secretary to'the Government of India, the

Prime Minister's office has sent an^affidavit sworn by an Under»

Secretary of that office in purported compliance of paragraph A of the

said order. The Commission therefore does not take any notice of

the contents thereof; and calls upon the ,said office once more to

strictly comply with the orders/directions issued on August 31, 2000.

b) (i) In compliance of paragraph B(i) of the order dated August

31, 2000, some papers reportedly relating to the Khosla

Commission have been sent by the Ministry of Home Affairs

and received by the office of the Commission without

verifying the contents thereof. In expectation that some

representative of the Ministry will be present today to identify

those documents and prove their authenticity, the same

have been brought to the venue of the Commission’s

hearing. But, as already mentioned, no one is there to

represent the Government of India and for that matter the

Ministry concerned.

(ii) A communication has been received from the Ministry

seeking time till November 15, 2000 to produce the papers

referred to in paragraph B(ii). The prayer is allowed.

(iii) Under orders of the Commission, a letter was sent b y lts

Secretary on August 25, 2000 to produce the following

documents:

Even though in paragraph E of the order dated August 31, 2000 there ■

C o n t d . . .p / 4

(a)(a) A xerox copy of the letter said to be sent by General

Chiang-kai-Sheikh to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru about

an inquiry reportedly made by the Government of

Nationalist China at Taipei regarding the alleged

plane-crash involving Netaji along with a xerox copy of

the said Inquiry Report; and

(b)(b) A xerox copy of the report dated 31st December,

1945 of Shri B.C. Chakravarty (Witness No.168 before

Justice Khosla Commission of Inquiry) on alleged air

crash and alleged death of Netaji Subhas Chandra

Bose which was counter-signed by Col. Stevenson

and sent to the CSDIC as referred to in the published

report of the Commission;

but those documents have not yet been produced.

c) None of the directions contained in para C(i) and (ii) of the

abovequoted order has been complied with except that a letter hasi

been received from the Ministry of External Affairs to-day (when the*• e

Commission was holding its sitting) wherein it is stated that they are

preparing, photocopies of the nine top-secret files referred to inI |

paragraph C(ii) .of the order dated August 31, 2000.. I i t

i - -i

d) . Shri Aloknath Bhattacharyya, Special Secretary, Home (Political)i

Department who is present today has produced some Index Books

but no affidavit has been filed in terms of para 'E' of the order dated

August 31, 2000. Let the Index Books be kept with the office of the

Commission and be not returned without leave of the Commission.

The prayer of Shri Bhattacharya for time to file affidavit is allowed.

e) It is rather unfortunate that even though as far back as on March 23,

2000, the Commission passed comprehensive orders and directions

regarding sending of files and documents to this Commission by the

related Ministries/Departments/Offices, the same have not yet been

: 5

i V V

fully complied with. In this connection, the attention of the above

authorities is drawn to the following portion o f the order dated June

13,2000:-

“It is made abundantly clear that in case of failure to comply

with the same by the aforesaid date, the Commission may be

• reluctantly compelled to invoke the provisions of Section 5(4) of

the Commission of Inquiry Act, 1952 against the recalcitrant

officers of the Government, both Central and State. It is also

made clear that since the orders/directions passed in the

proceedings by the Commission are in exercise of statutory -

and not administrative - powers, no correspondence will

henceforth be entertained relating to the compliance thereof.

However, in respect of any matter relating to the compliance

with the directions/orders of the Commission, the concerned

■ Government may approach the Commission by making formal

applications supported by affidavits before the Commission

through, competent officers, not below the rank of Joint

Secretary to the Government of India.”

The above orders/directions must be complied with by November 15,

2000. \ . ' : : '

4. NEXT HEARING.I .

The next hearing of the Commission will be held on November 23,

2000 at 11 A.M. in the Seminar Hall, Annexe B.uilding, Mahajati Sadan, 166

Chittaranjan Avenue, Calcutta 700 007. :

(M.K. Mukherjee) Chairman.

TOP SECRET

N A T IO N A L M U SE U M

tW

D r . R . D . C h o u d h u r y N o . F . D G N M - 2 / 2 0 0 0D i r e c t o r G e n e r a l

Phone: 3 0 1 8 1 5 9 N o v e m b e r 22 ,2 000

Dear Mr. Prasad,

This r e f e r s to my Se c r e t D.O. let te r of even nu mbe r dated N o v e m b e r 1 5 , 2 0 0 0 r e g a r d i n g d e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n of r ec ord s in c o n n e c t i o n with the i n q u i r y into a l le ge d d i s a p p e a r e n c e of Netaji S u b h a s h C h a n d r a Bose w h ic h is be ing i n q u i r e d into by Justi ce M u k h e r j e e C o m m i s s i o n .

T o d ay M o r n i n g I r e c e i v e d a t e l e p h o n e call from the PMO r e q u e s t i n g to e x p e d i t e the m a t t e r at the e a r l i e s t e n a b l i n g them to file an a f f i d a v i t in the matter. T h e r e a f t e r , I r e c e i v e d a l e t t e r from the D i r e c t o r (P M O ) in this r eg a r d (copy e nc los ed ). I, th e n c o n t a c t e d Mr.D.B. Bhati, Se c t i o n O f f i c e r (NG0) in your D e p a r t m e n t who a d v i s e d to send a copy of the d oc u m e n t s i m m e d i a t e l y for d e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n .

A c c o r d i n g l y I am e n c l o s i n g a copy of two pages d o c u m e n t s for you r ki nd p e r u s a l for d e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n . You are r e q u e s t e d kin dly to c o n v e y n e c e s s a r y decision- for d e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n of th ese pap ers so t h a t the PMO c o u l d be i n f o r m e d at the ea rli es t.

W i t h re gar ds ,

Yours s i n c e r e l y ,

JAy E n d s : As a b o v e - 3 Nos.v* ( R . D . C h o u d h u r y )

^ Shri J ay a n t P r a s a d J o in t S e c r e t a r y M i n i s t r y of E x t e r n a l A f f a i r s

'V [ X\ NG0, S ou th Bl oc k New D e l h i

Copy for information to:

Mrs. Archana Ran jaj><''Director, Prime Minister Office, South Block, New Delhi with reference her letter No.PMO U.0.No.G.16(4)/2000-NG0 dated2 1.11 .2000 .2. Shri S .Satyamoorthy, Joint Secretary, Department of Culture, Shastri Bhawan, New Delhi.3. Mr.D.B.Bhati, Section Officer(NGO), Ministry of External Affairs, Room No.l32A, South Block, New Delhi.

" ' r fC P ^. f\

(R.DTChoudhury)

M f ^ t - 110011; rTTT: 3019272, 3 0 1 9 3 2 2 ; 3 0 1 9 8 2 1 f - % : rdch ou dh @ n d f.V SN L .n et .72, 3019322

u------ - / •- 8/TC5^

Janpath, New D e lh i-110011; Gram: M U S £ U M T c l : 30 19 27 2 , 3019322; Fax: 3019821; E-mail: [email protected] . j f ) '? >-*Q CMQQ*

. _ y » ? p y. n „



NATIONAL M USEUM

SE CR ET

Dr. R.D.Choudhury Director General

D . O . N o . F . D G N M - 2 / 2 0 0 0

Phone: 3018159 N o v e m a b e r 27, 2000

Dear Ms. Ahmed,

Please refer to your D .0.No . F . 1 3 - 3 8/2 0 0 0 / M .1 d a te d O c t o b e r3, 2000 regarding declassification of r ec ord s in c o n n e c t i o n with the inquiry into alleged disappearance of Netaji S u b h a s h C h a n d r a Bose which is being inquired into by J us ti ce M u k h e r j e e C o m m i s s i o n .

In this context I approached Ms. S an gi ta Gairol a, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs who i n f or me d that "under the Departmental Security Instructions the D ep ar tm en t, from w h e r e the concerned classified document/material has o r i g i n a t e d , sh all be competent to revise the c l a s s i f i c a t i o n / g r a d i n g of the same" (copy enclosed).

Accordingly I contacted Shri Jayant Prasad, Joint S e c r e t a r y (C N V ) , Ministry of External Af fa ir s who i n f o r m e d that they have no objection if the Tre as u re s of Netaji sent by the Ministry to the National Museum are shown to the J u s t i c e Mukherjee Commission of inquiry (copy enc losed).

Meanwhile I received a telephone call from the PMO Ho us e req uesting to expedite the matter e n a bl i ng them to file an

at Flag 'A ' so that the PMO could be i n f o rm ed at the ea rli es t.

5TW I, ^ f ^ t - 1 10011; ciR: 3019272, 3019322; 3019821 rd ch ou d h @ n d f.V S N L .n et.in

Janpath, New D elh i-110011; Gram: M USEUM ; Tel: 3019272, 3019322; Fax: 3019821; E-mail: rdch oudh @ n df.V S N L.net.in

affidavit in the matter.

In view of the above, you are r e q u e s t e d ki ndl y to co nv e y necessary approval for declassification of the e n c l o s e d p ap e r s

This may be.treated as most urgent.V

"t* • f Copy to :


Archana Ranjan, D i r e c t o r ,Prime Minister



^ f i u 1 1/ <7 O 5~ ,

F .N o . 152/LC/2000 / ' 'Government of India

Ministry of Law, Justice & Co. Affairs Department of Legal Affairs

Branch Secretariat Calcutta

m

T o , Dated, the 23 Nov. 2000The Director,Prime Minister’s Office, South Block,New Dlhi-110001.

2) The Joint Secretary (ISI), Ministry of Home affairs, Govt, of India, North Block, New Delhi.

Sub:- Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry appointed to enquire into alleged disappearance of Netaji Subash Chandra Bose -regarding.

Sir/ Madam,

I am to inform you that Shri Tarakesuar Pal, Sr. Counsel alongwith Sri Animesh Mazumdar, Junior Counsel have been engaged to appear before Justice Mukherjee Commission at Calcutta on behalf of Union of India and other Central Government Departments. You are requested to contact both

J^\)\the Government Counsel enagaged in the matter and necessary ^ l instructions may be given to them directly to enable proper

conduct ef the departmental case before H o n’ble Justice Mukherjee Commission of enquiry.

The addresses and Tel.Nos. of both the counsel appointed in the aforesaid matter are furnished hereunder:-

hri Tarakesuar Pal. Advocate

Chamber

Room No.:-5, Bar Association, High Court, Calcutta.Phone No. 248-3190/3169FAX :(033)248-2313E-mail : [email protected] e t .in

\

Res idence

Purnasasi, 33, Asoke Avenue (Off.’ & Opposite Navanir) Calcutta- 700040.Phone No. 471-0592

Contd...2/-

........ .....................................................................................3 S T ' 5


* ,

- 2 -

2) Shri Animesh Mazumdar. Advocate

Chamber

Room No: - 12Bar A ssoc ia t ion High Court, C a l c u t t a -1 .

Res idence

12/1 Ghoses L an e (N ) P .O . -B e lum ath D i s t - Howrah, (WB)

Thanking you.

Yours f a i t h f ^ l y

Copy to : -

1) Shri Tarakesuar Pa l , Advocate Room N o . : - 5 , Bar A s s o c i a t i o n High Court, C a lcutta - f o r in format ion .

2) Shri Animesh Mazumdar, Advocate, Room N o : - 12Bar A ssoc ia t ion High Court, C a lc u t t a -1 - f o r in fo rm a t io n

SUPDT.(LEGAL)

FAX MESSSAGE MOST IMMEDIATE

N o. G . 16(4)/2000- N GO

PRIME M INISTER'S OFFICE

SOUTH BLOCK

NEW DELHI-110011

Dated:28.11.2000.

To

Shri Tarakesuar Pal, Advocate Sr. Counsel, •Room No.5, Bar Association,High Court,Calcuta.

Subject: Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry appointed to enquire into alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose- regarding.

I am directed to refer to Ministry of Law, Justice & Co. Affairs, Department of Legal Affairs, Branch Secretariat, Calcutta letter No. 152/1 C /2000/9059 dated 23.11.2000, informing this Office regarding your engagement, alongwith Shri Animesh Mazumdar, Junior Counsel, to appear before Justice Mukherjee Commission at Calcutta, on behalf of this Office, and to send herewith draft of the Affidavit which is proposed to be filed before the Commission by 30th November, 2000. It is requested that the same may please be vetted, and changes, if any, in the draft Affidavit, intimated to the undersigned, atonce.

Sir,

Yours faithfully,

t U (Arc r .\ Director

Phone No.301-3931 PMO(South Block) FAX No.011 - 301 -6857/301 -9545

Confidential

r i p j jN A T IO N A L M U SE U M

Dr.R.D.Choudhury Director General

D . O . N o . F . D G N M - 2 / 2 0 0 0

Phone: 3018159 N o v e m b e r 28, 2000

Dear Ms. Ahmed,

In continuation of my letter of even nu mbe r da ted 27th November, 2000 regarding d e cl as si fi ca t io n of r ec o r d s in connection with papers to be shown to the J us tic e M u k h e r j e e Commission, I am enclosing a copy of the letter r e c e i v e d just now from Shri Jayant Prasad, Joint S e c r e t a r y (C N V ) , M i n i s t r y of External Affairs wherein he mentioned that "the pap ers are apparently the extracts of the a c ce s s i o n r e g i s t e r of the National Museum itself, your organisa ti on may, the re fo re , like to tak^e the view on their declassification".

In view of the above, you are, t he re fo re, r e q u e s t e d k in d l yto convey necessary approval for d e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n of the pa p er salready enclosed alongwith the aforesaid letter at Flag ' A 1 so that the PMO could be informed at the earliest.

This may be treated as most urgent.


( R . D . C h o u d h u r y )

Ms. Humera Ahmed DirectorDepartment of Culture Shastri Bhawan New Delhi

Mrs Archana Ranjan, Director, Prime M i n i s t e r Office, So ut h Block, New Delhi.

^ 10011; cTR": ^ ( F ? : 3019272, 3019322; 3019821 rdcjieudh@ ndf.V SN L .net. inJanpath New Delhi-110011; Gram: MUSEUM; Tel: 301927,2, 3019322; Fax: 3 0 1 9 8 2 1 ^ r t ^ k T d ^ h ^ [email protected]

................................. J ^ r ) / w

aS * A0**-'0 . / . V "



29 00 1 5 : 3 2 ‘© 9 1 3 3 2 4 .9 7 5 .9 9 Office services

A v c ' o n - 3 °1 - °) S 'lfS ’ ct<>; on - 3 0 1 ' ( s - j

I

■Smt. Arehaâ Ranjan, director, Prime Minister's o ffice .

Block, êw Del h i -n e o n .

fa cakes war pal, Advocate 5 r . cou t>3 e l , i h|oh coufrr CalcuttaJ . K . Coror i S SH fi T Rport Na 5

■"t" PtK>oes:24e-3l9Crtl6S fax : (033) 248-2313

E.rrjait be/s*efc O cat cmc. net. in Residence

i Ho?ember 7.9.2000

Dear Kadam

A

w V \lRe» Justice tfukherjpe CcimissiOn of .j inquiry

And ]Voyr le tte r dated 2 8 - 1 1 - 2 C00 .Untier Wo.G( iS( 4 )/2000—MGC received byjl Fax on 2 B-X1 - 2 C0 0 .

| ! And :|; Eraft -Affidavit by Sri Jarnail Singh,

Joint Secretary. a. p.K.O.______ ‘| • ■;

X* 7)3 apprise the tetter in urgency, 1 «t ire remind you that theA ffidav it b£ p.H.O. requirpci as under - - ii ! • . ij

; ap As per Crder containing in Para *( i ) of Prcceedi.no dated 31st Au gas t, 2000, the reasons of priv ilecp as to disclosure of the contents of the f i le s mentioned in le tte r ô. G-l5(4)/2C00^NCc dafce'd'iuly 2 ?, 2 0 0 0 , should be mentioned. ; •

j t|> As per Crder in F*ra A ( l i ) of proceedin'? dLitcd 3 1 st August, 20C0 the particulars of destroyed files/oar»ers to be n’entioêd.

i i r 1 :! I-d) As per oSca A ( i i i ) or the said Order dat<? !$ 31-S-2000 the av a i la b i l ity of the £jl pa/do currents irentjcned in peâ a ( i ) of proceedidat«d KJ,rch 23, 2C00 In P.M.C. b<t <

| dj) As err Para A ( l i i ) of the said ■proceedincj/'prder dat<td 31-8-20CC Affidavits! of Comppetent Persons(not b®low rank osj Joint Secretary) ofKinistrjsjoif the Govt- of India tc be f i led giving l is tk of a l l other f i l es .records/doicurrents (whether secret, top secret or anything) in respective Mini's tr i e s- ( e x cep t 990 f i le s 'w ith the ^ t icn a l ArchiVgp) as per; Paral t '1 of the jaroiceeding datrd 23rd'Karch, 2 0 0 0 .2- Xh view of etcve, as to l(a)a.bove, Paras 4 , 5 ,?and sof Draft A f f i davit fci? rje writ ten including-the following : ' ' j

j That the contents of the said ?iles/Pappps >av*? no bearing with the present reference/issue of the Hon'ble comrissi3i>«-|

1 3i. Include a Para as to 1(b) obcve.I 4;- Include a Para as to i( c) abcve* i1 5|. Include a r>ara giving results cn other fll-jes/r ©cords etc.

| (other than ordered fcy the Hcn'-le Cornrisslon) as to j( d)abov«.; 6 :- ether pragraphs of the d r i f t A ffidavit t*'iretained. (The draftj ycu have sent is incomplete - a fter 9i there is nothing,i Annexure referred to in A ffidavit is net ^ t h the copy).; W ith t h a n k s , ----- __

( Tarakes-uiar ?a l;, I _ ; . , - 5 Advoratei

hfy. sr« dounsel.J-

H TRAN'?-! cSION

DATE.TIME FA, r I". /NAME E'URaT ion PAGE■■c j

RESULT MODE

VERIFICATION REF •‘O F !'

TIME : 29/11r .'•••0 16.15NAME :FAX :TEL. :

29/i : j .-17 0 3 3 2 55': in i 80:on■P •01OK•~'TMi ii .'hi:’

MOST IMMEDIATE

N o. G . 16(4)/2000- N GO

PRIME M IN ISTER'S OFFICE

s o u T h b Lo c kNEW DELHI-110011

DATED:29.11.2000

ToThe Home Secretary,Government of West Bengal Sachivalaya, Writers' Building,CALCUTTA.

Subject:Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry appointed to enquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose- Deputation of an officer to Calcutta in connection with-

Sir,

I am directed to say that Shri P S. Lally, Under Secretary in this Office has been deputed to go to Calcutta in connection with filling of an Affidavit before the Commission. He is going to Calcutta today (29.11.2000) by IC : 264 reaching Calcutta Airport at 2055 hrs. You are requested to please issue suitable instructions for his reception at the Airport and for transport/accommodation during his stay at Calcutta.

Yours faithfully,

(P.K. Roy) Under Secretary Tel.No.3018130

=ri 11 o o 11 P r im e M i n i s t e r ’ s O f f i c e

N e w D e lh i I 10 01 1

N o.G .16(4)/20p0-N G C ) d a te d : N o v e m b e r^ * / .2000

Subject' Proceedings before the H on 'b le Mr. JusticeMukherjee Commission of Inquiry appointed to enquire into alleged d isappearance ot Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.

This is to inform you that w e have no Witness to exam ne on our behalf before the Com m ission, at this stage If such an occasion arises later, we shall piace the sam e forthwith before the Commission.

Shu Tarkeshw|»r Pai.Advocate & Senior Counsel for the Govt, of India, Before trie Hon ble Mr. Justice M ukherjee Com m ission

B E F O R E T H E H O N O U R A B L E J U S T I C E M U K H E R J E E C O M M I S S I O N O F IN Q U IR Y A T C A L C U T T A

IN T i l l : M A T T E R O F C O M P L IA N C E W IT H T H E ORDERS/ D IR E C T IO N S O F T H E C O M M IS S IO N AS PASSED IN H IE P R O C E E D IN G S H E LD O N 31.8.2000 and 28.9,2000 A T C A L C U T T A .

A FFID A V IT1, J a m a i ! Sin tin son of Late Shri Dal ip Singh, v.orkmg as Joint

Secretarv in the Prime M-inistei s Office. do .solemnly affirm and state as under *

l} Tliat in so hit as doeumenl.s Notes which originated ironi the PM .•> Oil ice on the files already forwarded to the Commission are concerned these m;s’ be treated as downgraded to confidential subject to the Final decision on document;- mentioned in para ,2 o f this Affidavit, and the documents listed in Armexurc-I to this Affidavit and Notes portions o f this office listed in Annexure-IA.,1 iowever. it is left to the discretion o f the Commission to m ake all/any o f these declassified documents, public.

1 i That so lar as the classified letters references which originatedfrom the other Ministries 'Departments , like the National Museum, the Ministry o f External Affairs. Ministry o f Home A Hairs. Ministry o f Defence. Minis try o f Urban Development. Department <x Economic Affairs. Ministry o f Information «fc -Broadcasting. Depar tment ol Food Public Distribution. Cabine t Secretariat. Intelligence Bureau and Governments o f West Bengal and Orissa, arc concerned, since the declassification o f those references ieuci > can only be done, as per the extant instructions, with the concurrence o f the concerned' Ministries. Depar tments State Governments, reference was made to the concerned Ministries Departments Stale Governments , on 14 i 5li September. 2000 to let this Office have their views rcgaidinii the declassification of the letters references for apprising tlie Commission about the justification or otherwise o f declassification of classified records for use by the Commission. So far. while the Ministries of Defence. I hban Development, Infoimation & Broadcasting. Depth o f Food

Public Distribution: Intelligence Bureau and the Gov I. of Wes! Bengal have conveyed that they have no objection to the declassification o f the

■•ssSsssei* >-0 v ---4

jl-c" VV<V '.*11w -

V Vevr. o C x

references pertaining to them, the Ministry o f External Affairs have conveyed that their references may be treated as downgraded to confidential and that they leave it to the discretion o f the Commission to decide whether to make them public or not. The matter is being pursued with the Department o f Economic Affairs. National Museum and Govt, o f Orissp to convev their stand to the declassification o f documents pertaining to them early. Our stand , would thereafter be formulated and conveyed to the Commission with recard to, such documents notes on our files .

Vi With rcgar-d u> tlie documents which originated from the Ministry o f Home Affairs, that Ministry is o f the view that the documents listed in Annexure*! dealing with the following issues may be continued to be treated as classified:

a ) Controversies regarding Netaji\s death and bringing his ashes u India from Japan;

bi IdentitN o f Mrs. Anita Piaff. (laughter o f Netaji Subhash Chandra

(.onsequemh the notes portion dealing with these classified documents available on PMO files would also continue to be treated as classified (Annexure I-A). In view o f the advice o f Ministry o f Home Ait airs. I the Deponent as Joint Secretary in Prime Minister's O ffice dealing with the subject matter, am in control o f these records and am tiling the present Affidavit accordingly . I am tiling the present affidavit claiming privilege , under sections 123 124 o f the Evidence Act. in respect o f the records as mentioned in Annexuros I & LA to thi^ Affidavit. I am claiming privilege in the following circumstance

4) The records listed in Annexure i & 1A which have been ordered to be produced by the Hon?ble Commission are unpublished official record relating to affairs o f State and contain communications made t *public oittcers m official confidence. The disclosure o f the recordswould cause injury to the public interest. As such, thev bv Section 123 and 124 oi' the Evidence Act.

proieck-d

f;$ \ / y \I !>**■ K u t . 4

V V .......V<:' & v v

c : .. j__

0 2 °! Jii j

-3- ' !>.' !.5. I submit that the records ordered to be produced also belong to a class ot documents which it is the practice to keep secret for ensuring the proper functioning o f the public service.

6. 1 have carefully examined the cjuestion as to whether the disclosure o f the records would cause injury to'public interest, including India s relations with some friendly foreign countries and am bona - tide satisfied that their disclosure would cause injury to public interest, and that public interest would suffer thereby.

7. In the circumstances. I , with the approval o f the Head o f the Department . withhold permission to produce the said records or to disclose their contents or to give any evidence derived therefrom, and claim privilege under Section 123 and . 124 o f the Evidence Act , in respect o f the aforesaid' papers.(listed in AnnexureS; I & 1A).

8. However . I submit that I have no objection to the records in respect o f which privilege has been claimed being produced for perusal by the Hon ble Commission for satisfying itself about the bona- lides and genuineness o f the pleas o f privilege.

V '. 1 ;. :! ■! !:• U 'v 1 i j. ; ;■ J'9. In so far as documents ( I ) Cabinet Sect f s. meeting notice No.6/CM 95 (ii) dated 6.2.1995 and (2 ) Record Note o f discussion after Cabinet meeting held on 20.7.1994 are concerned. Ministry o f Home Affairs have already filed an A ffidavit dated 13.11.2000 before the Commission claiming privilege under Sections 123 and 124 o f the Evidence Act.

\ 1 •10. 1 hat with regard to file No. 12(226)/56-PM which contained Agenda Paper Cabinet decision regarding “ Investigation into the circumstances leading to the death o f Shri Subhash Chandra Bose” , it may be mentioned that as per the record in this Office, it was destroyed in 1972 in the course o f routine review weeding out o f old records which was done as per extent instructions . Photocopies o f two notes relating the destruction o f the file are at Annexure-II & IIA- respectively. It is further certified that no copy o f the file was retained in this O ffice at the time o f its destruction.

i 1 . That certain documents ot' tile No.23( 156)/51-PM required b>' the Commission were destroyed while recording that file in 1969 Hie li^t ot papers destroyed are already available in that file. N o copy o f the documents destroyed was retained in this Office.

12. That tile No.2(381)60-66-PM opened in I960, dealing withthe proposal to bring Shri Subash Chandra Bose’ s ashes from Tokyo and to put up a memorial to him in front o f the Red Fort iri Delhi, is not traceable. Renewed efforts made to trace the same have not home fruit.

-4-

p v - Y :> JCA ( J r '1P #ii-rv.>*fC.

13 That file No.2(64) 66-70-PM Vol.VI regarding death o f Netaji Subash Chandra Bose - Appointment o f an Enquiry Committee to go into circumstances o f Death, is also not traceable in this Office. Renewed efforts made to locate the tile have not been successful.

14 That with regard to Sr. No.5 o f File No.G . 12(3) 98. N G O and SI.No.127A o f file No.2(64) 56-66-PM Vol.II. it may be stated that although the letters have been marked as Confidential and Secret, respectively, these maybe treated as declassified since these two letters had originated from private individual party, and it is not possible at this stage, to gel in touch with them to get their concurrence lot dedassificaUon o f these letters. This Office has no objection to the disclosure o f the contents o f these two letters also bv the Commission.

15 That to the best o f mv knowledge . there arc no other files with '* *Q ^ h is Office, other than alreads sent to the Commission or mentioned atv\c.

Atevanl to the terms o f the Commission. ,— >KA(JLwj? ------

ma« j ) < S > D e r .......... -Verification

Deponent z.y iiifvo vo

F .Jarnail Singh, declare and affirm that what is stated above is true to my knowledge No part o f this Affidavit ts false and nothing material lias been concealed.

, . . Verified at New Delhi on 2000.,devtify toe wao Has

«gucd/pu*rrX m my present . f r T C C T U n ,

r [ ; > ^ &.K.. KAUfcA d v ocw c/N o tary N O T A R Y

Parliament Strci | Courv D E U i lN ew Delhi

' 1

*■

2 9 NOV 2003

^ I .F i le No. G -16(3 ) 95-NGO

^ 2 . File No. G-12» 18V94-NGO

A N N E X U R E -S

SI. No. 17 pages 20-21 c o f the file No.G- 1 6(3>95-N g 6-M H A 's D.O No. 1 12014; 27 '93-ISD.Ill dated N il from Sh. S.B. Chayan, Home Minister to Sh. P.V. Narasimha Rao. Prime Minister regarding mortal remains o f Netaji Subhash ChandraBose to be brought from Tokyo to India

!

SI. No.36 pages 4-5. £ o f the file No.di 12( 18) 94-NGO -M H A ’s U.O. No I 12014 27/93-IS(l).!lI) dated 9.8 94. from Sh. 1C. Padmanabhaiuh • Home Secretary to Sh. A N. Vanna . Principal Secretary to PM on controversy regarding Netaji's death and brinaing his ashes lo India from

y 3.File No. 870 I I P 10/93-Pol Vol.II

y 4 . File No. 2 (67 )78 -P M

MHAii Ic-A

Si. No l o Page .1 c o f the N o.870-1 I P J0/93-Pol Vol.II- 1.1.0. No. IT 2014- 2 7/93-IS. D . 1II 20.4.1994 from Sh. N.N.Vohra . Home Secretary to Sh. A N. Varma. Principal Secretary to PM - Controversy regarding Netaji ’ s death and bringing his ashes to India from Japan.

SI. No.3/C Page 4-6/c o f the file No.2(67) 78-PM M H A U.O No.2 5022 T 09 79-F.V I ! dated 6.2.1980 (with enclosures ifrom Shri Vm n Vasishtha , Under Scevctairy , Ministry o f Home Affairs to Sh. Prakash Shah .Joint Secretary . PM O regarding establishment o f the identity o f Ms. Anita P fa il daughter o f Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.

'! J

ANNEXURE ~IA.

File No. G-16(3)/95-NGO

2.File No. G~12(18)/94-NGO

v 3. File No. 2(67)/78-PM

x/4.Filr No. 870/1 l/P/lO/93-Pol.

Page Nos. 5&6 o f Note dated 21.11. i 995 o f Ms. iSujata Mehta. Director. PM O & notings thereon regarding proposal to bring the mortal remains o f Netan Subhash Chandra Bose from Japan to India

Page Nos I to 4 (Notes portion j) o f Notes dated 26.8.1994 & 2.9.1994 o f Ms. Sujata Mehta, Director. PM O and notings thereon about controversy regarding Netaji's death and bringing his ashes to India from Japan.

Page Nos. 2 to 3 o f Notes portion regarding doubts about the facts relating to w ife and daughter o f Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.

>1.11 Page Nos. 2 to 3 o f Notes portion relating to controversy regarding Netaji‘s death and bringing his ashes to India from Japan.

6

1A/Vf j j

xu s . HO.

lS(l0 4)/6 6 -PM

Subject.

Ratification of the Treaty of AJCession of the French Establishments , of Pondicherry, Karikal, Maha and Yanam.

JS.s,gx*3Aflc«

12.4.1957.

Iviiv. iK^t

2-cA A

12( 205)/56-PM

12(206)/56-PM

12(209)/56~PM Vols. I & I I .

12( 2lO)/56-PH

12( 21D/56-PM

12(2l2)/56-PM

12(215)/56-PM

12( 219 J/56-PM

12( 223)/5€-PM

12(22S)/56-PM

National Filia Board and Pi la Finance Corporation - Establishment of.

Construction of a Hotel in the Diplomatic Enclave by Ashoka Hotels Ltd.

Industrial Relations B i l l , 2954. /

r , l?i 2£9)/56~PM

x O '

i■> n 12( S30)/56-PH

-dev.

OtrvK*t^' crvv-e-2- ^-do~

-do-

National Book Trust - Establishment of an Autcncjacus. .

■ r&*- ■ do-

Conutruction of a Central Conference ( - ■' ‘Hall in New Delhi. * * ^do -

Law relating to Copyri jht-I.egialatiou ^ for aisfcnding and eon sol Juki ting the - /* /"

Indian Citizens&ip B i l l . %

Monetary Reward to the workers of Sindhrl F ertilizer Factory.

Coal Miners - Now Housing Sch«ae fo r-

Indten Delegation to H.H.H. tha Duke of Edinburgh' a Confwrence on tha social '■ responsibility of Industry. '

) /%•* /- -J 'A <50-5*

• d 0«

• do-

#*do~

•do*

L' 12( 226)/56-PM Investigation .into the e lrcuastancea '■,lesdin_£ t.o__th$. death of 'Shri Sub hash <Chander Bosa. ' -do-

Loan of Vs. 1.45 csores granted by the U.P. Govt, to M/S Sahu Jain Ltd. for a Soda Ash and Aiaaonima Chloride factory '*/"/ ' i In U.P. - l j jaction raised by tiie Central Govt, sboatftl^ gveeV'Cf - -de-

• - * :• ' i.f i*

Cantlixuancs of grants in-aid srantsd ^~r/’ ' ! under artic le 278 of the Constitution v to tha Part ’B’ tftataii after ths <-;v .r«-organisation of State a. -d »-

uk« 3 1 )/6 6-pm gHifiili0BuC0 5r * ^ 1iFiS SnpiBc^a8^tW *

Dirsotorata Oenorsl of Supplies and Disposals fo r porches of atoy*g. '■7 >! »<!«*•

it A fi n ,-i

No. 915/11/C/2/2000-P o l ( V o l . l )


SOUTH BLOCK

NEW DELHI - 110011 Dated : 29.11.2000

Shri P. K. Sengupta, WBHJS (R e td . )S e c r e ta r y ,

J u s t ic e Mukherjee Commission o f In q u iry , 'B ' B lock/Third F lo o r ,11A, M irza G h a l ib S t re e t ,C a lcu tta - 700087.

en

enable— ---------- _ — — ^ — ----- ^ _ ~ ----------------- --- -------, .nd toforward herew ith the A f f i d a v i t , du ly signed by Shri J a rn a i l SinghJ o in t S e c re ta ry , v e r i f i e d by the Notary , f o r record/perusa lo f the Commission.

D ire c t io n s contained in the

Proceedings dated 28.9.2000 read

with the|Proceed ings dated

23.03.2000, 13.06.2000 and’ ' I31.08.2000 o f J u s t ic e Mukherjee

Cbu-dL

SECRET----------

r MOST IMMEDIATE

MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS IS DIVISION (US D .IV )

* * * *

Prime M in is te r 's O f f ic e may p lease r e f e r to t h e i r U.O.No. G.16(4)/2000-NGO dated 21.11.2000 rega rd ing d e - c la s s i f i c a t io n of c l a s s i f i e d records to be submitted to J u s t ic e Mukherjee Commission oJL Inquiry.

2. Cabine2000-TS dated fo l low ing f i l e

cre ta r ia t vide t h e i r I .D .N o te No. 281/12/1/ had communicated that they have the

Tits concerning Netaj i / I .N .A . : -j . 4 . 9 .

/ cT o eT rm er flfs

( i ) p Cabinet Note No. 1/18/68-Coins dated 17th May/ 1968 regarding issue o f N e t a j i Subhas Chandra Bose commemorative co in/coins on 21.10.68 on the occasion of the s i l v e r j u b i l e e o f the founding of the Azad Hind Government.

/ ( i i )

( i i i )

Y ( i v )

"f (v )

' t ( v i )

( v i i )

Cabinet Note No. I/120 1 4 /2 7 /9 3 - IS (D . I l l ) dated 2.2.1995 regarding proposa l to br ing the mortal remains of Neta j i Subhas Chandra Bose from Japan to India .

Cabinet Note No. I/12014/9/77-D .I I I (S&P) dated 17.11.1977 regarding Motion in the Lok Sabha by Shri Samar Guha fo r a f r e sh inqu iry into the disappearance of N e t a j i Subhas Chandra Bose.

Cabinet Note No. 29/48/69 -Po l l . I I dated 18.2.1970 regarding f re sh inqu iry into the disappearance of N e t a j i Subhas Chandra Bose in 1945 - Demand fo r .

Cabinet Note No. 3 1 / 2 / 7 4 -P o l l (D . I I I ) dated 27.8.1974 regarding the repo r t o f the one-man Commission of Inquiry into the d isappearance o f Neta j i Subhas Chandra Bose.

Cabinet Note No. I / 1 2 0 1 4 /6 /9 0 - IS (D . I I I ) dated 10.1.1991 regarding d ispute rega rd ing ashes o f Neta j i Subhas Chandra Bose and a l s o con trove rsy about whether N e ta j i i s dead or s t i l l a l i v e .

Note fo r Committee o f S e c r e t a r i e s No. 1/12014/ 27/93-IS(D. I l l ) dated 16.5.1994 rega rd ing controversy about N e t a j i ' s death and a l l e g a t i o n s that he was an MI-6 agent.

3. The aspect whether these documents may be continuedas c l a s s i f i e d or d e -c l a s s i f ied has been considered in t h i s Ministry and it has been decided that documents at S I .N o s . ( i i )

and ( v i i ) may continue to be c l a s s i f i e d as these are those documents f o r which t h i s M in is t ry has a l r e ad y f i l e d a p r i v i l e g e a f f i d a v i t b e fo re Ju s t ic e Mukherjee Commission o f Inqu iry on 15.11.2000. As rega rd s documents at S I .N o s . ( i i i ) to ( v i ) , i t has been decided that these may be d e - c l a s s i f i e d . -------

With regard to document at S I .N o . ( i ) , s ince th i s p e r t a in s to M in is t ry o f Finance, Department of Economic A f f a i r s , i t i s that Department who has to dec ide about i t s continued c l a s s i f i c a t i o n or d e - c l a s s i f i c a t i o n . A re fe rence has a l r e a d y been made to Department o f Economic A f f a i r s as a l s o a reminder addressed to Under Sec re ta ry (C o in s ) , Department of Economic A f f a i r s but no response has so f a r been rece ived . A cco rd in g ly , i t i s requested that PMO may take up the matter d i r e c t l y with Department o f Economic A f f a i r s to decide about t h i s document.

4. This note is sues with the approva l o f Home Secre ta ry .

( V.P. BHATIA )

UNDER SECRETARY TO THE GOVT. OF INDIA.

Prime M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e (Smt. Archna Ranjan, D i r e c t o r ) , South Block , New D e lh i .

MHA I .D .N o te No. 1-12014/13/200 0 - IS ( D. I I I ) dated 29.11.2000.

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/ *Confidential

Most Immediate

D.O.No.G.16(4)/2000-NGO December 7, 2000

Dear

Government o f India had appointed Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry to enquire into the alleged disappearance o f Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. In response to the directions issued by the Commission, this Office had sent photocopies o f files, including classified files, to the Commission. A request was made to the Commission that while they may make use o f the top secret papers available in the Prime Minister’s files, in camera, they may consider not publishing the same. The Commission, however, directed this Office to assign reasons for claiming privilege in respect o f classified papers.

2. As per the extant orders, concurrence o f the Ministry/Department from which the classified paper originated, is necessary, for downgradation/declassification o f the classification already given. A reference was accordingly made to the Director General, National Museum. Copies o f the classified documents from our files were also attached for ready reference, on 14/15-9-2000. Final decision from the DG, National Museum has not yet been received so far.

3. DG, National Museum has taken up the matter with the Department of Culture, for conveying approval for declassification o f the papers already forwarded to the Department o f Culture by the National Museum, on 27th November, 2000. We shall be grateful if you would kindly look into the matter and have the views/comments regarding declassification o f the National Museum papers, expedited.

Dr. R V .V .Iyer,Secretary,Department o f Culture, Shastri Bhavan,New Delhi.

Yours sincerely,

sr.*r. r. (<£T.aft.3fr.)/pM0^TRf/lssued..............................f e w * / Date...... ...................

Confidential

ASHOK SAIKIA D.O .N o.G .16(4)/2000-N G QJoint Secretary Tel: 301 6996

D a te d :D e c e m b e r^ 2 0 0 0

Dear Dr. Iyer,

Government of India had appointed Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry to enquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subash Chander

Bose, in response to the directions issued by the Commission, this office had sent photo copies of files, including classified files, to the Commission. A

request was made to the Commission that while they may make use of the top secret papers available in the Prime Minister's files, in camera, they may

consider not publishing the same. The Commission, however, directed this

office to assign reasons for claiming privilege in respect of classified papers.2. As per the extant orders, concurrence of the Ministry/Department from

Vw h *i£ the classified paper originated, is necessary, for downgradation/ declassification of the classification already given. A reference was accordingly

made to the Director General, National Museum. Copies of the classified documents fronjour files were also attached for ready reference, on 14/15-9- 2000. Final decision from the DG, National Museum has not yet been received so far.3. DG, National Museum has taken up the matter with Ms Humera Ahmed, j *Director. Department of Culture .for conveying approval for declassification of ^ j* c

• £ ,the papers already forwarded to the Department of Culture by the National j C, Museum.on 27th November, 2000. W e shall be grateful if you would kindly

look into the matter and have the views/comments regarding declassification of the National Museum papers, expedited.

Yours sincerely,

_[^SH O K-SA4KtA )-------

Dr. R.V.V. Iyer, A a f XSecretary, )Department of Culture, Shastri Bhavan, U JNew Delhi. /

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J u s t ic e M .K . M u k h e r je e C o m m is s io n o f inquiry' A

Proceedings dated 23 .11 .2000 (Fifth)Held at the Seminar Hall, Annexe l iu iM ’n ?, M a lia ja ti Sadan,

106, Chittaranjan Avenue, C3l-2v.Ua 700 007' ' ' • ■ \ y !J ' : J . * • ’

A. E x a m in a t io n 0- W it n e s s e s •’ . •

November 23 2000 1, Of the witnesses summoned, Shri SurnanChattopadhyay, Shri/Af 111iuyOWIlC|upLa, v n u utnu,, ~ . . . l p . j ii n l I ., ,ri D i n a h i

Roy and Shri Jayanta Roy are present Shri Suman Chattopadhyay, S h r i .

Barun Sengupta, Shri Anindya Sengupta and Shri Pabitra Kumar Ghosh

have been duly examined on oath a s ‘witness Nos. 6, 7, 8, and 9

' ' respectively and then discharged. Some documents, have been admitted .. '

' into evidence> id mdi'ked as'Exhibits 6, 6a and 6a/1 oh admission by the ■

; GrYV.6, Exhibits 7 to 7w on admission by tho C.W.7, Exhibit 8 on admission

by C.W.8 and Exhibits 9 to 9m on admission by C.W.9, without any objection

■ . -by any^of the parties. The examination of Dr: Purabi Roy as C.W.10 is now

taken up. In her examination she testifies that the statements that she made

. . in her affidavit filed before the Commission are correct.-.Accordingly, th e .

affidavit filed by her is marked Exhibit 10. However, her examination cannot

' be concluded as she intends to bring on record a number of documents f o r - V .

which nc/list is forthcoming and many of which are in Russian language, Dr. .

Roy is, therefore, asked to file a list of documents and the translated version .

• in English of those written in Russian language, with a supporting a ffidav it..'

— that the translation has been done correctly arid truly. To enable her to .

• / comply .1with the above directions, her further examination Is deferred till the.

. .next hearing and she is asked to appear cn that date,. The suggestion o f .

' some of tlie parties present that the documents in Russian language be

. translated by .some other translator and not by Dr. Roy, as she figures as an

witness, Will be considered if and when any genuine complaint i s m a d e

about the authenticity of the translation. Examination o f Sri Jayanta Rpy i s ;

also deferred as .from the affidavit filed by Dr. Roy it appears 'tha t he is .;

supposed to corroborate her testimony. •

2. :The ether witness summoned, namely, Smt. Probha Jagannathan, is '

not present though summons was duly ^ent by speedpost to hOr at h e r . •’1 • .

address as furnished to the Commission. (Let fresh

Comd.. .p/2

asking her lo appear on the next date of hearing. Let summons be alscTi

served upon Sri Jayanta Roy to appear on thpt date.

i

B . F u r t h e r O r d e r s / D ir s c i iq n s / O b s e r v a t io n s ;» ,s

.- ’ ’ . f'

J •1; The prayer o f Smt, Archana Ranjan, Director, Prime Minister's office,

seeking 15 days’ time lo file a consolidated affidavit covering all the points

mentioned in the p ro c e e d in g ^ ths Commission from time to time is allowed:.

The above office is d irected.to file the same by Tp. 12.2000 through an

o ffice rno t beiow the rank of a Joint Secretary, [ ' y.' * • ' • 1 ’ •

2, In spite o f repeated directions,, no representative o f the Ministry of

H om e’ Affairs has yet come to identify tho documents referred to in

paragraph 3(b)(i) o f the order dated September 28, -2000 and prove their

authenticity. ■ . •.

3. ; The application filed by Shri Karnal Pandey, Secretary, Ministry o f

Home Affairs, Government o f India claim ing privilege under. Sections 123

and 124 o f ths Evidence Act and Article 74(2) o f the Constitution o f India in

respect of. (he contents o f the files mentioned in paragraph B(iiJ of the

proceedings dated August 31, 2900 will be taken up.fo f hearing in the next. i . v. ■

s it t in g ;^ — '— • — r- ■:...•.. I

4. ■. The documents.mentioned in paragraph 3(b)(iii) o f the order dated

September 28, 2000 h a v e ,n e ith e r been p rod uce d nor. a n y explanation

offered for such failure. j

5. The directions contained in paragraph C(i) o f the order dated August

31, 2000 have no t been fully complied, w ith J n that,, the complete original.,

records o f the proceedings of the Shah Nawaz Khan Committee o f inquiry

including the evidence recorded and the documents produced befbr6 the

said Committee have not yet been sent. However, four letters, one p a p e r.

cutting, /.me printed copy of tho report o f ths Committee, one partly torn copy -

of the statement ot one Shri Mathura Malanga Thevor, MLA bearing some,

initials and one full signature purported to be o f ; Shri .Thevor, some

photographs of witnesses and 407 pages, typed but unauthenticated,

purporting to contain statements o f some witnesses before th e . saidi * ' , •

Committee, were received eaner. ’ • '

C o n td . ’.p /3

The Ministry of External Affairs have since senf phofoeopios o f the following

files. •

1. File No. 25/4/NGO - Vol. I

' I ' I File No. 25/4/NGO—Vol. II (LW-KW) ______ _____________ _ _ _ _ _ rasNo>25/4/NGO- Vol.til(LW-Arow) ■ • • •; •

4 / . ' File No. 25/4/NGO - Vol. IV (LW-KW.i) •' | •

.5. FiloNo.25/4/NGO-Vol.V(LW-KW.I, II & III) '• / .. ' .

• 6; . Fils No. 25/13 /N G O -52 (LW-KW) . ' . . . ! . , .

7. File No. 25/14/NGO— 52

8. . ....FileNo.25/15/NGO—52 , . . .■' 9. ■ File No. 25/16/NGO—53 . .. . '

6(i) On March 23, 2000 the Commission directed the Government o f

West Bengal to produce all the files relating to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

•which, were lying in. the custody cf tho Special Branch, Calgutla Police

including file No, 269/45 relating to 'Prisoner/Release - Revised.Policy o f

Government, for the release of Security Prisoners’ containing Memo. No; SS

i?9/SR dated 31st Auguot, 1045 from the Commissioner o f Police, Calcutta to

H.S.E. S ieves, the then Chief Secretary,.Government., of Bengal, Express'

letter No. 1234 dated 25.8.1945 of Bengal Government and confidential note,

dated,3.9,1945 of D.R. Hardwick, D.I.G., I.B. In purported compliance of the

above direction, the Government .of West Bengal sent copies,of;,64 files along .

with lists thereof and also filed an affidavit dated. July .20, 2000 through Shri

Aloknalh fehattacharyya, Special Secretary to (he Government o f west • • •• f ‘

Bengal, Home (Political) Department wherein it -is,stated,. .. .Inter alia, as

fo llows; : ■ .... . ... .

“8 f That the Government of West Bengal caused a thorough search

in the offices of Special Branch, Calcutta Police, Intelligence Branch,.

West Bengal and State Archives; that there is no such tile bearing No.

269/45 regarding "Prisoner/Release-Revised Policy of Government fo r .

the release of Security Prisoners" in the records' o f Calcutta Police;

that File No, 269/45 (Prisoners/Release-Revised Policy o f

Government for the release c f Security Prisoners) containing Memo.

No. SS. 129/SB dated 31slAugust,1945 from the Commissioner of

Pojice, Calcutta to M.S.E. Stevens, tho then Chief Secretary Govl.

Bengal, express letter No. 1234 dated 25.8.45 o f Bengal Govemm

and Confidential note dated 3.9,45 of D.R. Hardwick, D.I.G., I.B. also. » ' i j •

do not figure in the Index Dock o f the Intelligence Branch, W est

Bengal; that there is no record preserved in the custody o f State

Archives relating to the disappearance of Netaji Subhas Chandra________ - ------------------------- ------------------------------------- r-------T-------- •.. . '•

Bose and other papers connected thereto including- copy, o f Bengal

■ Government’s express letter No. 1 234dated 25.8.45, .

■. ; Copies o f correspondences o f Commissioner o f Police, Calcutta,.

Dy. Inspector General of Police, Intelligence Branch, W est Bengal and

Director o f Archives, Higher Education (State. Archives) D ep it in this

connection are annexed herewith as Annexure "A” collectively."• v r ' ' . * »" '

Thereafter, following further, direction o f the Com mission,, the

G overnm ent,o f W est Bengal produced the orig inal.Index Books relating to

• files maintained by the Special and Intelligent Branches .of Police. . On

sc ru tin yo f the said Index Books and the copies o f files sent, the Commission

directed the Government o f W est Bengal to produce copies o f some more

files reference o f which was in the Index-Books but not sent..to the

Commission earlier. In compliance with the above direction, the Government ;

o f W est Bengal sent copies of 13 (thirteen) more files including File No.’.

269/45 which contained memos and.Note referred lo hereinbefore!.. ,

6(ii) [ From the above resums o f facts, it is manifest that the earlier quoted

statements made by Shri Aloknath Bhattacharyya^in his affidavit filed on July

28, 2000,are not a t all correct. Since, however, Shri Bhattacharyya claims in '• : • i

his above affidavit that those averm ents 'w ere made on. the basis o f

information received from Shri D.C. Bajpai, Commissioner o f Police, Calcutta,\ - ■ • * • • •. • -1 ■

and Shri A.K, Sen, Deputy Inspector General of Police, I .B ., West Bengal ,

and has, in support thereof, annexed as part of his affidavit, the: copies o f

written commu/iications from them in this, respect, it is patently Clear that the

above two/responsible senior Police Officers furnished wrong information for. . . ’ r • *

onward communication to this Commission. Tho Cofnmission therefore calls .{ .

foi the explanation o f tlie above two Police Officers for furnishing such wrongj j " .

information, by the next date of hearing. i ;• r • •J i . *i ! * * •' . . .

! 1 Contd..J,p/5

FROM : JMCI FAX NO. : 091 033 2 lb 2765 DEC. 07 2000 01:51PM P6

A. \

7. Since the observations made by the Commission in Paragraph (e) of

its proceedings dated 28.9.2000 have not been given due importance and* • • ' • • • • •

-priority they deserve, the Commission takes serious view of- the 'matter and

feels that lime Is now ripe to consider the'question of invoking .the. powers

under the provisions of section 5(4) of the Commission o f Inquiry Act, 1.952

for recurring non-compliancc with tiie orders/directions of the Commission.

In this connection,-the attention of the authorities concerned i s ,once more

drawn to orders dated June 13, 2000, as quoted in paragraph 3(e) of the

proceedings dated September 28, 2000 as also those communicated through

various letters sent pursuant to the orders of the Commission.(q ,

(M.K. Mukherjee)—■' Chairman.—:—

I

i . '! » 11-.-.- <' «» .j ■' ■; \ In*-I ’I

■ j. I '■ I

BJr Fax i 011*301-9546 011-301-6867

Kr#a* The O ff lc - of Sri Taraicasvar PaAdvaceta,

3r. Counssi to Gavt# af India, r«jn'bla Jiattca Mulcharjae

CohjsI s s ion •Raaa Na* 5, Sar-As9oc

ar 0,2000.

ban* Ranjan,facta

*$ iB 9 Mialatar’a Off ico|

Dear p a * urn,

Ra« Praeaadlag bafar* the Hon*bl« tut Lea

Kindly ask 3r I *..Jt U* Sacy. a f yaux

s «,id tha ra i « v ; *1 Hulas ar Orders or Law a a ta a l l a c a t l i

af daa l lag (aa my laadar Sri Tarakeswar, had disc

him an 30.11.2000 in Calcutta) fa r ths purjwsa * r haarir

p r i v i l e g e , as c;»lfflad by you, sn the next bear

Canmiaaian an 21 nd Dae«Bibar,2CA , Piaasa aak t® sam*

bafare 20th December, U00„

i f t

Thanking you,

v\\-e"r « i '

2 > o a t| d ig c to ](i

.......

2 91 33 243 2313 :-h= mSS.CAL'H.C

(25)

FrpmsT*rakesvar P a l , Advacate,

t. .nc t o v t . af India,• JurtLca Mukhsrjaa Cearaieaie

‘ar* Aaaaciatian, R#oa No# 5, fllih Court. .C alcu tta

;-?*>2ZBS m .^JUS2°

T#fthri Jayant Prasad Jaint Secretary,Ministry ef Externa Affairs , Gevt. ef India,Seuth SU ck ,jto U P liB A lJ iO ja O a *

Dear S ir ,>set f r i c * f - , *re tn« I b n ' b l a Ju i - t lc#

Mukr.«rj«» **n ias ian » f Inquiry »n ]•

Pla»aa onsare,i*u.«dl«t's r, ce o f the r a ta l s It?, ay leadar Sri Tarakaawar Pa** c ••' in Paragraphs ■U b) ef bis Fax matter dateo 30** .. ,2000,b afar* fOth Dacea without f a i l . ( T h e aext hearing has >een raf lxe* an fSno2000). ----- "

Thanking yea,Yoxrs faJLthf

BY FAX Most Immediate

N o .G -1 6 (4 )/2 000 -N G OPRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE

SOUTH BLOCK NEW DELHI-110 011

D ate d 13th D ecem ber, 2000

To

Shri Tarakesuar Pal, NAdvocate & Sr. Counsel for Govt, of India,Bar Association Room No.5,High Court,Calcutta.

Sub:- Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry - hearing of 22.12.2000.

I am directed to refer to your letter dated 8th December, 2000 addressed to Smt. Archana Ranjan, Director, PMO (received on FAX) on the above subject and to forward herewith extracts from the Manual of Office Procedure, and Allocation of Business Rules (Govt, of India) for your information. In case any further information/clarification is required, please get in touch with us, immediately.

Sir,

Yours faithfully,

(ARCHADirector

Tel: 301 3931 FAX No. 011-301-9545

011-301-6857

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REPORT

T IM E NAME F A . TEL

1 4 / 1 2 / 2 0 6 0 10 :14

IAHDARD

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C H A PT E R XI

RECORDS MANAGEMENT

96. Activities involved in records m anagem ent.— Records'management covers the activities concerning recording, retention, retrieval and weeding out.

97. Stage of recording.— Files should be recorded after action on the issues considered thereon has been com pleted. However, files o f a purely ephemeral nature containing papers o f little reference or research value may be destroyed after one year without being form ally recorded.

98. Procedure for recording.— (1) After action on the issue(s) considered on the file has been com pleted, the dealing hand/initiating officer, in consultation with his supervisory officer, should close and record the file in the manner prescribed below —

(a) indicate the appropriate classification o f record (vide para. 99 below) and in the case o f class ‘C ’ also specify the retention period and the year o f destruction on the file cover;

(b) where necessary, revise the title o f the file so that it describes adequately the contents at that stage;

(c) get the file indexed (vide para. 101 below) unless it is to be retained for less than 10 years from the date o f closing;

(d) extract from the file, copies o f important decisions, documents, etc., as are considered useful for future reference and add them to the standing guard file/precedent book;

(e) remove from the file all superfluous papers such as reminders, acknowledgements, routine slips, working-sheets, rough drafts, surplus copies, etc ., and destroy them ;

(J) complete all references and, in particular, mark previous and later references on the subject on the file cover;

(g) pass on the file to the record clerk;

(2) The record clerk w ill—

(a) complete colum ns (4) and (5) o f the file register and correct the entry in column (2) where necessary;

(b) enter the file number in column (2) o f the register for watching progress o f recording (Appendix 24);

(c) write the word ‘recorded’ prominently in red ink, across the entries in the file movement register;

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A (d) indicate page numbers and other references (except references to alphabetical slips) made in pencil/in ink;

(e) indicate the year o f review on the file cover in respect of class ‘C ’ files;

(/) prepare fresh covers, where necessary, with all the entries already made thereon; and

(g ) hand over the file to the daftry.

(3) The daftry will repair the damaged papers, if any, stitch the filc and, show it to the record clerk for making entries in the register far watt ching progress o f recording (Appendix 24) before keeping it iivthe bundle o f recorded files. («'> vj ’ :

99. Classification o f records.—Files may be recorded under any one o f the following c l a s s e s u ■ . .<! w i

(1) Class ‘A ’ meaning ‘keep and microfilm ’.—This classification will be adopted for— ' ■

(a) files which qualify for permanent preservation for administrative purposes (vide Part ‘A ’ o f Appendix 25) and which; have to be microfilmed because they contain—

(0 a document so precious that its original must be preserv- U '- i i ed >ntact and access to it in the original form must be

restricted to the barest minimum; pr(ii) material likely to be required for frequent reference by

, different parties.(b) files o f historical importance such as those listed in Part ‘B’

o f Appendix 25. v 1

(2) Class 'B ’ meaning ‘keep but do not microfilm ’.—This class will cover fires required for permanent preservation for administrative purposes, such as those listed in Part ‘A ’ o f Appendix 25, but not containing material o f the kind mentioned in (/) or (ii) o f sub-para. (1) («r) above.

(3) Class ‘C ’ meaning ‘keep fo r specified period only’.— Tl\is class will include files o f secondary importance and having reference value for a .limited period not exceeding 10 years.

100. Stage of ipdexing— Files will be indexed at the time of their recording. Only thole files which are categorised as ‘A’ and ‘B’ and those in the ‘C ’ category which are to be retained for 10 years (vide para. 99) will be indexed. . 1 , >

101. Manner o f indexing.—-While preparing a file for record (vide para. 98) the dealing hand or the desk assistant will underline—

(a) the ‘index head’, i.e., the standard head or the most important catch-word in the standard head which will naturally occur

RECORDS m a n a g e m e n t

©

82 SWAMY’S MANUAL ON OFFICE PROCEDURE

in respect o f records, relating to establishment, personnel and housekeeping matters com m on to all departments, follow the ‘schedule o f periods o f retention for records com m on to all departm ents’ issued by the Department o f Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances;

(c) in respect o f records prescribed in this M anual, observe the retention periods specified in Appendix 28; and

(d) in respect o f records, connected with its substantive functions, issue a departmental retention schedule prescribing the periods for which files dealing with specified subjects should be preserved in consultation with the National Archives o f India.

(2) The above schedules should be reviewed at least once in 5 years.

106. Custody o f records.— (I) Recorded files will be kept serially arranged in the sections/desks concerned for not more than one year, after which they will be transferred to the departmental record room . For files due for such transfer the register at Appendix 24 will be consulted.

(2) In the event o f transfer o f work from on e section to another, the relevant files also will be transferred, after being listed in duplicate in the form at Appendix 29. One copy o f this list will be retained by the section taking over the files for its record and the other acknowledged and returned to the section transferring them

(3) Files transferred by a section to the departmental record room will be accompanied by a list o f files (Appendix 29) in duplicate. The departmental record room will verify that all the files mentioned in the list have been received, retain one copy o f the list and return the other, duly signed, to the section concerned. In the record room , these lists will be kept sectionwise in separate file covers.

(4) The departmental record room will maintain a record review register (Appendix 30) in which a few pages will be allotted for each future year. Class ‘C ’ files marked for review in a particular year will be entered in the pages earmarked for that year in the register.

_(.5) Files surviving the review undertaken on their attaining the 25th year o f life [ vide para. l0773)T w fll be stamped prominently as ‘transferred to N A P and retired to the N ational Archives. Files transferred to the N ational Archives will be accompanied bv a list o f files inJriDlicMeTone copy oTwhich will be returned bv the National Archives, duly signed, to the departmental record room .

107. Review and weeding o f records.— (1) A class ‘C ’ file will be reviewed on the expiry o f the specified retention period and weeded out unless there are sufficient grounds warranting its further retention. Justification for retaining a file after review will be recorded on the file with the approval o f Branch O fficer/D ivisional Head concerned. Retention after a review will be for a period not exceeding ten years.

(2) „Class ‘A ’ and class ‘B’ files will be reviewed on attaining the 25th year o f their life in consultation with the National Archives o f India. In tfiesc reviews, the need for revismgtfie~oripirrat classification o f class ‘B* files may also be considered.

(3) The year o f review o f class ‘C’ files be reckoned with reference to the year o f their closing and that for class ‘A ’ and class ‘B’ files with reference to the year o f their opening.

(4) Beginning in January each year, the departmental record room will send to the sections/desks concerned the files due for review in that year, together with a list o f files in the form at Appendix 31, in four lots— in January, April, July and September.

(5) Files received for review will be examined by, or under the directions o f, the Section Officer or the desk functionary concerned and those no longer required will be marked for destruction. Other files may be marked for further retention vide sub-paras. (2) and (3).

(6) After review the record clerk/desk assistant will make entries o f revised classification/retention period in the file registers and return them to the departmental record room along with the list (Appendix 31) after completing column (3) thereof.

(7) The departmental record room will—

(a) transfer class ‘A ’ and class ‘B’ files surviving the review undertaken at the 25th year o f their life vide sub-para. (3) above, to the National Archives;

(b) in the case o f other files—(0 destroy those marked for destruction, after completing

column (4) o f the list o f files (Appendix 29); and(ii) restore the rest, i.e ., those marked for further retention,

to the departmental record stacks after making the required entries in the record review register in the case o f class ‘C ’ files.

(8) Records not falling within the category of files, e.g., publications, spare copies o f circulars, orders, will also be subjected to periodic reviews at suitable intervals and those no longer needed, should be weeded out. To facilitate such reviews each section will maintain a register in the form at Appendix 32.

108. Records maintained by officers and their personal staff.—Each department may issue departmental instructions to regulate the review and weeding out o f records maintained by officers and their personal staff.

109. Requisitioning o f records.—(1) No recorded file will be issued from the sectional, departmental or Archival records except against a signed requisition in form O & M 65 in the case o f Archival records and in the form at Appendix 33 in the case o f other records.

RECORDS MANAGEMENT 83

RECORDS MANAGEMENT 85

(2) H ow records are created.— The creation o f records in any organisation takes place during the process o f its activities/operations. The records in Government O ffices are created because o f the following factors:—

(a) External Activities.—These take the shape o f all com m unications received from outside.

(b) Internal Activities.—These take the shape o f written com munications conveying inform ation/decision from all levels o f authorities and analysis o f various reports/returns, etc.

(c) Mini Records.—They show the essential o f original documents and take the shape o f running summary o f facts, standing notes and standing guard files, etc. These save officers’ time and help in taking quick decisions.

(3) Why it is necessary to retain records.— It becomes necessary to retain records—

(/) for planning and scheduling Governm ent’s activities as information required for this purpose cannot be retained by human m em ory;

(ii) retention o f record is a legal requirement in certain cases;(iii) for fixing responsibility for matters com ing before Audit and

Parliament, and its Com m ittees and other public bodies;(iv) for historical value;(v) for ensuring element o f rationality;

(W) to make available needed facts, figures, correspondence, etc., for future planning;

(v/7) to ensure continuity in administration;(viii) to ensure impartial treatment to all citizens;

(ix) to ensure that tax payers’ interests are protected at all times and that there is no irregularity in financial transactions; and

(jc) for providing evidence in cases o f disputes.

(4) Problem o f R ecords.— 1. In view o f the proliferation o f Government activities in all spheres, the paper record has multiplied manifold and has increased beyond all proportion. To give an idea o f the immensity o f the problem, one may go through the report o f the Tara Chand C om mittee on Archival Legislation o f 1960, in which the total accumulations o f Central Ministries and other Government Departments and Organisations had been estimated about 40 and 136 linear miles o f shelving respectively, the total being 11 times the size o f the National Archives Repository, which has 16 miles shelves. The annual consum ption o f file covers by all the departments o f the Central Governm ent had been estimated at Rs. 2 crores. A proper check on the growth o f records is, therefore, essential right from the stage o f creation. It is to be noted here that the National Archives o f India m aintains records which have been given to it only up to the year 1947.

APPENDIX 25

ILLUSTRATIVE LIST OF RECORDS FIT FOR PERMANENTPRESERVATION BECAUSE OF

(A) THEIR VALUE FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PURPOSES, AND (B) THEIR HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE

[ vide Para. 99 (1) (a), (b) and (2) ]

A . Records o f value for administrative purposes

Papers o f the following categories will normally be among those required to be kept indefinitely for administration’s use:—

(1) Papers containing evidence o f rights or obligations o f or against the Government, e.g., title to property, claims for compensation not subject to a time-limit, formal instruments such as awards, schemes, orders, sanctions, etc.

(2) Papers relating to major policy decisions, including those relating to the preparation o f legislation.

(3) Papers regarding constitution, functions and working o f important committees, working groups, etc.

(4) Papers providing lasting precedents for important procedures, e.g ., administrative memoranda, historical reports and summaries, legal opinions on important matters.

(5) Papers concerning rules, regulations, departmental guides or instructions o f general application.

(6) Papers relating to salient features o f organisation and staffing o f Government departments and offices.

(7) Papers relating to important litigation or causes celebres in which the administration was involved.

B. Records of Historical importance

Much o f the material likely to be preserved for administrative purposes will be o f interest for research purpose as w ell; but papers o f the following categories should be specially considered as of value to historians:—

(1) Papers relating to the origin o f a department or agency o f Government ; how it was organised; how it functioned; and (if defunct) how and why it was dissolved.

(2) Data about what the department/agency accomplished. (Samples by way of illustration may be enough; but the need for such samples may be dispensed with where published annual reports are available).

ARECORDS FIT FOR PERMANENT PRESERVATION 147

*3) Papers relating to a change o f policy. This is not always easy to recognise, but watch should be kept for (a) summary for a Minister, (b) the appointm ent o f a departmental or interdepartmental com m ittee or working group, and (c) note for the Cabinet or a Cabinet Com m ittee. Generally, there should be a conscious effort to preserve all such papers, including those reflecting conflicting points o f view. In the case o f interdepartmental comm ittees, however, it is important that a com plete set o f papers be kept only by the departments mainly concerned — usually the one providing secretariat.

(4) Papers relating to the im plem entation o f a change o f policy, including a com plete set o f instructions to executive agencies, etc ., and relevant forms.

(5) Papers relating to a well-known public or international event or cause celebre, or to other events w hich gave rise to interest or controversy on the national plane.

(6) Papers containing direct reference to trends or developments in political, social, econom ic or other fields, particularly if they contain unpublished statistical or financial data covering a long period or a wide area.

(7) Papers cited in or noted as consulted in connection with, officia l publications.

(8) Papers relating to the more important aspects o f scientific or technical research and developm ent. '

(9) Papers containing matters o f local interest o f which it is unreasonable to expect that evidence will be available locally, or comprising synopsis o f such information covering the whole country or a wide area.

(10) Papers relating to obsolete activities or investigations, or to abortive schemes in important fields.

(11) A ny other specific categories o f records which, according to the departmental instructions issued in consultation with the National A rchives, have to be treated as genuine source o f inform ation on any aspect o f h istory— political, so c ia l econom ic, etc., or are considered to be o f biographical or antiquarian interest.

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PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE (PRADHAN MANTRI KARYALAYA)

1. To provide secretarial assistance to the Prime Minister.

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Jarnail Singh Joint Secretary to The Prime MinisterTel: 301 5697

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P rim e M in is t e r s O ffice N e w D e lh i n o o n

D.O. No. G.16(4)/2000-NGO Date: 14.12.2000

Dear

Please refer to D.O. letter of even number dated 7.12.2000 from Ms. Archana Ranjan, Director in this Office, regarding declassification of classified papers which originated from the National Museum/Department of Culture, so that Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry, appointed to enquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subash Chandra Bose, could make use of those records in connection with the Inquiry and to make the same public, etc. Now the Commission has fixed the next date of hearing at Calcutta on 22.12.2000. We would be expected to apprise the Commission of the position with regard to classified papers pertaining to the National Museum/Department of Culture. It would be possible to formulate our stand/views only if we know the final decision of the National Museum/Department of Culture, sufficiently in advance.

2. We shall be grateful if you could kindly look into the matter and have the views/comments regarding declassification of the National Museum papers, expedited.

Dr. R.V.V. Iyer, Secretary,Dept, of Culture, Shastri Bhavan, New Delhi.

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MINISTRY OF TOURISM & CULTURE DEPARTMENT OF CULTURE

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA NEW DELHI • 110001

Humera ^hmed Director (H)Tel No # 3382797 14 December 2000

DO No # F.NO.13-39/2000-M.T

A cDear

This is with reference to your letter

date-3 4.12.2000 to the Secretary, Deott. of

Culture, regarding de-classification of the

N ational Museum oaoers required by 'the Justice

Mukhe r j e e Commission, which is enquiring into

alleged disaooearance of Netaji Subhash

C h a n d r a Bose. The matter i3 being addressed

at the highest level and will revert back to

you very soon.

With regards,

. Yours sincerely,

V\ Vj (Humera ^hmed)

Ms \rchana Ranjan I DirectorPrime Minister's Office New Delhi

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Dr. R. V. Vaidyanath-n Ayyar Tel. : 3386995, 3381040

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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF TOURISM «. CULTURE

DEPARTMENT OF CULTURE NEW DELHI - 110001

D .O .N o .1 3 - 3 8 / 2 000-M.I December 15, 2000

Dear Shri Mansingh,

y,P l e a s e f i n d e n c l o s e d h erew ith a coDy o f the U.O.

No. 1 6 ( 4 ) / 2OOO-NGO d ated 1 4 /1 5 th September 2000 r e c e i v e d from th e Prime M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e (PMO) regard in q d e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n o f documents / a r t i c l e s d e p o s i t e d in th e N a t io n a l Museum.

^ As p e r t h e i nformation o f N a t io n a l Museum, t h eMinis t r y o f E x tern a l A f f a i r s d e p o s i t e d a box marked a s~T 0P

vff \ SECREf'F, which was handed over by Sh r i Devi Dayal B h a t ia ,^ r[VJL Deputy S e c r e t a r y , Min i s t r y o f ^ x t e rn a l~ 'Ofairs_J_AD I) t o Shr i

JufNat'Tonal Museum) on 30th December 1953. E n t r i e s were made on* J & th

P ^ u j u e v i. j f u x i iJ . x. j _v jl u a l c l u a x no. j. a x l q n u -L /

J.K.Roy 7 S u p e r i n t e n d e n t , C en tra l Asian Antiquity . Museum

y i ^ t h e same d a f irT~the General A c c e s s io n R e g i s t e r (GAR) o f the f- N a t io n a l Museum (Copy o f the r e l e v a n t pages o f th e GAR

e n c l o s e d f o r ready r e f eren ce )* PMO have asked t h i s Department whether a v iew , i f any, has been taken regard ing the d e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n ( o f t h e s e a r t i c l e s ) and p ro d u ct io n b e fo r e

Commission.r\ rv, \ V uc^xaooi i l a

>y^ a vyx y ^ hge Inc»u i r yterms o f th e Manual o f Departmental S e c u r i t y

vCtiTj v '1 I n s t r u c t i o n s i s s u e d in 1994 by th e M in i s t r y o f Home A f f a i r s ,* * documents , e t c . once c l a s s i f i e d as TOP SECRET, e t c , by th e

Department from where th e concerned c l a s s i f i e d documents / m a t e r i a l have o r i g i n a t e d , o n ly t h a t Department s h a l l be competent t o r e v i s e th e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n / g r a d i n g o f the same.

In terms o f t h e s e i n s t r u c t i o n s , MEA i s th e competent M i n i s t r y / a u t h o r i t y t o tak e a view on th e d e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n o f t h e s e r e c o r d s / a r t i c l e s .

In v iew o f t h e urgency e x p r e s s e d by th e PMO, you may l i k e t o ta k e n e c e s s a r y a c t i o n im m ed ia te ly , i e n c l o s e for ready r e f e r e n c e , a l e t t e r from S h r i J a r n a i l S ingh , JS, PMO in them a t t e r .

E n e l : As above

Shri L a l i t Mansingh Fore ign S e c r e t a r y ,South B lo ck , New D e l h i .


( R . V . Vadyanatha Ayyar)

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D.O.No.G-16(4)/2000-NGO December 15, 2000v >

Dear

Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry has been appointed by the Government of India to enquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subash Chandra Bose. We have claimed privilege in respect of certain classified documents available on our files. The Commission is considering the request in its hearing on 22nd December, 2000 at Calcutta. The Government Counsel assisting this Office has desired to know the details of the business allocated to this Office so that these are handy while arguing the case before the Commission.

2. We shall be grateful if an up-to-date copy each of the Allocation of Business Rules and Transaction of Business Rules, along with instructions, if any, regarding disclosure of contents of the instructions, is sent to us for reference in this Office, immediately.

Yours sincerely,

RaniJArchana Ranjan)

Shri V.K. GaubaDeputy Secretary Cabinet SecretariatRashtrapati Bhawan New Delhi

Jarnail Singh Joint Secretary to The Prime Ministera: 301 5697

ConfidentialBy Special Messenger m

)/ ? / .

110011

Prim e M in ist e r ’s O ffice N ew D elhi n o o i l

D.O. No. G.16(4)/2000-NGO Date: 14.12.2000

Dear Dr. R.V.V. Iyer,

Please refer to D.O. letter of even number dated 7.12.2000 from Ms. Archana Ranjan, Director in this Office, regarding declassification of classified papers which originated from the National Museum/Department of Culture, so that Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry, appointed to enquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, could make use of those records in connection with the Inquiry and to make the same public, etc. Now the Commission has fixed the next date of hearing at Calcutta on 22.12.2000. We would be expected to apprise the Commission of the position with regard to classified papers pertaining to the National Museum/Department of Culture. It would be possible to formulate our stand/views only if we know the final decision of the National Museum/Department of Culture, sufficiently in advance.

2. We shall be grateful if you could kindly look into the matter and have the views/comments regarding declassification of the National Museum papers, expedited.

Dr.R.V.V. Iyer,Secretary,Department of Culture,Shastri Bhavan,New Delhi.

Copy to:^ Shri M.B. Kaushal, Special Secretary, MHA.

Yours sincerely,

sd I - ( Jarnail Singh)

Most Imm ediate

Prime Minister's Office

Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry has been appointed to enquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subash Chandra Bose. The Commission had, inter-alia, directed that all information to be furnished in terms of the orders/directions to the Commission must be supported by an affidavit of Competent Officers, not below the rank of a Joint Secretary to the Government of India.

2. This Office made available photocopies of all the files, including classified files, to the Commission. The files with the Prime Minister's Office contained classified letters written by various Ministries/Departments/State Governments. The Ministry of Home Affairs, who were consulted in the matter, advised this Office not to declassify some of their letters, available on the PMO files. That Ministry also claimed privilege in respect of the two files, through an affidavit signed by the Home Secretary as Head of Office. Consequently, this Office also claimed privilege, by an affidavit filed by Joint Secretary in the Prime Minister's Office in respect of the classified MHA papers, available on the PMO files. Under Sections 123 -1 2 4 of the Evidence Act privilege has to be claimed by the ’Head of Department'.

3. Under Section 3 (d) of Delegation of Financial Powers Rules, 1978, "Department of the Central Government" means a Ministry or a Department of the Central Government as notified from time to time and includes the Planning Commission, the Department of parliamentary Affairs, the President's Secretariat, the Vice-President's Secretariat, the Cabinet Secretariat and the Prime Minister's Office.

Under Section 3. (f) of the Delegation of Financial Powers Rules, 1978, "Head of the Department" in relation to an office or offices under his administrative control, means an authority specified in Schedule I and includes such other authority or person as the concerned Department in the Central Government may, by order, specify, as a Head of the Department.

Provided that such a person is the Head of an identifiable organisation and the minimum of this revised scale of pay is not lower than that of a Deputy Secretary to the Government of India.

4. In terms of the above rules, Smt. Archana Ranjan, Director in this Office was declared as Head of the Department in respect of this Office for the purposes of Rule 3 of the Delegation of Financial Powers Rules, 1978 and other Financial Rules w.e.f. 14-&1998, until further orders. The Affidavit filed by Joint Secretary to PM before the Commission had

>

v f y the approval both of the designated Head of Department and Secretaryto P M \ In the affidavit, filed before the Commission on 30th November, 2000, it was specifically mentioned in pars(^7 of the affidavit that permission to withhold to produce the said records or the disclosures of the contents or to give any evidence derived from the papers in respect of which the privilege was being claimed, had the approval of the Head of Department. As mentioned above, the Head of the Department, duly declared by this Office, is Smt. Archana Ranjan, Director, who is junior to Joint Secretary to PM. However, our Government Counsel at Calcutta informed us verbally that during the hearing on 22.12.2000, the Hon’ble Mr. Justice Mukherjee had observed that the affidavit claiming privilege ought to have been signed by an officer of the rank of Secretary to Government of India. As has already been explained above, the affidavit claiming privilege and furnishing other information was sent over the signatures of Joint Secretary to PM, keeping in view the directions of the Commission that all information is to be furnished at least by an officer of the rank of Joint Secretary to Government of India.

5. In view of the above, observation made by Mr. Justice Mukherjee advice of Ministry of Law is solicited as to whether another affidavit would require to be filed before the Commission over the signatures of the ’Head of Department1 as per the orders issued by PMO in September, 1998, i.e. by Smt. Archana Ranjan, Director, or it would be necessary/advisable/ mandatory for Secretary to PM to file a supplementary affidavit claiming privilege in respect of the classified papers. As the next date of hearing is 17th January, 2001, this may please be treated as Most Immediate.

o>(c<o l(P .S . La lly )

■i Undersecretary

D ir e c tp /(A ) £ ~ l - U b I

M in is try o f L aw , J u s tic e & C o m p a n y A ffa irs (D ep tt. o f Leg a l A ffa irs , A d v ic e ’A ’ S e c tio n ), S h a s tri B h avan , N ew D elh .

PMO U.O .No.G-16(4)/2000-NGO dated 02.01.2001

O " "

( , f i k

t *® '

---------------

Justice Mukherjee Commission of InquiryF o r In q u i r y In t o t h e A l l e g e d D i s a p p e a r a n c e o f

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.‘B ’ Block, (Third Floor)

1 1/A M irza Ghalib Street, Calcutta 700 0S 7

P ho ne :

('hmntuin Secretary Of fleer on Special Duty Office

m u ,

- 2 1 6 -2 3 3 5- 2 1 6 -2 7 6 7

- 2 1 '5 -2 7 6 5- 2 1 6 -2 7 6 6 /6 5

N o J M C l/M eet in g -P ro ceed in g s ( F o l l o w u p ) / 4 8 (Vol I I ) / 3 8 8

Calcutta, dated, the 6 t h D e c ' 2000

From

To

S h r i P.K.Sengupta.WBHJS ( R e t d ) .S e c r e t a r y

1) S e c r e t a r y , M i n i s t r y o f D e f e n c e , G o v t . o f I n d i a ,South B l o c k , New D e l h i - 1 0 0 0 1 1 .

2) S e c r e t a r y , C a b in e t S e c r e t a r i a t , R a s h t r a p a t i B h a v a n ,New D e l h i - 1 1 0 0 0 4 .

3) D i r e c t o r G e n e r a l , N a t i o n a l A r c h i v e s , M i n i s t r y o f Human R esou rce D ev e lo p m en t , J a n p a t h , New D e l h i - 1 1 0 0 0 1 .

4) J o i n t S e c r e t a r y (Admn.)R.& A.w.B i k a n i r H o u s e , Annexe , Room N o . 7 , S a h a j a n Road,New D e l h i - 100011.

5) S e c r e t a r y , M i n i s t r y o f Horae A f f a i r s , G o v t , o f I n d i a , N^rth B l o c k , New D e l h i - 11 0 0 0 1 .

6? S e c r e t a r y , P .M's S e c r e t a r i a t , S o u t h S l o c k ,New D e lh i - 110001 .

7) S e c r e t a r y , M i n i s t r y o f E x t e r n a l A f f a i r s , G o v t . o f I n d i a , South BIock , New D e l h i - 1 1 0 0 0 1 .

8 ) S e c r e t a r y , . Home Department, G o v t , o f West B e n g a l , W r i t e r s ' E i l d i n g s , C a l c u t t a - 7 0 0 0 0 1 .

t oA

\V.

Sub: S t r i c t compliance w i t ■ th e o r d e r s / d i r e c t i o n s con ta ined In the proceedings da ted 2 3 . ' - 1 . 2 0 0 0 r e a d with th e p roceedings "2a ted

. 2 3 . 0 3 . 2 0 0 0 , 1 3 . 0 6 . 2 0 C - - . 3 1 . 8 . 2 0 0 0 , j and 2 8 . 0 9 . 2 0 0 0 o f Jus** .ice

\ , |^ Mukherjee C o m m iss io n o f I n q u i r y .s i r , ^

I am s e n d in h e r e w i t h a copy o f t h e p r o c e e d i n g s d a t e d2 3 . 1 1 . 2 0 0 0 of t h e Co.. m i s s i o n c o n t a i n i n g i t s o r d e r s and d i r e c t i o n sf o r y o u r p e r u s a l and com pl iance t h e r e o f a s d i r e c t e d b y t h e C o m m iss io n .

C o p ie s o f t h e p r o c e e d i n g s d a t e d 2 3 . 0 3 . 2 0 0 0 , 1 3 . 0 6 . 2 0 0 03 1 . 0 8 . 2 0 0 0 and 2 8 . 0 9 . 2 0 0 0 o i che Commission w ere s e n t t o vour o f f i c e e a r l i e r .

Yoursj f a i t h f u l i j ,S t ‘ 0iO

(P . K. &£ngupta)S e c r e t a r y

______________ 4 0 : _________________ ___________ -

; iHW i H'»*27r>5 ' * : j'»cinscb 4cal.’ .\ snl.net. in

i

/ ,

J u s t i c e Wi.K. M u k h e r j e e C o m m i s s i o n o f I n q u i r y

Proceedings dated 23.11.2000 (Fifth)I Held at the Seminar Hall, Annexe Building, Mahajati Sadan,


A. E x a m i n a t i o n o f W i t n e s s e s

November 23 2000 1. Of the witnesses summoned, Shri Suman Chattopadhyay, Shri

Anindya Sengupta, Shri Barun Sengupta, Shri Pabitra Ghosh, Dr. Purabi

Roy and Shri Jayanta Roy are present. Shri Suman Chattopadhyay, Shri

Barun Sengupta, Shri Anindya Sengupta and Shri Pabitra Kumar Ghosh

have been duly examined on oath as witness Nos. 6, 7, 8, and 9

respectively and then discharged. Some documents have been admitted

into evidence and marked as Exhibits 6, 6a and 6a/1 on admission by the

C.W.6, Exhibits 7 to 7w on admission by the C.W.7, Exhibit 8 on admission

by C.W.8 and Exhibits 9 to 9m on admission by C.W.9, without any objection

by any.of the parties. The examination of Dr. Purabi Roy as C.W.10 is now

taken up. In her examination she testifies that the statements that she made

in her affidavit filed before the Commission are correct. Accordingly, the

affidavit filed by her is marked Exhibit 10. However, her examination cannot

be concluded as she intends to bring on record a number of documents for

which no list is forthcoming and many of which are in Russian language, Dr.

Roy is, therefore, asked to file a list of documents and the translated version

in English o f those written in Russian language, with a supporting affidavit

that the translation has been done correctly and truly. To enable her to

' comply with the above directions, her further examination is deferred till the

next hearing and she is asked to appear on that date. The suggestion of

some of the parties present that the documents in Russian language be

translated by some other translator-and not by Dr. Roy, as she figures as an

witness, will be considered if and when any genuine complaint is made

about the authenticity of the translation. Examination of Sri Jayanta Roy is

also deferred as from the affidavit filed by Dr. Roy it appears that he is

supposed to corroborate her testimony.

2. The other witness summoned, namely, Smt. Probha Jagannathan, is

not present though summons was duly sent by speedpost to her at her'

address as furnished to the Commission. :Let fresh summons be. servediI

C ould.. . p / 2

I 2

asking her to appear on the next date of hearing. Let summons be also

served upon Sri Jayanta Roy to appear on that date.

I

B . F u r t h e r O r d e r s /D ir e c t io n s /O b s e r v a t io n s

1. The prayer of Smt. Archana Ranjan, Director, Prirne Minister’s office,----- --------- ------------------ ------------ ---------------- ----- .----

seeking 15 days' time to file a consolidated affidavit covering all the points

mentioned in the p ro ce e d in g ^ the Commission from time to time is_ajlow£d.

The above office is directed to file the same by 10.12.2000 through an

officer not below the rank of a Joint Secretary.

2. In spite of repeated directions, no representative of the Ministry of

Home Affairs has yet come to identify the documents referred to in

paragraph 3(b)(i) of the order dated September 28, 2000 and prove their

authenticity.<

3. The application filed by Shri Karnal Pandey, Secretary, Ministry of

Home Affairs, Government of India claiming privilege under Sections 123

and 124 of the Evidence Act and Article 74(2) o f the Constitution of India in

respect of the contents of the files mentioned in paragraph B(ii) of the

proceedings dated August 31, 2000 will be taken up for hearing in the next

sitting. i

4. The documents, mentioned in paragraph 3(b)(iii) of the order dated

September 28, 2000 have neither been produced nor any explanation

offered for such failure.

5. The directions contained in paragraph C(i) o f the order dated August

31, 2000 have not been fully complied with, in that, the complete original

records of the proceedings o f the Shah Nawaz Khan Committee o f Inquiry

including the evidence recorded and the documents produced before the

said Committee have not yet been sent. However, four letters, one paper

cutting, (One printed copy of the report o f the Committee, one partly torn copy

of the statement of one Shri Mathura Malanga Thevor, M U \ bearing some

initials and one full signature purported to be of Shri Thevor, some

photographs of witnesses and 407 pages:, typed but unauthenticated,

purporting to contain statements of some witnesses before the said

Committee, were received earlier.

Contd...p/3i

The Ministry of External Affairs have since sent photocopies of the following

files.

1. File No. 25/4/NGO-Vol. I

2. File No. 25/4/NGO-Vol. II (LW-KW)

3. File No. 25/4/NGO - Vol. Ill (LW-Annx) •

4. File No. 25/4/NGO - Vol. IV (LW-KW.i)

5. File No. 25/4/NGO - Vol. V (LW-KW I, II & III)

6. File No. 25/13/NGO -5 2 (LW-KW)

7. File No. 25/14/NGO — 52

8. . File No. 25/15/NGO-52

9. File No. 25/16/NGO-53

6(i) On March 23, 2000 the Commission directed the Government o f

West Bengal to produce all the files relating to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

which were lying in the custody of the Special Branch, Calcutta Police

including file No. 269/45 relating to ‘Prisoner/Release - Revised Policy of

Government, for the release of Security Prisoners’ containing Memo. No. SS

129/SB dated 31s1 August, 1945 from the Commissioner of Police, Calcutta to

H.S.E. Stevens, the then Chief Secretary, Government, of Bengal, Express'I

letter No. 1234 dated 25.8.1945 of Bengal Government and confidential note

dated.3.9.1945 of D.R. Hardwick, D IG .,IB . In purported compliance of the

above direction, the Government of West Bengal sent copies of 64 files along

with lists thereof and also filed an affidavit dated July 28,, 2000 through Shri

Aloknath Bhattacharyya, Special Secretary to the Government of west

Bengal, Home (Political) Department wherein it is stated, inter alia, as

fo llows:

“8( That the Government of West Bengal caused a thorough search

in the offices of Special Branch, Calcutta Police, Intelligence Branch,

West Bengal and State Archives; that there is no such file bearing No.

269/45 regarding "Prisoner/Release-Revised Policy of Government for

the release of Security Prisoners” in the records of Calcutta Police;

that File No. 269/45 (Prisoners/Release-Revised Policy of

Government for the release of Security Prisoners) containing Memo.

No. SS. 129/SB dated 31st August, 1945 from the Commissioner of

Comd....P/4

Police, Calcutta to H.S.E. Stevens, the then Chief Secretary Govt, of

Bengal, express letter No. 1234 dated 25.8.45 of Bengal Government (7l'">

1 and Confidential note dated 3.9.45 of D.R. Hardwick, D.I.G., I.B. also

do not figure in the Index Book of the Intelligence Branch, WestJ' i

Bengal; that there is no record preserved in the custody of Statej ■

Archives relating to the disappearance of Netaji Subhas Chandra; ' }* '

Bose and other papers connected thereto including copy of Bengal

Government’s express letter No. 1234 dated 25.8.451. • , - ■ ■ : ■ . • . •: l ._.•••• v ' • '

Copies of correspondences of Commissioner o f Police, Calcutta,

Dy. Inspector General of Police, Intelligence Branch, West Bengal and

Director of Archives, Higher Education (State Archives) Deptt. in this

connection are annexed herewith as Annexure “A ” collectively.”

Thereafter, following further direction o f the Commission, the

Government of West Bengal produced the original Index Books relating to

files maintained by the Special and Intelligent Branches of Police. On

scrutiny of the said Index Books and the copies o f files sent, the Commission

directed the Government of West Bengal to produce copies of some more

files reference of which was in the Index Books but not sent to the

Commission earlier. In compliance with the above direction, the Government

of West Bengal sent copies o f 13 (thirteen) more files including File No.

269/45 which contained memos and Note referred to hereinbefore.

6(ii) From the above resume of facts, it is manifest that the earlier quoted

statements made by Shri Aloknath Bhattacharyya, in his affidavit filed on July

28, 2000 are not at all correct. Since, however, Shri Bhattacharyya claims in

his above affidavit that those averments were made on the basis of

information received from Shri D.C. Bajpai, Commissioner o f Police, Calcutta,

and Shri A.K. Sen, Deputy Inspector General of Police, I.B. , West Bengal

and has, in support thereof, annexed as part of his affidavit the copies of

written communications from them in this respect, it is patently clear that the

above two/responsible senior Police Officers furnished wrong information for

onward communication to this Commission. The Commission therefore calls -

for the explanation of the above two Police Officers for furnishing such wrong

information, by the next date of hearing. ! j- .

C o n td .. .p /5i

7. Since the observations made by the Commission in Paragraph (e) of

its proceedings dated 28.9.2000 have not been given due importance and

priority they deserve, the Commission takes serious view of the matter and

feels that time is now ripe to consider the question of invoking the powers

under the provisions of section 5(4) of the Commission of Inquiry Act, 1952

for recurring non-compliance with the orders/directions of the Commission.

In this connection, the attention of the authorities concerned is once more

drawn to orders dated June 13, 2000, as quoted in paragraph 3(e) of the

proceedings dated September 28, 2000 as also those communicated through

various letters sent pursuant to the orders of the Commission.

(M.K. Mukherjee)Chairman.

I

CONFIDENTIAL

5 0

1 REPUBLIC

CHlT&A CHOPRA Add!.Secretary

T e l •N o -3022242 Fa* No-3022160

VO* D . O . F . N O . 1 3 - 3 8 / 2 0 0 0 - M . I

■‘rmi ^m<PR fcTsTH W ^ fa?cftl10 011

50TH ANNIVERSARY OF INDIAN REPUBLIC DEPARTMENT OF CULTURE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA VIGYAN BHAWAN ANNEXE

N E W DELHI-110011

January 1, 2001.

Dear

■ !

P l e a s e r e f e r t o your D . O . l e t t e r No.F.DGNM- 2 / 2 0 0 0 d a t e d Sep tem b er 1 8 , November 2 0 , and December ■/ 1 5 , 2000 r e g a r d i n g d e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n o f r e c o r d s / a r t i c l e s p e r t a i n i n g t o N e t a j i Subhash Chandra B ose and d e p o i s t e d i n N a t i o n a l Museum.

The M i n i s t r y o f E x t e r n a l A f f a i r s have now a g r e e d t h a t t h e a b o v e r e c o r d s / a r t i c l e s may be

- d e c l a s s i f i e d i n o r d r t o f a c i l i t a t e t h e i r v i e w i n g by t h e J u s t i c e M ukherjee C om m iss ion o f I n q u i r y . They a l s o f e e l t h a t i t m igh t be a good id e a t o i n v i t e t h e Com m iss ion t o l o o k a t t h e above t r e a s u r e s f o r which you may g e t in t o u c h w i t h t h e J u s t i c e M u k h erjee C om m iss ion t o t i e up t h e a d m i n i s t r a t i v e a r r a n g e m e n t s . (Copy o f t h e i r l e t t e r e n c l o s e d ) .

S i n c e , t h i s i s a s e n s i t i v e m a t t e r , you a r e h e r e b y r e q u e s t e d t o k eep t h e D epartm ent in form ed o f a l l t h e d e v e l o p m e n t s and a l s o e n d o r s e a l l c o p i e s o f y o u r c o m m u n ic a t io n w i t h t h e Commiss ion a s w e l l a s o t h e r D e p a r t m e n t s / M i n i s t r i e s , in t h i s r e g a r d .


Dr-R.D.Choudhary, Director G e n e r a l , National Museum, New Delhi.

( Chi,tra Chopra )

Copy f o r i n f o r m a t i o n t o : -1 . S h r i P . K . S e n g u p t a , S e c r e t a r y , J u s t i c e M ukherjee

C o m m iss ion o f I n q u i r y , B' B l o c k , 3rd F l o o r ,1 1 / A , M ir j a G a l i b S t r e e t , C a l c u t t a - 7 0 0 0 8 7 .S h r i M .B .K a u s h a l , S p e c i a l S e c r e t a r y , M i n i s t r y o f Home A f f a i r s , New D e l h i .S h r i J a y a n t P r a s a d , J o i n t S e c r e t a r y (AMS & CNV), M i n i s t r y o f E x t e r n a l A f f a i r s , New D e l h i .S h r i J a r n a i l S i n g h , J o i n t S e c r e t a r y , PMO

CONFIDENTIAL

NATIONAL MUSELr

Dr.R.D.Choudhury Director General

D . 0 . No. F. DGN M-2/2000

Phone: 3018159 January 3 , 2001

Dear Mrs. Ranjan,

I am enclosing a copy of the Confidential letter D.O. N o .F .13-38/2000-M. 1 dated January 1, 2001 received from Smt. Chitra Chopra, Additional Secretary, Department of Culture regarding declassification of records/articles pertaining to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and deposited in the National Museum.

In this context, the Ministry of External Affairs have agreed to declassify the above records facilitating their viewing by the Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry.

With regards,

Mrs. Archana Ranjan DirectorPrime Minister Office South Block

Yours sincerely,

Enel: As above

(R.D.Choudhury)

t ! N o f hnHl D * e ........

« r m ,^ i | f ^ ; 1 1 0 0 1 1 ; c [ R : 3019272, 3 0 1 9 3 2 2 ; ^ : 3019821 rdchoudh@ ndf.V SN L .net.inJanpath, New D elh i-110011; Gram: MUSEUM; Tel: 3019272, 3019322; Fax: 3019821; E-mail: rdchoudh@ ndf.V SNL.net.



CONFIDENTIAL

REPUBLIC

CHITRA CHOPRA A d d l . S e c r e t a r yT e l . N o . 3 0 2 2 2 4 2 Fax N o . 3 0 2 2 1 6 0

D . O . F . N o . 1 3 - 3 8 / 2 0 0 0 - M .i irrTcfrq 'iuid-5i 50cR cj'i'irs

’TRT TTTcFR fasTH T O

^ 110 011

50TH ANNIVERSARY OF INDIAN REPUBLIC DEPARTMENT OF CULTURE

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA VIGYAN BHAWAN ANNEXE

NEW DELHI-110011

J a n u a r y 1 / 2 0 0 1 -

O ffic e Of R G M W

D e a r V ' ( Date*...^

P l e a s e r e f e r to y o u r D . O . l e t t e r N o . F . D G N M - 2 / 2 0 0 0 d a t e d S e p t e m b e r 18, N o v e m b e r 20, and D e c e m b e r 15, 2 0 0 0 r e g a r d i n g d e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n of r e c o r d s / a r t i c l e s p e r t a i n i n g to N e t a i i S u b h a s h C h a n d r a B o s e and d e p o i s t e d in N a t i o n a l Museum.

vT he M i n i s t r y of E x t e r n a l A f f a i r s have now

a g r e e d that the a b o v e r e c o r d s / a r t i c l e s may be d e c l a s s i f i e d in o r d r to f a c i l i t a t e t h e i r v i e w i n g by the J u s t i c e M u k h e r j e e C o m m i s s i o n of Inquiry. T h e y a l s o feel that it m i g h t be a g o o d idea to i n v i t e the C o m m i s s i o n to look at the above t r e a s u r e s for w h ich y o u m a y g e t in "touch with~ the JTTst ice MuTcfierjee C o m m i s s i o n to tie up the a d m i n i s T r a t i v e a r r a n g e m e n t s . (Copy of t h e i r letter ericl o s e d ) T ■

Since, th i s is a s e n s i t i v e m a t t e r , you are h e r e b y r e q u e s t e d to k e e p the D e p a r t m e n t i n formed of all the d e v e l o p m e n t s and al s o e n d o r s e all c o p i e s of y o u r c o m m u n i c a t i o n w i t h the C o m m i s s i o n as we l l as o t h e r D e p a r t m e n t s / M i n i s t r i e s , in this r e g a r d .

Y o u r s s i n cerely,

D r . R . D . C h o u d h a r y , D i r e c t o r G e n e r a l , N a t i o n a l Museum/ New D e l h i .

Jayant PrasadJoint Secretary (AMS &CNV)

iraiciq, -ii MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL. AFFAIR

NEW DEI I II

No. 25/4/NGO-Vol.V December 21, 2000

Dear Ms. Chopra,

This is in continuation of my letter of even number dated December 18, 2000 conveying no objection of this Ministry regarding records/articles pertaining to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose deposited by this Ministry with the National Museum. In the light of our no objection, the articles/records may be shown to the Justice Mukherjee Commission oflnquiry.

A copy of this letter is being endorsed to the Secretary, Justice Mukherjee Commission oflnquiry.

r c5

Yours sincerely,

(Jayant (fjasad)

Ms. Chitra Chopra, Additional Secretary, Department of Culture, Vigyan Bhavar; Annexe, New Delhi.

J ustice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry nnmc:J fc F o r In o u i r y I r r r o T H E A l l e g e d D i s a p p e a r a n c e o f

N e t a j i S u b h a s C h a n d r a H o s e . . w , / , „ y - 210-270/

^ ‘B’ Block. (Third Floor)• ' ' Special V uk - 210-2 'f/j1 1 / A M ir z a G h a l ib S t re e t , C a lc u t ta 7 0 0 0 8 7 oifice ' -2ig-27«>-vuj

N o. J M C I / H e e t i n g - P r o c e e d i n g s ( F o l l o w U p ) / Calcutta, dated, the 3 rd J a n u a r y ' 2001 48 ( V o l . I I ) / 4 3 9 ( 7 )

From : S h r i P-.K’. S e n g u p t a , WBHJS ( R e t d . ) , S e c r e t a r y !

To : S e c r e t a r y ,P . M . ’ s S e c r e t a r i a t , S o u t h B l o c k ,New D e l h i - 1 1 0 0 0 1 .

Sub : S t r i c t c o m p l i a n c e w i t h t h e o r d e r s /d i r e c t i o n s c o n t a i n e d i n t h e p r o c e e d i n g s d a t e d 2 2 . 1 2 . 2 0 0 0 r e a d w i t h t h e p r o c e e d i n d a t e d 2 3 . 0 3 . 2 0 0 0 , 1 3 . 0 6 . 2 0 0 0 , 3 1 . 0 8 . 2 0 0 0 2 8 . 0 9 . 2 0 0 0 and 2 3 . 1 1 . 2 0 0 0 , o f J u s t i c e M u k h e r j e e C o m m i s s i o n o f I n q u i r y .

S i r ,

I am s e n d i n g h e r e w i t h a c o p y o f t h e p r o c e e d i n g s d a t e d 2 2 . 1 2 . 2 0 0 0 ( S i x t h ) o f t h e C o m m i s s i o n c o n t a i n i n g

i t s o r d e r s and d i r e c t i o n s f o r y o u r p e r u s a l and c o m p l i a n c e t h e r e o f a s d i r e c t e d by t h e C o m m i s s i o n .

C o p i e s o f t h e e a r l i e r p r o c e e d i n g s o f t h e C o m m i s s io w e r e d u l y s e n t t o y o u r o f f i c e i n t h e p a s t .

Y o u r s f a i t h f u l l

JT * I.( P . K. S e n g u p t a )

S e c r e t a r yE n e l . As s t a t e d a b o v eJpjudp ,

85fSW*!}£' ECY TO P M.)Y. N o ......IA 7 J ----------

a ^ (V*

(^.5ft.sf>.|/pM0 (N « o r r. io/Dy. No

...... L —

1-03333 -216 -2765 f-nuii! : jm cin scb w ca l3 .vsn l.n ct.in

J u s t i c e M.K. M u k h e r j e e C o m m i s s i o n o f I n q u i r y

December 22, 2000

. f:

Proceedings dated 22.12 .2000 (Sixth)Held at the Seminar Hall, Annexe Building, Mahajati Sadan,


A. E x a m in a t io n q f W i t n e s s e s -- - —---------:--------1----1... .........................i . ■ ' • •

jI. Dr. Purabi Roy (C.W.10), who was examined in part on the last date

of hearing (November 23, 2000), has been!examined further. In course of

her examination she has produced 55 documents in 26 folders along with a

list thereof and those documents have been marked Z, Z<a), Z i, Z 2 to Zig,

Zi6(a), Z i/ to Z26, Z26(a), Z27, Z27(a), Z28 to Z47 and Z48 (three documents■ I

\ collectively) for identification. On conclusion of her examination Shrii j11 Jayanta Roy has been examined on oath (C.W.11). Thereafter, Shri V.P.

Bhatia, an Under Secretary to the Government of India, Ministry of Home

Affairs has been examined (C.W.12). In course of his examination , he has

identified the documents referred to in paragraph 3(b)(i) of the order dated

September 28, 2000, (papers relating to the Khosla Commission of Inquiry)

and proved that those documents have been produced from proper custody.

The other witness, Smt. Prava Jagannathan, to whom summons was sent

by registered post at the address available on record, is neither present nor

has the A/D Card been received. On receipt of the same, appropriate orders

will be passed. Till her present correct address is made available, the

question of resummoning her does not arise.

II. Shri Samar Guha, who has been cited as a witness in more than one

affidavit filed before the Commission, is now seriously ill and bed-ridden. He

has, however, expressed his willingness to be examined as a witness at his

residence. Accordingly, his examination on commission has been fixed on

January 10, 2001 at 1.00 P.M. at his residence at 8/2, Central Park,

Jadavpur, Calcutta 700 032. The parties/Advocates present, have been

intimated about the venue, date and time of his examination.

ConkL.pO

2

III. Mr. Keshab Bhattacharya, learned Counsel appearing for the deponents

in JMCI/19/2000, filed an application on December 21, 2000 alleging that

certain questions put by him to Shri Suman Chattopadhyay (C.W.6), and the

answers given by the latter thereto have not been recorded; and he has,t

accordingly, prayed for incorporating those questions and answers in the

deposition of Shri Chattopadhyay. Whilejit is true that Mr. Bhattacharya did

put some questions to Shri Chattopadhyay and the latter gave answers, both

the questions and the answers were disallowed as irrelevant. The applicationI

filed by Mr. Bhattacharya is, therefore, rejected.

B. Re: Hearing on the question of privilege

IV. After completion of the examination of the witnesses present, Mr.

Tarakeswar Pal, learned Counsel appearing for the Government of India,

starts making his submission in support of the two applications filed by Shri

Karnal Pande, Secretary to the Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs

and Shri Jarnail Singh, Joint Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office, claiming

privilege in respect of the contents of the documents referred to in their

respective applications. On the prayer of Mr. Pal, and of the other learned

Counsel/parties, further hearing on the above question is adjourned till the

next sitting o f the Commission.

V. In compliance with the order as contained in paragraph 6(ii) of the

Proceedings dated November 23, 2000, Shri D.C. Vajpai, Commissioner of

Police, Calcutta and Shri A.K. Sen Deputy Inspector General of Police, I.B.,

West Bengal (since retired), have submitted their explanations. Considering

their explanations it is felt that no further action need be taken in the matter.

C o u ld ... p/3

C. Other Mattaers/Orders

VI. The attention of the respective Ministries/Offices is once more drawn

to the directions contained in paras B.1, B.4, B,5 and B.7 of the order dated/ v/

■yy November 23, 2000. Last chance is given to the respective Ministries/offices

to comply with the same by January 31, 2001, failing which, appropriate legal

action will be taken against the officers concerned for wilful non-compliance

with the said orders/directions.

D. Next Hearing

i. I i

>VII. The next hearing of the Commission will be held on January 17, 2001

at 11.00 A.M. in the Seminar Hall of Mahajati Sadan, Annexe Building, 166,

Chittaranjan Avenue, Calcutta - 700 007 which shall be confined to the issue

of privilege claimed.

::j -j j J

I 'jk ; (M .K . M u k h erjee)y C h airm an .

M OST IM M EDIATE OUT TODAY

No. I-12014/13/2000-IS (D.III) GOVERNM ENT OF INDIA

M INISTRY OF HOM E AFFAIRS■k'k-k'k'k

New Delhi, the 11th Jan u ary 2001

O F F I C E M E M O R A N D U M

Sub:- Justice M ukherjee Commission o fln q u iry - regarding.-k'k'k'k

I

\ \

W-r

The undersigned is directed to say that in the proceedings in its sitting on 28.09.2000, the Commission inter alia directed production of the following documents :-

(i) A xerox copy of the letter said to be sent by General Chiang-kai-Sheikh to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru about an inquiry reportedly made by the Government of Nationalist China at Taipei regarding the alleged plane- crash involving Netaji alongwith a xerox copy o f the said inquiry Report; and

(ii) A xerox copy of the report dated 31.12.1945 o f Shri B.C.Chakravarty (Witness No. 168 before Justice Khosla Commission o f Inquiry) on alleged air-crash and alleged death o f Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose which was countersigned by Col. Stevenson and sent to the CSDIC as referred to in the published report o f the Commission.

We have made efforts to search these documents in the records o f this Ministry but could not lay our hands on any such document. We are required to file a supplementary affidavit relating to these two documents before the Commission. Before any committal position is stated in the supplementary affidavit, it is requested that efforts may please be made in the Prime Minister” Office to see if letter/documents mentioned above are available in that Office.\ ’3. Since the supplementary affidavit is to be filed before the nextsitting o f the Commission on 17.01.2001, it is requested that the result o f the efforts to locate these two documents in the Prime Minister’s Office may please be communicated to this Ministry at the earliest.

(V.P.BHATIA) U nder Secretary to the Govt, of India

Prime M in ister’s Office Smt. A rchana R anjan , D irector South Block

MOST IMMEDIATE

No.G.16(4)/20QO-NGO

PRIME M IN ISTER 'S OFFICE


DATED:16.01.2001

The Home Secretary, Government of W est Bengal Sachivalaya, Writers' Building, KOLKATTA.

Subject:Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry appointed to enquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose- Deputation of an officer to Calcutta in connection with-

I am directed to say that Shri P.S. Lally, Under Secretary in this Office has been deputed to go to Calcutta in connection with filling of an Affidavit before the Commission. He is going to Calcutta today (16.01.2001) by IC : 264 reaching Calcutta Airport at 2055 hrs. You are requested to please issue suitable instructions for his reception at the Airport and for transport/accommodation during his stay at Calcutta.

Sir,

Yours faithfully,

(P.K. Roy) Under Secretary Tel.No.3018130

r

<w-rv" 4, 'KOSt "X-vvtwviA^j^No.l/23/1/2000-Cab. / _ lv)

Vkjv / Government of India (Bharat Sarkar) £ ,vv/' , / Cabinet Secretariat (Mantrimandal Sachivalya)

* * *

New Delhi, the 20th December, 2000.

Subject: Supply of the copy of the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961 and Government of India (Transaction of Business) Rules, 1961 and other instructions to PMO in connection of Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry enquiring alleged disappearance of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

The undersigned is directed to refer to Prime Minister’s Office d.o. letter No.G- 16(4)/2000-NGO dated 15/18.12.2000 on the captioned subject to forward herewith following documents for reference purpose in the Prime Minister’s Office

(i) Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961 alongwith amendments issued upto series No.253 dated 17.11.2000.

(ii) Government of India (Transaction of Business) Rules, 1961 together with its amendments issued upto 18.2.2000 (Copy No.2633).

(iii) O.MNO. 12/1/CF/69 dated 28.7.1969 pertaining to production in a court of law of notes, summaries, memoranda etc. placed before the Cabinet or its Committee for consideration, and the proceeding of the Cabinet or its Committees.

(iv) O.MNo. 12/1/CF-69 dated 29.10.1969 pertaining to production before a Committee of Parliament of notes, summaries, memoranda etc. for the Cabinet or its Committees and the proceedings of the Cabinet or its Committees.

Memo No.-74/1/2/72-CF dated 2.6.1973 pertaining to production in a Court of Law of the Government of India (Transaction of Business) Rules, 1961.

O.M.No.ll/4/1/75-CF dated 3.11.1976 pertaining to production before the Parliamentary Committee of the proceedings/information relying on the proceedings of the Committee of Secretaries.

(YlK^aubsoV Deputy s(epretary

Tele:3012835.

Prime Minister’s Office,(Ms. Archana Ranjan, Director), New Delhi.

lnnwio* 8............. oj

2 > M W i W ) . _ S _______Anuy______________________ /

/

Oq p j *o»

OaH fc il aJbUtOLSJUiAS- - - (J>epart»ent o f Cabinet A f fa ir s ) ........ _ J

_ s'

* * * * > W , th e gOth! Ju ly . 1Q6qfcth aravnna* 1891.

o m i a H£K01lAttJUH

S u b jec t* • Produotion In a oourt o f le v o f nates ,

Be fe re no os ere fre q u e n tly raceivod in tho Cabinet s e c re ta r ia t fro n various r i in i j t r ie s * u e j t in * oonourrenoe o f ths Cabinet S e c re ta r ia t to tho produotion i n a oourt o f la v 9 o f notes, sum -ariea, ceaoranda eto* whiob hnve been oon - aiderod by tne Cabinet o r c:.o o f i t s Cos^aittees* She pos itio n regard ing tho produotion o f aooh doouaeMa In a oourt o f la v has been examined oars f u l ly and tno fo llo w in g in s tru c tio n s oro issued in o on su lia tion w ith the X in ix t r y o f «i*av fo r general guidance.

2# Aa the M in is try o f Hobo A ffa irs e to * ara aware, a l l notes, eu&Suariea and ceucrdnda otc# f o r too Cabinet o r i t s C onaittcos, and tho pruoeodin<r3 o f tho Cabinet o r i t s C o sx itte es , e ra trea ted ae aeorot doousenta* The nates, t aunxariea ©to# aro r e a l ly In the nature o f b r ie fs s e ttin g out the pros and cons o f tne issues diosuseed, to enable tha Cabinet o r ona o f i t s Committees to ooraa to m dec is ion on — those issues* - i in i la r ly , the proceedings fc ra a reoord o f

' d iscussion o r deoiaions te'-con by th e Cabinet o r i t s Coicalttees* Obviouslyt i t theaa documents were to bcooae p u b lic , com plications and even eaV am sar.en t n ig h t ensue end in sone oases tha d iso lo sure sdght oven be p re ju d ic ia l to the a e c u rity o f the ataV)*3* I t haa been noted th a t g en era lly th e need fo r tho produotion o f suoh documents before a co u rt o f la v has a rise s because e i th e r quotations have been mado from suoh • do cun out o r a refsrenoe has been Bade to . cuoh a doouaent in th e a f f id a v i t f i le d before the oourt on b e h a lf o f the government* .

4 , A f te r c a re fu l consideration i t haa “been doo idel th a t notes- oxiaraarlea aeaoranda eto* f o r to e Cabinet orU t s

proceedings shouli n o t be produced l n a c o u r t o f la v * Whare an crder l a aado bv tne court T o r the production o f a n F o fta e a o docunente, priv ile g e a S u l l bo 1ol^ip g T lI M o r ^ f i i io n s l2 3 and 124 c f tne~Tg la n :— Kvldonoe A c t, %Gi2m I n th is connection a tte n t io n iS in v ite d to th e M in is try o f -Low's 0*H*£o« 37 (1^ /6 2 -^

Sunsvirics, oeooranda e to * pCLaoed before the Cabinet o r i t s C on jiitteea fo r oon- a id e ra tio n , end tha proceedings o f the

Cabinet o r i t s Couobittoes*

o f 23rd $ 1966, oorrtainins d e ta i le d ixa tru o tio n s .ret^T iins the prooeduro to bo -followed on rc o e ip t o f a rumnor* fo r toe produotion of dooua<nts and t.oe canncr o f olalnl&g priv ilege. Cere w ill aluo have to t>3 tauen xo see th a t no refere&oe to taeae notoe, summaries, ueaoran ia , prodeedinga etc* i s cade, or ex tra o t o r quo ta tions givon froa t hOm In any a ff idav it, p e t i t io n s end ploadin^e f i l e d o r suboiesiona Bade before the oourt a on ho h a l f ox th e eovemaont.

I n eoae eaaea ministries say f in d i t neoessaryA_£o.r_the proper preaeotation of tM governnoot'a onaa before a oourt o f lowT to re fe r to eooe m a te r ia l walch cay have found p laoe in the doouM&ts referred.. to above# U sually , in ia c a t f r la lv o u ld eloo he avc ilab le on the f i l e s o f tne aiin is tr iea or in th* goYerrikont ordere issued pursuant to the deoieion of the oabiiiot e r s co c rd ttee o f th e Cabinet.In paao i t lo nsoea&ig:/ to re fe r to cuoh e n t e r l a l , tftsygg

'.there would he no objection to a fil e t o r a t a renftgaaei I'veralon belng jflyen in tJQ goyerncent a f f i d a v i t , which Ray t> se t t le d i n a consultation with the lew K jn ia try , provided th a t no reTfr«i.oo ina t the a r t e r i a l oeujd , i f n ec essa ry ^ be proved froo docuaents other ttten tho as whloh were nlaoel he fore the OaUA«t or i t s Coanittoos f o r cQ m idera tion , o rthe proceedings of the Cabinet o r i t s C pgaittees.

r - -------------------- ------f—----- - \ " " ""5* I f , i n any extraordinary ease , a n in ia t ry f e e l s th a t• referecoe to or produotion o f a Cabinet no te , suoaary, ■eiooraniutt o r piactCBdln>a,_Jj_i2i6acapQhle. i n a oubcioaion o r a f f id a v i t to bs s&de before a court i n th e goveroosnt in te r e s t , prior concurrence o f tho Cabinet s e c r e t a r i a t should

be obtained* ~ ~ ^

S H / —(*•*• Csprihan)

Deputy Seoretsxy to the Cabinet.

foA ll Ministrioe/Depertasents o f Oovernaent o f Z&dia* (8ecret%rles by mute) _

aSCHKt

# N».

I

No, 12/ 1/CF-G9 / r 0 CAfiiNKT SSCRSTaHIaT

(Pfeparteent o f Cabinet a ffa ir s )

New Delhi, .tfr£.29,.th_QctQkgrjL .tS!9« 7 Kartika, 1891.

0FJ1 G£

Subject: - Production before a Obnmittee of Farlisrr.ent o f notes, summaries, memoranda etc* fbr the Cabinet or i t s Cccndttees and th? proceedj nr <; o f the Cabinet or i t s Cctr.raittees.

A question has beai raised whether a note for the Cabinet which was considered by the Cabinet aoce years ago may be supplied tc a Gbcmittee o f the Parliament. The p osition

- rfgard ing the production o f Cabinet documents (including n otes, summaries, memoranda, proceedings e tc .) has been exapined in d e ta il. - The Ministry o f Lav, who were consulted in th e m atter, have advised as under: -

"The point fbr consideration i s whether a privilege* can be claimed in respect o f a Cabinet paper when ca lled

- fbr by a Parliamentary Committee,

The Parliament and i t s Cbmmlttees have a power to re q u ire attendance o f persons an3_prod'uction of~~3ocunen£s

~ oonsiHered necessary, fbr the d isch arge'of i t s "3u t ie s . This . “ T s one o f the p r iv ile g e s o f Parliament provided for in clause

3 o f .A rticle 1u5 of the Constitution, Ih is p r iv ileg e , however, - I s su b ject t o th e x ^ le s and standing orders regulating the "jTrocodureof^Parliament Rjle 27 0 o f the Lok Sabha Rules p ro v id es that 'JGovernnent niay decline to produce a document

- on the ground that i t s digcnrScme wouFd be p re^ d ic ia ]rfo~ th e - «areJfeiLji2 3 J>9„ tjn t e ve at u f ;t l jeTSt ate V —The “Expression ’In te r e s t

.‘• / o f the S ta te ” or 'public in tert'st" i s held to include m atters . u which a f f e c t t bg-.crop.er functioning of ~tHe~~^vemment~ and

- I t s a g en c ies . The Cabinet sy'sôc oT~Govemr.ent obtaining under .^ th e O bnstitution can, work su ccessfu lly on iy 'T f i t s proceed-

: ^ in g s are se cret. T fjb h eyare 'dTfcTosed, i t would be impossible- .frfOr the in d iv id u al M inisters to 'express“ttTeir",vI^ws witn /.^ fra n k n ess and any d isclosure o f d iv is io n o f opinion should

-^ C /a ffec t the strength and e ffe c tiv e n e ss o f the Government ^ £ 4 e e l s i on s*

The papers submitted to the Cabd.net ty departments are, th ere fb re , ta ilversa lly accepted as secret and co n fid e n tly and th e ir d isc lo su re against public in te r e s t . In th is connection,

> ' r e fe r e n c e i s made to the provisions o f Jtectlons 123 and 12k f the Evidence le t rel%ting to the sane suBêct. jpJL State a p ers‘*SEarôntldentla3. nomnunlcotlftig tledrom d isc lo su r e even t o the courts. The p r iv ile g e s o f

m m . . . . 2 / -co p ies .

n " Y

•.SECR5J -s 2 i - V .A

Parliament stand on the sane f o o t in g . In Ocnway Vs. Winner, the House of Lords reviewed th e e n t i r e law on th e sub jec t and observed: "Ihere are many ca se s in w’trLch documents by t h e i r v na tu re f a l l in to a c lass which r e q u i r e s p r o t e c t i o n such £ s Cabinet papers, Foreign Office despatches , the s e c u r i t y o f th.-. S ta te , high l e v e l in te r-depar t rcen ta l m in u te s and oorresp&nden. and documents pe r ta in ing to the genera l acini n l s t r a t ion o f the Naval, M il i ta ry and Air Force Serv ices . Nearly always such documents woul" be the subject o f p r i v i l e g e by r e a so.) fcf the oonten t s . . . . The reason fbr t h i s p r i v i l e g e i s th<*t i t £* would be quite wrong and e n t i r e l y in im ic a l to th e propery- functioning of the public se rv ice i f the p u b l ic were to J e a r n a l l these high l e v e l oommuni c a t io n s. however in n o c e n t o f ^ p re - jud ice to the S ta te the actual co n ten ts o f 3ny p a r ' i c u l a f _ doc-cent might b e - Z C I ^ O ’ All England Law R e p o r t s Page .67Ji/. The sace p r in c ip l e has been ap p l ie d by o u r Supreme CourtSin State of Fun jab Ve, S. S. Singh (1961 Supreme Cburt APPe$ls V

In view o f t h i s p o s i t i o n , the .Governmenti*

_thaêxn..c£an__de_cllne_to produce # y jDaper s_or a n y _ d e p a r_ t^ e n t^ p ro p o s a l submitted to the Cabinet f6r i t s c o n s id e ra t io n . " ’ Z?

2. The advice given by the M in is t ry o f Law i s c i r c it o a l l M in is t r ie s f o r information and guidance. They ar& requested to take care tha t no r e f e r e n c e i s made to an y S a b i n e * papers when wr. ' t ten rep l ie s o r o r a l evidence i s g iv e n before a Far l iacen tar ; - ^ r m i t t e e . Itaere i s , however, no obêc tffrn t onr using a

these doTUrnrrôgis*. o r Paraphrased v e r s io n o f t h e m a t e r i a l c m t a i r c

frctr.

pmT3e3"Th t Cabinet d o c jcen t jT s a iT ^ t s j l r f e d ^ r r and pfovr?e5~~*:~hs^ t n 3. p .a^ r ia^ r j : -an be~—6T h T p r < r : t > a 'o r : tU .H r C ^ - r y / D e P a rtc $ n T T T g E

âniTTfie DeparV.i'ent does not -onsiaer~"t'hT p:v>~5jc'ti "r. o f reoord as p re jud icTal ' to the safety o r i n t e r e s t 01" the"

3. I t i s f u r th e r requested tha t the c o n t e n t s o f tL.Memorandum cay be t rea ted as an actaini s t r a t i v e d i r e c t i o n , i t s contents should not be quoted in r e f e r e n c e s t o t h e Cccnit tees of F a r l i a r j n t o r in th e m ee t ings o f t h e F a r l i i Oommltte ~s, as a reference to i t i s l i k e l y to a t t r a c t avoidable c r i t i c i a E .

Land

j e n t a r

To

s a /-(P.P* Gapriht

Iteputy Secretary to th»Mkblne-<■XL1 Mini stries/Departanen t s o f the Government of India*

ML25 copi es.

SECRET

' CONFIDENTIAL A f f

N o. 74/1/2/72-CF GOVERNMENT OF IN D IA (B H *A T SARKJ&)

CABINET SECRET.JUaT(M/NTRIM/,N&\L SACHlV4a ^ A ) ;Department o f Cabinet Affalrs(Mantrimandal Karya VibhagV

New D elh i._2 June. 1973.12 J y a ls tha, 1895.

mm m

S u b je c t : - Production In a Court o f Law of the Government of Ind ia (T ransaction o f Business) Roles, 1961.

Requests are received from time to tim e from M in is tr ie s and Departments of the Government of India f o r perm ission to produce the Government of In d ia (Transaction o f Business) Rules before a court o f law e i th e r mo to o r in response to a demand made by the co u r t o r another p a r ty . Since these Rules are marked ■Confidential* and ■For o f f i c i a l use only", the M inistries/D epartm ents concerned have been in v a riab ly advised not to produce them before a court o f law. The ra tionale of t h i s advice i s explained below.

i

* The Government o f India( Transaction o f Business)R ules, I9 6 f , were promulgated by the P re s id e n t under A r t i c le 77(3) o f the Constitution fo r the more convenient t r a n sa c t io n o f Government business* These Rules p rescribe s teo s which must be taken before the 'd e c i s io n of Governmtfit' i s reached. In t h e i r very nature, th e se Rules are fo r in t e r n a l guidance only, and must be Jcept confidential* r .This was emphasised in O.M.No.74/7/CF-6l(2) dated 18 January, 1961. with which copies of these Rules were forwarded to th e M in is t r ie s . So fa r as the c i t i z e n i s concerned.M in is te rs a re c o l le c t iv e ly and in d iv id u a l ly responsible f o r a l l d ec is io n s of the Government: he i s no t e n t i t le d t o question whether a l l the prescribed s te p s were in fa c t tak en befo re a decidon was Reached. The p o s i t io n i s s u c d n t l y sirnmed up in the undomoted n o te which was recorded by th e then Cabinet Secretary( Shri B. Slvaraman) i n June, 1969j - ;

"Tho Transaction of Business ’Rules Is an Internal matter providing checks afKl bailees and fcathods for carrying out/Governs an t ' a woxi^ i Onca this is pubUaix^natypbty ! • #raa ta question any act <of.}Gpren»<6tv0o tha groundV*** that aona tula or Other* in''lhe*e-Tr an section jt f *• Business Rules has not vba so followed. It thin

‘ IHha details o f * * 1'reason Why •

^ ^ - ____ v- taction offeidnasa Rules at. an Internal aattar and not « ^ i . for. publication. This position cannot be - * deviated from.*

Zn view o f the consideration mentioned abc i t I s necessary to ensure tha i ■ ^ules are not proouced♦KASHYAP* _ ^ __ J^FIDENll/C______________ a

taMFlDBJTlAL•T /T T -

in A court of law. If a court o f law demands th e i r production e i th e r on a reference from tho p l a i n t i f f o r on i t s own, the administrative M inistry should claim p r iv ileg e under Sections 123 an* 124 o f tho Indian Evidence Act, 1872.

V o reference to these Rules should a lso be made in a f f id a v its filer* in courts on beh a lf o f the Government.

A reference to a p a r t of the tn c t o f the Transaction of Business Rules has been made in an unroported judgement of the Calcutta High Court and a l to in a judgement of the Suoreme Court, entitled Fonseca P r iv a te Ltd. v. L.C. Guptf)(AIR 1973 Supreme Court p .563) through inadvertan t re fe ren ce there to in an affidavit f i le d by a M in is try . P riv ileg e should nonetheless continue to be claimed fo r the said Rules as otherwise even those portions o f the Rules which hae so f a r not been disclosed to the co u r ts would hy e to be produced before them# • The fact of p roduction of a p a r t of th e Rules in a court, whatever may be tne reasons, does not a f fe c t the ra t io n a le for treating them as co n fid en tia l* . .

3. A question arising fo r considera tion in t h i s context i s how the validity of an o rder o r th e competence of »the individual executing i t should be proved without reference to the Transaction of Ibslness Rules, i f these are qiEstioned in a court of law. The advice o f the .M inistry o f Law i s t h a t the Authentication Rules framed under A r t ic le 77(2) o f th e

^Constitution vest in specified a u th o r i t i e s th e power to s ig n - ' an order or an instrument on beha lf o f the P residen t md th a t i f the requirements of th ese ru le s are s& tisfie^ ina l l cases in wftich the orders of th e C entral Government have to be communicated, i t w ill no t be open to anyone to question th e i r va lid ity or the competence o f th e Individual sloning them. For ease of reference, sub-c lause (2) of A r t ic le 77 of the C onstitu tion 'is reproduced be low:-

■Orders and other instruments made and executed in the name of the P res id en t sh a l l be au then tica ted in such manner as may be specified in ru les to be made by the President* and the v a l id i ty of an order or Instrument which i s so au thenticated s h a l l not be called in question on the ground that i t i s not an order or instrument made or execute by tha President.* ...

4. If an order is properly 'authenticated at required under the Authenticatipn Rules In the Banner required by the Conftitutlon, the eourts would not 90 into tlie question es to' the competence of thejperson uho. actually passesthe order except sfceze the Ym .ident.it required to past the order personally* £v«;*here»n order hat not been \ properly wthsnticeted, t i m i d « U il be .bp«n t o ? t S f k Ministry or Department concerned to prove fay affidavit evidence that the decision in question hat in fact been taken by a person competent to do oo. All M inistries * ! Departments arc advised £0 ensure that orders allocatingKASWtf* gyflDENTIAl '45 copies -* . . .

. .

g y jF ip g g iA i

sp e c if ic business to p a r t ic u la r o f f i c e r s a re made and kppt J p - to -d a te and also p roperly a u th e n t ic a te d .This i s p a r t i c u la r ly important In cases a f f e c t in g the general p b b lic , where power o f d ec is io n has been conferred on the Central Government by a s t a t u t e o r s ta tu to ry r u jc and these powers are to be ex e rc ised by designated o f f ic e r s as the C en tra l Government, e .g . th e powers o f rev is ion under the Customs Act. th e Central Excises and Salt Act, and th e Mineral Concessions Rules.

Sd/- R.N. K alia Deputy S ecre tary to th e Cabinet.

To

All M inistries/D epartm ents of the Government of In d ia (S e c re ta r ie s /S p ec ia l S ec re ta r ie * /A d d it io n a l S e c re ta r ie s , e t c . ) by natr.e.

•KASWAP**5 copies*

w o . 1 1 / 4/ 1 / 75 - c r ............-'• * GOVERNMENT OF IND IA (B H A R A T 'S A R K A R ) *>. i

t . C A B IN E T SECRETARIAT(PANTRinANDAL1 S A C H I V A L A V a J ■;«.. * \ * :> Department. of Cabinet AfCalrs(^entri^nandal Katya Vfbhag^ “■J* * '■ *>■ *■ -i 4* “ «. V. > V, . V‘- \:%t • • --

. ' V * ' N • *. ‘Neu D e l h i , o N o v e m b e r , 1 9 7 6 ,

' • . ' 12 Ka r U k e , 1898(Sj* • % . * "*"* * J * f *

OFFICE ner.ORANDUW :

S u b j e c t * - P r o d u c t i o n b e f o r p th ? P p r l l p n e n t e r y C o n r i t t e a »' ’’ o f t h e c r o ' j e e d i n q s / l p f o r r o t j on r e l y i n g on t h e

- •. p r o c e e d j n o s o f the C o r m j t t e e o f S e c r e t a r i e s .

— -----------^ K T “ ..

Ths undersigned is directed to say that the question as to whether the proceedings of the Committee of Secretaries presided over by tho Cabinet Secretary should net, like the proceedings of the Cabinet, be treated as classified documents irrespective of the nature cf their contents has t o m examined in consultation uith the Ministry of Law. . The pdvics or the Committee of Secretaries on Internal Affairs has elso been - obtained. The conclusion reached is that as these Committees function as an adjunct to the Cabinet system, theif^r^-ceedinQS should Blso b6 treated as classified irrespecU^/jB-^of whether ^ their contents merit a security classificatien ’or not.^ As a corollary, no papers connectcd uith these Committees Should . be shoun to Parliamentary Committees or courts of lau^~~

.2. The rationale of .the ebov3 instructions i~ cort.-ined in the detailed note attached hereto.

Vx

(R .f l . c’j f i l ) Sccretcry to the Cabinet.

To

All Secretaries/Special S ecre ta rles /A dd itio S ecre taries to the Government of Ind ia . ' ‘—“““

• 3PS»120 C o p ies ..-*

SECftCT": C'». m -A *

v - - . ' •

- ‘.V

* » > < ; ,.v 4 -

f c - v c -t* •• ».• \ • • ■ ’»•••**.- •* '• . • * 7

CABINET ‘ SECRET AR I A T ^ N T R IMAnW ' SACHIN/ALMA) • ■; - ■ Department of Cabinet Affeilt(flantrimendei )<erya Vibhfeg)

» . ^ v r •„

. .. SECr*» # . ii*'' ■ * >/* "*

•it;7' J V / V *

K MS u b j e c t : - P ro d u c t io n be fo re tha P a r l i a m e n ta ry Compijttees

of the p ro ce e d in g s / in fo rm a t io n r e l y i n g on the \< p r o c e e d in g s of tht" Committee pf S e c r e t a r i e s ^

ofThe

thee Rules of Procedure In regard to th o proceedings

_ __ C eb ine t p r o v id e th a t all Cabinet p a p e r s ' s h e l lbe s e c u r i t y g raded 1 s e c r e t Vx-* top s e c r e t 1. I t f o l l o u s , t h e r e f o r e , t h a t such papers h ive to be g iven e i t h e r o f the tuo s e c u r i t y g rad in g s , I r r e s p e c t i v e o f uhother th e c o n te n t s m e r i t a s e c u r i t y Grading or not*

%

The q u e s t io n u h e th e r papers r e l a t i n g to th e Co mmittoes of S e c r e t a r i e s p res ided over by th e Cabinet S e c re t a ry can be t r e a t e d on the 6ame fo o t in g as C ab ine t papers has been examined in c o n s u l t a t i o n u i t h t h e M in is t ry of Lau. 3".

*:The Ministry of Lau has advised that Government

has absolute discretion in tho'.matter of deciding whethjei or not disclosure uould be prejudicial to the intorest of the State. As a corollary*'-even a matter uhich wight on surface appear to be innocuous could be so classified by Government. Th® rationale of this view Is that officials recording * note or participating in a discussion must have complete freedom to expross their viewpoint uninhibited by any.faar that these might be disclosed and become tho subject matter of controversy or debate. ^It follous, therefore, that subject to ¥ Government being satisfied that disclosure uould be prejudicial to the interests of, the State, a request for the production of a document to a Parliamentary Committee or Court of Lau can fee negatived. An important implication of this £bvice however is that Government must apply Its mind^in each individual case beforo making a determination that disclosure/uould be prejudicial to the interostjbf the State. If The further question hence put to fhe Ministry or Lau In this context uas uhether th#.proceedings £of an inter- fllnistrerlal meeting presided CU/er by tho Cabinet Secretary oould as a class" b ^ d e e m e d to fall in the category of documents the diselfrsuro of uhich could bo prejudicial to public Inter cation for treating them so, . that the Cabinet Secretary ac Council of Ministers even uh specific direction from it; of Secretaries presided over the Cabinet.

♦OPS*120 copies.

t. The broad Justifi- was explained, was ‘ n behalf of the

doos not act on a that the Committees in advise and assist

>■*

f . X ,

' SECRET ,2 •

's- ,*> y - , , • £•. - • - •In ro6ponse to.a subsequent query from the

Ministry of Leu, it uas cierifiod that tho paper considered by these Committees concern themselves uith one or more of tho following types of problems !-

tc) Problems on which advice is sought by the concerned Ministries before meking a submi-

"ss'ionto the Cabinet".’

(b) Problems which pre romittcd to the Committees , by the Cabinet or its Committees,

(c) Problems impinging on the work of tuo or more Ministries in regard to uhich there is a difference of vieu and tho advice of the Committee of Secretaries is needed for e mutually acceptable solution; and

(d) Problems uhich ere complcx in nature on uhich a vieu needs to be trken on alternative policy options having regard to the pros and

. cons of each. 1

It 4as also pointed out that freo and frank expression of vieus in euch papers and.the subsequent discussion in the Committees uould be seriously inhibited if privilege could not be claimed for their contents and the contents of the minutes of the meeting.Based on these clarifications, the Ministry of Lau has sinco confirmed that the minutes of the Committees of Secretaries constitute high-level inter-departmental minutes uhich qualify for privilege as •class’ document like Cabinet papers.

♦3 PS*120 copies.

SECRET

No.915/1 l/C/2/2000-Pol(V ol.I) PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE


Dated: 16.01.200#

To

Shri P.K.Sengupta, WBH.TS(Retd.). Secretary,Justice Mukheijee Commission of Inquin', "B" Block/Third Floor 11 A. Mirza Ghalib Street KOLKATTA-700087.

Subject:-Compliance with the orders/directions of the Hon'ble Commission' intimation of present status.

In conxinuaxion of tins Office letter of even number dated 29.11.2000. on the above subject, I am directed to inform the Hon'ble Commission that since the filing of the .Affidavit dated 29.11.2000 by Shri Jamail Singh, Joint Secretary' in this Office, with the Commission on 30.11.2000. the National Museum have conveyed that they have v,c objection to declassification of their papers and those papers being made public by the Commission. As such, this Office has also downgraded its notes on PMO files relating to the subject matter, to Confidential. However, it is left to the discretion of the Commission to make all/any of these declassified documents, public.

2. With regard to the classified papers pertaining to the Orissa Government, it may be stated that this Office is in touch with the State Government to get their views about declassification of the relevant documents expedited.

3. Upon receiving the views of the Orissa Government this Office would file a supplementary consolidated affidavit in respect of the two matters mentioned above, at appropriate level, articulating our stand with regard to the notes/correspondence, available on PMO files.in due course.

Sir

Yours faithfully,

No.915/11/C/2/2000-Pol(Vol.l)PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE

SOUTH BLOCK NEW DELHI-110 011

Dated: 16.1.2000

Shri Tarakeshwar Pal,Senior Central Government Counsel,Bar Association Room No.5,High Court Kolkatta,Kolkatta.

Sub:- Filing of Supplementary Affidavits before JusticeMukherjee Commission of Inquiry appointed to enquire into the alleged disappearance of Netaii Subhash Chandra Bose.

I am directed to enclose herewith a Supplem entary Affidavit, duly signed by Shri N.K. Singh, Secretary to PM claim ing privilege in respect of the documents in possession o f the Prim e Minister's Office and in respect of the documents for which the Ministry of Home Affairs have already claimed privilege. This is with reference to the discussions you had with the undersigned and Shri P.S. Lally, Under Secretary in the PMO in the 1st week o f January, 2001. You may like to take further necessary action in the matter, at your end.

w J\A

\

Yours faithfully,

(ARCHNA RANJAN) 4/ Director

rV

B E F O R E T H E H O N O U R A B L E J U S T IC E M U K H E R J E E C O M M IS S IO N O F IN Q U IR Y A T C A L C U T T A

IN T H E M A T T E R O F C O M P L IA N C E W IT H T H E O R D E R S /D IR E C T IO N S O F T H E C O M M IS S IO N A S P A S S E D IN T H E IR P R O C E E D IN G S H E L D F R O M T IM E T O T IM E A T C A L C U T T A .

S U P P L E M E N T A R Y A F F ID A V IT

I, N a n d K is h o re S in g h , s o n o f la te Shri T .P .S in g h , w o rk in g as

S e c r e ta r y in th e P r im e M in is t e r 's O f f ic e , d o s o le m n ly a f f irm a n d s tate

as fo l lo w s : -

1. T h a t (as a l r e a d y s ta te d in th e A f f id a v it d a te d 2 9 .1 1 .2 0 0 0 s ig n e d

by S h r i J a rn a i l S in g h , J o in t S e c r e ta r y in th is O ff ic e an d f iled w ith

C o m m is s io n o n 3 0 .1 1 .2 0 0 0 ) w ith re g a rd to th e d o c u m e n ts w h ic h had

o r ig in a te d f ro m th e M in is t ry o f H o m e A fa irs , th a t M in is try is o f the

v ie w th a t th e d o c u m e n ts l is te d in A n n e x u re - I d e a l in g w ith the

fo l lo w in g is s u e s m a y b e c o n t in u e d to be c la ss if ied :

a) C o n t r o v e r s ie s re g a rd in g N e ta j i 's d e a th an d b r in g in g

his a s h e s to In d ia f r o m J a p a n ;

^ b) Id e n t i ty o f M rs . A n i ta P fa ff , d a u g h te r o f N eta ji S u b h a s h

^ C h a n d r a B o s e .

C o n s e q u e n t ly th e n o te s p o r t io n d e a lin g w ith th e s e c la s s if ie d

d o c u m e n ts a v a i la b le on P M O f i le s w o u ld also c o n t in u e to be tre a te d

as c la s s f ie d (A n n e x u r e 1 -A ) . In v ie w o f the a d v ic e o f M in is try o f

H o m e A ffa irs . I, th e D e p o n e n t a s S e c re ta ry in th e P r im e M in is te r 's

Office dealing with the su b jec t matter, am in co n tro l o f th e s e re c o rd s

and am filing the present A ffidavit ac c o rd in g ly . I a m f il ing th e p re s e n t

affidavit cla im ing privilege, under S e c t io n s 123 & 124 o f th e E v id e n c e

Act, in respect of the records as m e n tio n e d in A n n e x u re s I & IA to

th is Affidavit. I am cla im ing privilege in th e fo l lo w in g c ir c u m s ta n c e s : -

2) The records listed in A nnexure I & IA w h ic h h a v e b e en o rd e re d

to be produced by the H on 'b le C o m m iss io n are u n p u b l is h e d o f f ic ia l

record relating to affairs o f State and c o n ta in c o m m u n ic a t io n s m a d e

to public officers in official confidence. T h e d is c lo s u re o f th e r e c o rd s

w ou ld cause in jury to the pub lic interest. A s su ch , th e y are p ro te c te d

by Sections 123 and 124 of th e Evidence A ct.

3) I su bm it that the records ordered to be p ro d u c e d a ls o b e lo n g

to a class of docum ents w h ich it is the p ra c tic e to k e e p s e c re t fo r

ensuring the proper function ing of the p u b lic serv ice .

4) I have carefu lly exam ined the q u e s t io n as to w h e th e r th e

disc losu re of the records would cause in ju ry to p u b lic in te re s t ,

inc lud ing Ind ia 's relations w ith some fr ie n d ly fo re ig n c o u n tr ie s an d

am bonafide satisfied that their d isc losu re w o u ld c a u s e in ju ry to

pub lic interest, and that public interest w o u ld a lso s u ffe r th e re b y .

5. In the c ircum stances, I withhold p e rm is s io n to p ro d u c e th e s a id

reco rd s or to d isc lose their contents or to g ive a n y e v id e n c e d e r iv e d

th ere fro m , and claim privilege under S e c t io n s 123 an d 12 4 o f th e

E v id ence Act, in respe said p a p e rs ( lis ted im A n n e x u r e sI &

6. H o w e v e r , I s u b m it th a t I h a v e no o b je c t io n to th e re c o rd s in

re s p e c t o f w h ic h p r iv i le g e has b e e n c la im e d b e in g p r o d u c e d fo r

p e ru s a l by th e H o n ble C o m m is s io n fo r s a t is fy in g itse lf a b o u t the

b o n a f id e s a n d g e n u in e n e s s o f th e p le a s o f p r iv i le g e .

/'y\ ■ K ■ | v ujC, j ^ | . c i D E P O N E N T

V E R IF IC A T IO N

I, N a n d K is h o re S in g h , d e c la r e an d a f f irm th a t w h a t is s ta te d

a b o v e is t ru e to m y k n o w le d g e . N o p a rt o f th is A f f id a v i t is fa ls e an d

n o th in g m a te r ia l h a s b e e n c o n c e a le d .

V e r i f ie d at N e w D e lh i, o n 1 6 .0 1 .2 0 0 1 ./-yi K ( i (■ r c iD E P O N E N T

•Yl \p\\ir-* 'io / "**■? //

1

olemnly Affirms?! Zwc-rn Before Me

N O T A R Y P U B n £ ' \ \ E W DELHI

JM\ id e n t i f y ih s c '^ p o n c n t jE x e c u ta m v b o h as s ig n e d io m y p re s a n c *

: ANNEXURE -I

S \ .File No. G-16(3) 95-NGO

^ 2 'File No. G-12n8.V94-NGO

y 3 .File No. 870 11 P 10,93-Pol Vol. II

\W v'

SI. No. 17 pages 20-21 /c of the file No.G- 16(3 );9 5 -N GO-MH A ' s D.O. | No. L 12014/27/93-ISp.III dated Nil from Sh.S.B. Chavan, Home Minister to Sh. P.V. Narasimha Rao.! Prime Minister regarding monal remains o f Netaji Subhash ChandraBose to be: broucht from Tokyo to India.

i ! i ; • i I . •' • • i' ' ! ' ' ' 'SI. No.36 ■ pages', 4-5 c of the tileNo.G12(18)'94-NGO ! -M HA’s UiOl'l !No.1/12014 27/93-IS(I).!II) ‘dated’ 9.8.94. fromSh. K. Pudmanubhaiah ■ Home Secretary toSh. A.N.: Varma . Principal Secretary toPM on controversy regarding N etaji’sdeath and bringing his ashes to India fromJapan. . ;

SI. No. 1 x Page . 1 c o f the fi 1 e - No.870'1 I P J0'93-Pol Vol. 11- M H A 's U.O. No.I' 12014-27/93-IS.D. 1II dated 20.4.1994 from Sh. N.N.Vohra . Home Secretary to Sh. A.N, Varma. Pnncipal Secretary to PM - Controversy regarding Netaji 's ;death and bringing his ashes to India from Japan.

File No. 2(67)78-PM SI. No.3/C Page 4-6/c o f the file No.2( 67) 78-PMMHA U.O. No.25022 !09 7 9 -F.VII doted 6.2.1980 (with enclosurcslfrom Shri Vimi\ Vasishtha , Under Secretary p Ministry of Home 'Affairs to Sh. Prakash Shah .Joint Secretary , PMO regarding establishment ot the identity of Ms. Anita P fa il daughter o f Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.

ANNEXURE -IA.

File No. G -16(3)/95-N G O Page Nos. 5<fc6 o f Note dated:21.11.1995 of Ms. iSujaia Mehta. Director. PMO & ridings thereon regarding proposal to bring the mortal remains o f Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose from Japan to India.

Notes dated 26.8.1994 &. 2.9.1994 o f Ms. Sujata Mehta. Director. PMO

controversy regarding N etaji's deaiii and bringing his ashes to India from Japan.

regarding doubts about the facts relating to wife and daughter o f Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.

regarding Neiaii’s death and bringing " es to India from Japan.

2 .File .No. G -12 (18 )/94- N G O Page Nos I to 4 (Notes portion!) of

and notings thereon about

b 3. Flic No. 2<67)/78-PM Page Nos. 2 to 3 of Notes portion

CONFIDENTIAL

f

N & oL,—"*

Serial No.

Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry

For Inquiry into the alleged Disappearance o£ Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

•B* Block,(Third Floor)11 IA, MIraa Ghalib Street,Calcutta-700037,

Received ‘ 'Secret* File No0 2 ( 6 7 ) / 7 8 - P M (Xerox

copies of Notes/Correspondence) of the Prime M i n i s t e r * a

office. Government of India, N e w Delhi, from Justice

M.K. Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry,

Pl«a3e return it Immediately to

Shri P.K. Sengupta,Secretary,M.K. Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry, 11-A, Mirsa Gh^llb Street, Calcutta-700097.

(^T.#.3ft.|/PM0 (N9Q) \

«!.tf*>Dy. No l ^ - V«•«---- fttil

T o p S e c r e t J u s t ic e M u k h e r j e e C o m m is s io n o f In q u i r yF o r I n q u i r y I n t o t h e A l l e g e d D is a p p e a r a n c e of

N e t a j i S u b h a s C h a n d r a B o s e .‘ B ’ Block, (Third Floor)

1 1/A M irza Ghalib Street, C a lc u t ta 7 0 0 0 8 7

I’lionc:Chairman 216-2035Secretary — 216-2767 Officer onSpecial Duly - 216-2765 Office -216-2766/68

Nn imp.1/ Meeting-Proceeding5 (Follow U p ) £ a ic u t ta , d a ted , th e 31.01.2001, 48 (Vol.II)/4^4»

From * Shri P.K* Sengupta, WBHJS (Retd.), Secretary

To The Secretary,Prime Minister's Office, South Block,New Delhi-110001. a *

S i r ,

\ p I am directed to send herewith a xerox copy of

the Proceedings dated 17.01.2001 (Seventh) of the

Commission and of its order dated 25.01.2001 for taking. a , y . wumu.aDj.wij, a u u wj. x u o viucJL u a t c u t v l + xr J s ijD

ap necessary action as desired by the Commission.

« Z > *

I am further directed to send b a c k b y a special

messenger the file N o . 2(67)78 PM (Subject! W i d o w and

daughter of Shri Subhas Chandra Bose - Misc. Corres

pondence with and about) containing x e r o x copies of

some documents relating to Mrs. Anita Puff., daughter

of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, in a sealed cover as

the same have been considered b y this Commission t o be

not relevant to the terms of the reference of the

Commission. irI

The said sealed cover as also ;xerox copies of

the said proceedings and order will t|>e m a d e over at

your office by Shri Ajoy Kumar De, Private Secretary

of this Commission.

Yoiirs faithfully.

Sealed Cover as stated

drf- • \y(/

(P !» K. Sengupta) Secretary

0091-033-216-2765 No ... Kit*/Date. . . 14 J.r /..KS.l ••••MM*

J u s tic e M .K. M u k h e r je e Com m ission o f In q u ir

Proceedings dated 17.01.2001 (Seventh)Held at the Seminar Hall, Annexe Building, Mahajati Sadan,


Proceedings

In terms of the order passed in the last sitting of the Commission on 22.12.2000,

the two applications (filed through affidavits) by Shri Kamal Pande, Secretary to the

Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs, and Shri Jarnail Singh, a Joint Secretary

in the Prime Minister’s Office, claiming privilege in respect of 'the contents of the

documents referred to in their respective applications have been taken up for further

hearing,

At the commencement of the hearing Mr. Paul, has submitted that lest the

Commission holds that Shri Jarnail Singh being a Joint Secretary is not competent to

claim privilege in view of the provisions of Sections 123 of the Evidence Act, he may be

permitted to file a supplementary affidavit affirmed by Shri N.K. Singh, Secretary in thei

Prime Minister’s office fully supporting the claim of Shri Jarnail Singh within a day or two.

The prayer has been allowed. Thereafter the learned Counsel for the parties, including

the learned Counsel for Government of India, have been heard at length on the claim of

privilege. Necessary Orders ’ *"

ORDER

25.1.2001

S r i Kamal Pande, Secretary t o ' t h e Govern

ment o f I nd i a , M in i s t ry of Home A f f a i r s , has f i l e d

an ap p l i c a t i on through an a f f i d a v i t c l a im ing p r i

v i l e g e in respect of the fo l lowing f i l e s p e r t a i n i n g

to N e t a j i Subhas Chandra Bose : -I > ; ’

\ i ) B r inging the ashes -o f N e t a j i kept

i i ) Posthumous announcement of award o f

' Bharat Ratna* to N e t a j i ;

The p r i v i l e g e has been claimed under S ec t i on s 123

and 124 of the Evidence Act and A r t i c l e 74 ( 2 ) o f

the Const i tut ion of I nd ia .

o f the Evidence Act has been made in another a f f i

d av i t bySr i J a rn a i l Singh.a Joint S e c r e t a r y inihe Prime

M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e , in respect of documents d e a l i n g

with the f o l l ow ing i s sues

h

in Renkoj i Temple in Tokyo, Japan

to Ind ia ; and

S im i l a r claim under Sect ions 123 and 124

i ) Controvers ies regarding N e t a j i ? s death / ;

and br ing ing his ashes in Ind i a fromI

\ Japan ; and

i i ) I d en t i t y of Mrs. Anita P u f f , d augh te r

of Ne t a j i Subhas Chandra 3ose.

Later on, with the permission of the Commission

S r i N.K.Singh, Secretary in the Prime M i n i s t e r ' s

O f f i c e has f i l e d a supplementary a f f i d a v i t suppor t ing

the c l a i m o f S r i J a r n a i l S ingh . The l e a rn e d Counsel

f o r the deponents b e f o r e the Commission r a i s e d a

t h r e s h o l d q u e s t i o n as to the m a i n t a i n a b i l i t y o f the j

c l a im on the grounds t h a t none o f the a f f i d a v i t s

s p e c i f i c * the documents i n r e s p e c t o f which p r i v i l e g e

was b e i n g c la imed nor do they i n d i c a t e the reasons

why i t i s apprehended t h a t t h e i r d i s c l o s u r e would

l e a d t o i n j u r y to p u b l i c i n t e r e s t . To b r i n g homei

t h e i r c o n t e n t i o n s they have taken me through the

averments made in the a f f i d a v i t s and r e l i e d on v a r i o u s i

judgments o f the Supreme Court in t h i s r e g a r d . P a r t i - I

c u l a r r e f e r e n c e has been made to the C o n s t i t u t i o n

Bench judgments o f the Supreme Court in S t a t e o f

Punj ab v s . S . S . S i n g h , AIR 1961 S .C . 493 where in

G a j e n d r a g a d k a r J . ( a s H i s Lo rd sh ip then w a s ) , speak ing

f o r the m a j o r i t y , ob se rv ed as underM '• i

" The s o l e and the on ly t e s t which should d e t e r

mine the d e c i s i o n o f the head o f the department

i s i n j u r y to p u b l i c i n t e r e s t and noth ing e l s e .

S in ce i t i s not u n l i k e l y t ha t ex t r aneous and

c o l l a t e r a l pu rposes may ope ra t e i n the mind

o f the p e r so n c l a im in g the p r i v i l e g e i t i s

n e c e s s a r y to l a y down c e r t a i n r u l e s in r e s p e c t

o f the manner in which the p r i v i l e g e should be' i

c l a i m e d . We th ink th a t in such c a s e s the

p r i v i l e g e should be c la imed g e n e r a l l y by thei

M i n i s t e r i n charge who i s the p o l i t i c a l head o f i

the department concerned ; i f not , the S e c r e t a r y j

o f the depar tment who i s the depa r tmenta l head

shou ld make the c l a im ; and the c l a im should

a lw ay s be made i n ’ the form o f an a f f i d a v i t .I

When the a f f i d a v i t i s made by the S e c r e t a r y the j

Cour t may, i n * p r o p e r c a s e , r e q u i r e an a f f i d a - \

v i t o f the M i n i s t e r h i m s e l f . The a f f i d a v i t

should show th t each document in q u e s t i o n has

. . . 3

been c a r e f u l l y read and con s id e r ed , and the

person making the a f f i d a v i t i s s a t i s f i e d

that i t s d i sc l osu re would l ead to p u b l i c

, '• in jury. I f there are a s e r i e s o f documentsincluded in a f i l e i t should appear fromthe a f f i d a v i t that each one o f the documents,

whose d i s c l o su re i s ob j ec ted t o , has been

duly considered by the a u t h o r i t y concerned.

The a f f i d a v i t should a l so i n d i c a t e b r i e f l y ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- l .wi th in pe rmiss ib le l im i t s the reason why i t

i s apprehended that t h e i r d i s c l o s u r e would

lead to i n ju ry to publ ic i n t e r e s t r ( e m p h a s i si

su pp l i ed ) .I

Rel iance was a lso placed in Amarchand Butaye i v s .

Union o f I nd i a , AIR 1964 SC 1658 wherein the above

quoted p r i n c i p l e was r e i t e r a t e d . L a s t l y , the a t t e n t i o n

of the Commission was drawn to the f o l l o w i n g p a s sage

from the judgment of Supreme Court in R .K .J a in v s .

Union o f India (1993) 4 SCC page 120.

" I t i s now set t l ed law tha t the i n i t i a l

claim f o r pub l i c i n t e r e s t immunity to

produce unpublished o f f i c i a l r eco rds f o r

short "State documents" should be made

through an a f f i d a v i t g e n e r a l l y by the

Minis te r concerned, in his. absence by the

Secretary o f the department or hgad o f the

department. In the l a t t e r case the c ou r t

may requ i re an a f f i d a v i t of the M i n i s t e r

himsel f to be f i l e d . The a f f i d a v i t should

Ind icate that the documents in q u e s t i o n

have been c a r e f u l l y read and co ns id e red

and the deponent has been s a t i s f i e d ,

supported by reasons or grounds v a l i d and

germane, as to why i t is apprehended that

pub l ic i n t e r e s t would be i n ju r e d by d l s c l o -

>

sure o f the document summoned or c a l l e d f o r .

- i ' j '

- 4 -

I f the c ou r t f i n d s the a f f i d a v i t u n s a t i s f a c t o r y

a f u r t h e r o p p o r t u n i t y may be q i v e n to f i l e

a d d i t i o n a l a f f i d a v i t or he may be summoned f o r

c r o s s - e x a m i n a t i o n . I f the c o u r t i s s a t i s f i e d

from the a f f i d a v i t and the r e a s o n s a s s igned

f o r w i t h h o l d i n g p r o d u c t i o n or d i s c l o s u r e * the

Cour t may pa s s an a p p r o p r i a t e o r d e r i n that

b e h a l f . n ( emphas is s u p p l i e d )

. . 1 In r e spond ing to the above c on ten t i on s o f the

l e a r n e d Counsel f o r the deponents , Mr, P a l appea r ing

f o r the Union o f I n d i a submitted tha t the a f f i d a v i t s

c l e a r l y i n d i c a t e t h a t the p r i v i l e g e has been claimed

in th e l i n e of the o b s e r v a t i o n s o f the Supreme Court

in the aboye ca se s and t h e r e f o r e , no e x c e p t i o n cou lds ■ . f : Ibe taken to the same. He, however , f a i r l y submitted

th a t i f the Commission f e l t t h a t the a f f i d a v i t s were

u n s a t i s f a c t o r y , t h e S e c r e t a r i e s concerned may be g i ven

an o p p o r t u n i t y to f i l e a d d i t i o n a l a f f i d a v i t s , as

ob se rved by Supreme Court in R .K . J a i n ( S u p r a ) .

To f i n d an answer t o the aboye qu e s t i on s

I have c a r e f u l l y gone through the a f f i d a v i t s and f i l e s .

U n l i k ^ . t h e a f f i d a v i t s f i l e d on b e h a l f o f the Prime

M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e wh e re in not on ly th® documents have• J

been s p e c i f i c a l l y mentioned but a l s o the notes appea

r i n g t h e r e i n (Annexure I and IA r e s p e c t i v e l y to the

a f f i d a v i t s ) , i n r e s p e c t o f which p r i v i l e g e has been

c l a im e d , the M i n i s t r y o f Home A f f a i r s have c la imed

p r i v i l e g e i n r e s p e c t o f the e n t i r e c on ten t s o f t h e i r

two f i l e s . On p e r u s a l t h e r e o f , I f irid t h a t these f i l e s

not o n l y c o n t a i n o f f i c i a l notes and i cg r respondences

between the M i n i s t r y o f Home A f f a i r s , Pr ime M i n i s t e r ' s j

O f f i c e and o th e r M i n i s t r i e s but a l s o ^records o f P a r

l i a m e n t a r y p r o c e e d i n g s , newspaper c u t t i n g s , open

- 5 -

l e t t e r s sent by eminent c i t i zens to the M in i s t r y o f

Home Affairs and similar other documents. Apparently the ’ latter class of documents cannot answer the description of 'secret1 documents nor do they assume -such a charac- < ter simply by their inclusion in f i l e s marked *» TOP SECRET". In that context, i t was obligatory on the'part of the Secretary of Ministry of Home A f fa i r s to specify the documents in respect ofiwhich p r iv i legewas being claimed. So far as furnishing of the reasons

ias to why it is apprehended that the disclosure of the documents in the f i le s would lead to injury to public interest is concerned, the only reason' that has been given in the affidavit is that disclosure of the records would cause injury to India 's re lat ion with some friendly foreign countries. Whether the above reason is appropriate oneior not need not be decided at this stage but suffice it to say that the reason is not even available to other documents appearing in t^e f i l e s . In a l l such circumstances, the Ministry of Hpme Affairs was also required to indicate the

specific reasons for which the contents of the other

relevant documents in the f i le should not be disclosed.

For' the foregoing discussion, the Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs is directed to f i l e a supplementary affidavit regarding their claim of p r iv i lege keeping in view the observations made hereinbefore and the principle laid down by the Supreme Court as to

the manner in which it is to be claimed. The supplemen-’ tary affidavit should be filed within a month of

i communication of this Order. Let a copy of this Order alongwith the f i le s received from the Ministry of Home Affa irs be sent for their response.

. •« • 6

J

- 6 - * e- ■/'>

So f a r as the a f f i d a v i t s o f Prime M i n i s t e r ' s

O f f i c e a re concerned , they undoubted ly s p e c i f y the

documents and the notes in r e s p e c t of which p r i v i l e g e

is claimed, As regards the documents pertaining to the

identity of Mrs.Anita Pu ff , daughter of Neta j i Subhas Chandra Bose, the same are not relevant to the terms o f reference and hence the same may be sent back. The other documents and notes relate to correspondence

between the Prime M in ister 's Office and the Home Ministry; and the same also find place in the f i l e s

of Ministry of- Home A f fa i r s in respect of which p r iv i lege has been claimed. In a l l such ‘circumstances, appropriate ©rders regarding the merits' of the claim of p r iv i lege in respect of those documents w i l l be made on receipt of response of the Ministry of Home A f fa i r s to this Order. <

I'WiC? ,tan

(Monoj Kr. Mukherjee) Chairman

r s

m

Subject: Claiming of privilege in respect of the

documents to be furnished to the Justice

Mukherjee Commission - clarification

regarding.********** * * * * * * * * * * *

Reference is invited to M HA note

No.l/12014/13/2000-IS(D.III) dated 14.3.2001 on the subject

noted above.

Of the five documents listed in the above

referred Communication following three documents alongwith

their relevant files have already been made available to the

Justice Mukherjee Commission.

1. PMO U.O. Note No.870/ll(P)/10/93-Pol dt. 13.10.93.

2. PMO U.O. Note No.PMO(NGO)354/T/94 dt. 16.9.94.

3. PMO U.O. Note No.G-16(3)/95-NGO dt. 30.11.95

It has also been clarified through filing o f an Affidavit by this

office that all notes/correspondence originating from PM ’ s office,

copies of which have already been made available to the

Commission may be graded as Confidential. Therefore, the

Security grading o f the aforesaid documents may be treated as

confidential.

fg jM E MINISTER’S OFFICE

................. 2/-

f^r.^.afy.yPMO (NGQ)

-2-

The remaining two Secret” u.o. notes

(No.805/ufC/13/95-Pol( Vol.II) dated 19.12.95 and 18.1.96 which

relate to a proposal for DNA Analysis o f the Ashes presumed to

be o f Netaji’ s could not made available to the Commission by

this office so far as these papers had in-advertantly been lodged

in a some what unrelated file and therefore could not be located

while forwarding other files/documents to the Justice Mukherjee

Commission, However, copies o f these u.o. notes are available

in M H A file on which MHA intend to claim privelege.

Therefore, our stand in respect o f these two documents would

be similar to the position as explained in our Affidavit referred to

above.

Shri Mukesh Mittal, Deputy Secretary (ISI), M H A PM O U.O. No. 915/1 l/C/2/2000-Pol dated March 22,2001

Director

[ Alok Mukhopadhyay ] Under Seeretary(Pol)

ToSmt* Sangita Gairola, Jo in t Secretary ( TS— X) , M in is t r y of Horae A f fa i r s , Government of India, N or th Block,

D e a r Madam,

R e •

Advocate HIGH COUKT CALCUTTA

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Senior Standing Counsel t o the Govt* of Tndla In Just ice Mukherjee Commission fo r In qu i ry Tnto the A l legedDisappearance of N e t a j i Subhas Chandra Bose«

Y.rltten advice Including advice on evidence In respect o f Avettnents/ContentIona/Allegations o f the deponent Sr i Usha Ranjan Bhattsc liar jee Inhis A f f idav i t dated 5th March, Govt, of Tndla*

A N D

2000 concerning

Your l e t t e r No. dated 4th July,

l/l20i4/l0/20C 1- JS( D. I FO 200].

V, 1th the voluminous Af f idav it , f a l l i n g to cope * l t h your

request , J, amidst HokJcbxb making myself ready f o r hear ings o f the

Hon1 b le Just ice Mukherjee Commission at Falzabsd, may put the

above advice on the said A f f idav i t as fo l lows t -

AdvocateHIGH COURT CALCUTTA

Bar Association Room No., Phones : 248-3190/3169

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1 . . The case o f the said Dutonent i s as f o l l o w s : -

( a ) That the N e t a j i war. apprended on 13th August, 1945 at

Singapore by CSDIC ( Combined Service;; Deta i led I n t e l l i g e n c e ( I n t e

r r o g a t io n ) C en t re - In te lJ igence Centres o f the Brit ish (underl iI-3

o f the Brit ish Government) in Eastern/Far Eastern Front) people under

the machination o f t h e i r agents in the Indian Rat iona l Array (INA)

Azad Hind Faus , in p a r t i c u l a r Z .A. Ayer and General Kiwani with some

o the r a id e s in the IT!A.

( b ) Tv-at the W eto j i along with Kabib-ur-iiahman was

f o r c e d l y placed in - j CSI^C- rs t ju ia lt icnpd conqurred Japanese Bomber

a i r c r a f t along' w i th Japanese P i l o t >Tono Oaki end Japanese Cr,ev

nteobero with Tommy s o l d i « r c eo guards "nd the a i r c r a f t l e f t

Singapore on th 14th Au^uut, 104G at Oy.OO hours.

( c ) That the smid v i re r a f t f lew v ia Bangoon and entered

the Br i t ish Indian Terr i to ry anc toucheu-down f o r re fue l l ing i t

Indian a i r p o r t s t l u t i k o r , puprsi, P-tna and arrived at 'Delh i

a irport j u s t at sun set ( a t about l o . l O hours) at a remote corner

o f the aerodrome ( which was under m i l i t a r y contro l end c i v i l l i a n

a i r c ra f t had no r c l e ) under t i g h t se c u r i ty .

( d ) That the N e t a j i and Kabib-ur-P.ahman were taken out o f

the sa id Bomber and were placed in a c lo sed L l i l i ’t a ry P o l i c e van,

and were taken to ned F o r t .

Contd.* «o/p.


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( q) That the Red ForJTv.as converted rts 3NA P r i so n e r? '(TT ^Concentration Camp since ]943 ( majvf barracks •'n Red Fort * e r e

constructed hurriedly nt that time*' v.jth the TNA people ajA£.ested

in India v.hen they came to India to inform the oeople o f Indie

of the and gradually v. ith other 7NA P r i son e r s , by June,

1945 there v.ere over tv.enty-Hve thousand TNA s o ld i e r s In

c a p t i v i t y ■'n Red Fort under so s t r i c t e s t p o s s i b l e s e c u r i ty

that no Indian cculd even guess of TNA sol id e r s1 c a p t i v i t y

there but l an d h i j i and Tav>harlal Nehru of v,hom G andh i j i' *

f r equent ly vis ited the said captive so ld i e r s to tame and adviced

the B r i t i s h to demobilise them and to send them to th e i r

V i l l ages.

( £> That the Metaji and Hab ib-ur-Rahman v>ere kept

and/or captivated in a secluded strong room c e l l , handcu f fed. ■

( g) That in the fag end of n ight of i4th Aupust,

the B r i t i s h War Secretary Ph i l ip Mason * i t h another s en io r

executive and a senior high ranking B r i t i s h s o l d i e r ( M t h

a revo lve r tied in a holster hanging l o o s e ly on his v,niuti

entered the c e l l of the Neta j i and Hnb ib-ur-Rahman v.here the

N e t a j i was s i t t in g n a cha ir vith Hab ib-ur-Rahman stand ing and

Fh ' i l ip Mason argued the N e ta j i to influence him to n e u t r a l i s e -

Advocate HIGH COURT CALCUTTA

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Residence :

- 4

which f a i l e d * P h i l i p ” ason ana the B r i t i s h Executive went back

and then it s t roke midnight 1n the Red Fort b e l f r y and then the

a r i d B r i t i s h s o l d i e r took out h is n i l ence r - f i t t e d revo lve r , came

fo rward and stood in front of the N e t a j i , r a i s e d the revo lve r

on the forehead of the handcuffed N e t a j i ( Hab ib-ur-Rahman said:

" Y.hat you are doing - V-H-A-T) and ae ing the » r i s t watch, tho

s a i d s o l d i e r f i r e d point blank* The sound was l i k e a coughing

no^se* The N e t a j i made p a in f u l voices Ah as Hnblb heard*

( h} f, Th.^t the dead body o f the N e t a j i was burnt to

ashes in the Red Fort and the said ashea v>as bur ied in the Red

F o r t s o i l on 16 th August, ].G45*

( f> That a f t e r murder o f the N e t a j i , Hab ib-ur-Rahman

taken to Taihoku ( as Habib choose between death and l i f e '1 rnd

the s to ry o f p lane crash, cremation of. the N e t a j i * a remains

a t Taihoku on August , 20, 1945, the ashes taken by Hab i b -u r -

Rahman to Tokyo some weeks l a t e r , observat ion of funera l r i t e s

a t Renkoj Temple on i4th September, ]945 and k e e p in g ’sos of

ashen a t ths s a id Temple were p lanted*

( f i Th^t the circumstances l e a d in g to the murder o f the

N e t a j i are as f o l l o v .3 s F a l l o f Burma on lOth August, 1945

( a f t e r d e f e a t s o f the Japanese m i l i t a r y miirht on attacks by

*

Contd* *


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5

A l l i e d forces between 9th March, 1945 and 9th August, 1945} •

( 13) Acceptance o f terms of surrender by the Emperor of .Japan

on i4th A’unust, 1945 ( which was signed on 2nd September, 1945')

fnd surrender documents o f Germany and I t a l y weie signed on

7th Hoy, ]945) • ( H I ) Tn fact, on i4th 'August, i945 en t i re

Japan and the P ac i f i c Islands and other lands came under the

contro l o f General ’'c Arthur, as absolute ru l e r of Japan* (Emp-rff

e ro r o f Japan's recorded voice of surrender wbr broadcast from

a l l Radio s4tat1ons In Japan on i5th August, 1945}: ( i l l ) V. 1th

d e fe a t s In v>ar front Tarmn was running short in fue l reserve

and war mater ia ls also. ( IV) Japan's request t o f o r

negot ia t ion with U 3*A* was refused* Potsdam conference held

on i3th day of July, 1945* t v ) On 6th and 9th August, 1945 ptom

bombs were exploded on Hiroshima and Nagasaki 1* Japanese Emperor

v,as adament to surrender* Hence Japan cannot,nor she had

author i ty , power and a b i l i t y to help N e t a j i to f l y In a bomber

from Singapore on igth August, ]945 leading to crash attr-

He. ihoku*

( k) The circumstantial aftermath the murder of the

N e t a j i is manifest in the fo l lowing events amongst others :

( 1' Murder of the Neta.1l wpa not made pub l ic , but i t v.ps known

- 6 -

Aqtvocate HIGH COURT CALCUTTA

Bar Association Room No., Phone* : 248-3190/3169

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Residence :

to Gandhi;) i and Jawaharlal Nehru whose speeches on and afterA (KiXn,

20th August) 1945 show changes In. atti tude towards the N e ta j i'Kr

to gain p o l i t i c a l mileage* ( I f ) The Br i t ish Imperialists were

a lso making propaganda to neutralise Netajj i 's influence by

making motivated and qual ify ing estimation of the NETAJI, vie- 8-

v i s were bHklixjc backing Gandhi - Nehru Cult of the <{ongreaB.

( i l l } Nehru's address on i5th August, ]947 at Red Fort

comrnenti^on the Neta j i nnd using N e ta j i ' s slogans* ( iv) Motivated

treatments o f TNA prisoners, and episode o f TNA T r ia l with a

view to - wipe out the N e t a j i ' s influence* ( v) Nehru and

Moutbatten's v i s i t to 1NA memorial 1n March, }946 at Singapore

and Moun tbatten ' s arrogant behaviour to the Manorial v is -a -v is

Gnndh i-N ehru's acceptance of Jnd ian Dom in ion with Mou tbatten

as Gouvnor General and Jinnah's refusal o f such Govap or

General f or Pak istan 1 Dom in ion. ( vfi U n -o f f l c ia l commission,

Shah Nawaz Committee's l im ited authority and i ts fa i lure to

v i s i t Mcsrauoc Ta Ikoku and cross-examine people there. Nehiu was

compelled to set up the committee, but, he did not 1 Dee it,i

( v i f Just ice Khosla Commission's proceedings show that the

Taihoku plane crash story was completely a transplanted drams-

suggesting that the episode of plane crash was woven to divert

the people from the truth: the murder o f the N e ta j i in Red Fort

a t Delh i.Contd.


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Residence :

2* Apart frcm re fe rr ing to his book In En g l i sh t i t l e d ,

" N e t a j i was murdered In Red Fort ( i99C) " , the deponent r e f e r r e d to

the secret documents of the CSDIC (Combined Serv ices D e ta i l e d

In t e l l i g e n c e Centi’es of the Br it ish Forced but the sa id Centre

» s s xa closed n i ' ter the N e t a j i ' s murder and the B r i t i d i took a l l

these documents to London - which may be procurred f ran the

overnment o f United Kingdom*

3. Tn view of above the Government of India, In my con s i

dered opinion has nothing to join save ^nd except the duty to

search out any records or documents re lat ing to as fo l low ing ,

which may be relevant, and i f found, to p iece b e fo r e the Hen* b l e

•Justice Mukherjee Commission

(a } CSDTC documents with the Government of United Kingdom.

( b} Construction of barracks <n Red Fort in 1943 and

a f t e r ( it may re late to the c i v i l Construct ions

div is ion of the M In is try of Defence} •

( c} Records in respect o f re fue l l in g o f tiie J?fpanese

bomber on i4th August, 1945 in the A irports at Sp lu t iko r ,

Rupsi and Patna ( it'may re late to the M in i s t r y o f C i v i l

Avintion ( in . p a r t icu la r Airports Authority of India}

and Ministry o f Defence*

Con td.*


Bar Association Room No.Phones : 248-3190/3169

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Re

1/

( d} Detai l? o f IMA Prisoners In Red Fort ps to v is i to rs nnd

detenues since 1943 upto the ir t r ia l in over ( i t re la tes v>ith

the records of the Ministry of Defence} .

( e} Records in respect o f nircr^fta lnnding pt and f ly ing from

the Delhi Aerodrome during the daysi i4th August, 1945 and i7th

August, 1945 ( i t may re late with the records uof the said A i r

po r t Authority of India or Ministry o f Defence}.

( f } Log books or records re la t ing to the M i l i ta ry Vehicles

p s v.ere being used by the B r i t i sh M i l i tary during }4th August,

1945 and ]7 th August, 1945 in Delhi ( i t may re la te to the

M in is t ry o f Defence')*

( g} iix^stence o f - strong room ( or very secured} secluded

C e l l in Red Fort ( frcm where no sound can be heard even by

people v. ithin the Red Fortf ( i t may re la te to const ructions

d iv is ion or c i v i l engineering div is ion of the M in is t ry o f Defence} »

( h} Records re la t ing to formation and proceedings o f the Shah

Nawaz Committee ( i t may re la te to the 0eb4n4t Secretariat , the

P r ime M in is t e r ' s o f f i c e and M in istry o f - FnrMga. Af fa irs -/VW

although some o f the records as to proceeding have been placed

b e fo r e the Hon'ble Justice Mukherjee Commission}.

Contd.•

-*0


Bar Association Room No.Phone*: 248-3190/3169

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Residence:

9

( i ) ivecordo relating to Justice Shah Commission ( of

your n.iniotry auu the same have been placed ) .

( j ) ijpeechea by Gandhi j i and J awharlal Nehru since iU4«s

upto loth August, iD'iV ( i t may relate to your Ministry o f

home .kfft.irs).

ac t iv i t i e s of the Allied Forces and the Japanese during 0th

March, 1945 and L;nd September, 1245 in the areas o f Japan and

under Japan and the pacfic Islands ( i t may relate to the

Ministry o f Defence ),

to Singapore during 194G to 1D47 ( i t may re late to the L.i r is try

of Horae a f fa irs and also Ministry of Sxternal Affair? ).

in 4uestioi: should be made earl ier than taking steps fo r records

etc.

.Jith the alov- may 1 conclude my advice here and an

returning the said a f f idav i t of sri Usha iianjan Bhattacharya

i 'h a n k in g y o u ,

U) Any intell igence or war r^.crts on the status and

(1)*

accounts of v i s i t s of Javharlal Kehru and MoutabttenA

« general . i f f idavit denying or accepting the A f f id a v i t

iours fa i th fu l ly

Advocatecontd /10


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Copies to : By -PiyJ w^Jtr A-/jD ,

x. - r i Falguni Its j kumar, Joint Secretary Q'rg. ) & CAO, Ministry o f Defence, Govt. o f India, South Block, New Delhi - 110001 - with request to take steps f o r f i l i n g A f f idav i t in the matters o f itOwi.'j ( a ) , ( b ) , ( c ) j (ci) , ( e ) , ( f / j Cu) and ( k) o f pa rag raphNo. 3 above.

. Sri Jayanta Prasad, Joint secretary, L.inistry o f External A f f a i r s , Govt, o f India, South Block, New Delhi - 110001 - with request to take steps fo r f i l i n g a f f id a v i t in the matters o f items ( a ) , '(h) and (1) o f Paragraph No. 3 above.

S. The oecretaj?/, ministry of C i v i l aviation, Govt, o f India, Ha^ib Gandhi Shawan, ^afdarjung A irport , New Delhi - with request to

take ^stcps fo r f i l ing: A f f id av i t in the matters o f items, ( c ) , (a)and' (h) o f the paragraph No. 3 above.

( 4 ./ Sri Jarnai l Singh, Joint Secretary, P ,U .0., Government o f India,South Block, New Delhi - 110001, with request to take steps for f i l i n g a f f idav i t in the natters o f item (h) o f Paragraph No. 3 abrve.

5. The Secretary, Cabinet Secretarjc^,Govt. o f India, South Block,New Delhi - 110001, with request to t: ke steps fo r f i l i n g A f f idav i t in the natters o f item (h) o f paragraph No. 3 above.

n Q J ^ ' C Xarakeswar Pal ) .Advocate. y-

^ ^ . \ r '

FroTij Tarakeswar t'al

Ragd. w ith A/d,

E.mail: barasoho Ocal cmc. not. in Residence :

’ Pucnasasl1

Ba/ Associalion Room No.5


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Vo5mt. S an g i t a G a i r o la * J o in t S ec r e ta ry ( IS I ) M in i s t r y o f Home A f f a i r s North Block New Delhi-11-3001.

33, ASoke Avenue Kolkata -700040 Ph. 471 -0592 ;Fax-471-1204 Senior S t r i d i n g Counsel to the Cov , t o f In d i a in the Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiery To Inquire Into The A l l e g e d D i s a p p e a r

-ance o f NetaJ t Subhas Chandra Be seDear Madam* August* 2, 2001.

ReJ Wri tten advice i n c lu d in g adv ice on e v id e n c e as to the ave rm ents/Cbnten t ions/A l lega t ions nMr’e in the A f f i d a v i t by 1) S u b r a t a Bose, 2 ) Smt. C h i t r a Ghosh and 3) S r i Sup r iyo B o s e , b e f o r e the Hon1 b le Just ice Mukherjee Commission

- A n d

Your L e t t e r No. 1/12014/10/2001-IS( a I I I ) dated 4th J u l y , 2001.

The case o f the deponents( nephew, niece and grand nephew o f the NetaJ iJ f o r themselves and f o r seven others (who are n ieces, nephew and g r and nephew o f i-he N e t a j i ) in the sa id A f f i d a v i t are a3 f o l l ow s » -

1. ihat the N e t a j i d id not d ie in the a l le g e d plane c r j£h at Taihoku on 18th August, 1945, and the re fo re the ashes kept at Renkoji Temple Cannot be t h a to f the N e t a j i 1 s • Th is b e l i e f is/was shared by a l l the members o f th£ f ^ n i l y a id b ro th e r s o f N e t a j i * Late S at i sh Chandra Bose and Late S a r a t Chandra Bose (em inent p o l i t i c a l l e a d e r s ) and b ro the rs o f the N e t a j i vented such b e l i e f o u t in s t a t e ments in s e v e r a l p o l i t i c a lm e e t in g s and r a l l i e s *

2. Thatthe f in d in g o f the Shah Nawaz Comrrittea w^» q u a l i f i e d w i th d i s s e n t i e n t r ep o r t o f Shr i Suresh Chandra Bose (w ith the points that the committee d id no t v i s i t Taihoku and there are s eve ra l anomalies in e v id ence ) .

3. The deponents r e f e r r e d to the fo l l ow ing « -a) The d i s s e n t i e n t report o f Shri Suresh Chandra Bose one o f the members

o f the Shah Kfcq Nawaz Committee. ( This r ep o r t has been subm it ted w i t h the a f f i d av l t b u t the copy of s ame has not been supp lied w i th the af f i d av i t , al though the S a id o r i g i n a l r ep o r t i s w ith the records o f Shah Nawaz Committeewhich have been produced be fo re the f -bn'ble Justice Mukher jee Commission)

b) The seventy f i v e page report dated 3 l s t Deremb=;r 1945 o f the Cbmbined S e r v i c e s D e t a i l e d I n te r r r o ga t i o n centra under MI-3 o f the B r i t i s h Government as to i n t e r r o g a t i o n o f Colonel Habibur Ashman's evidence s i g n e d by one C a p ta in Biten Chakraborty and counter signed by one Colonel S tevenson ( This r e c o r d w r e l a t e s w i th the M in is t ry of Defence, Government o f Ind ia )

c) A book t i t l e d , "Unto Him A Witness" by Shri S. a. I y e r to Show anomal ies in p u b l i sh in g the news o f rteath o f the N e t a j i * (Th i s may be m a t t e r s o f your M in is t ry and a l s o M in is t ry o f Defence ) .

d) About 9000 (nine thousand) f i l e s o f the Defence M i n i s t r y l y i n g w i th the Nat iona l A rch iv e s o f in di a. ( Nation,-,1 Archives of India has a l r e ad y su bm it ted

- 2 -


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in this r e g a r d , before the H o n 'b l e Comtri ss io n ) .

6) Vie deponents have submitted fo r f inding the fol lowing records to deliver before the Hon'ble Commission fo r consideration.

a) The re levant records (without spec i f ica t ion ) , in tha Prime Minister 's o f f i c e during Jawarhar Lai Nehru.

b) The relevant records (without speci f icat ion) of the Government o f the U.K. U. S. a . France, C. i. s. , Germany , China, JaPan and Vietngpi and other relevant coun tr ie s.

) / In view of above the P.M. 0. , the Ministry o f Defence ^id the Nat i jna l /Archives o f India should submit a f f idav i ts stating the f acts as to the

said records . Before that a general a f f i d a v i t on your behalf should be f i l e d denying o r accepting or otherwise. The said A f f i d av i t o f Subrat a Bosel and others is returned herewith). '

Thanking you,

Enc lo : AS s t a t e d above.

Yours fa i th fu l ly ,T■ p - l

( T ar akeswar Pal ) Advocate

copy to » By Read, post with a/D.1. 5r i Falgunia Rajkumar, Joint Sacre tary( Tra) . & CaO,Ministry o f Defence, Govt.of Ind ia,South Block New Delhi-110001.- f o r taking steps to f i l e a f f i d a v i t in the matters o f paragraph no. 4 above.

2. The Director, National Archieves o f Indt® Janpath, Now Delhi.- f o r f i l i n g af f i d av i t in respect of item ( d) o f parag raph no. 4 above.

3. Sri Jayan t a Prasad, Joint secretary,Ministry of Sxtsmal A f f a i r s , Govt.of lnd ia South 31ock, New Delhi-110001, f o r f i l i n g af f i d av i t s in the matters r e l at ing to items (b) o f pa agraph no.5 above.

j ^ - 3 r T Jarnail Singh, Joint Secretary, P.M.O.South Block New Delh i-110001 f o r f i l i n g A f f i d gv i t in respect o f items( a) o f paraqreph no.5 above.

i I

k t

( T a rakeswar Pal) ^Advocated. . t H 1*'

&

POLITICAL SECTION

Please find enclosed copies of two letters dated 26/28/og, j oj. ^ ^August, 2001/ 3rd September, 2001 from Shri Tarkeswar Pal, Senior Standing Counsel to the Govt, o f India in Justice Mukherjee Commission, Kolkata for information and necessary action.

T.r. < .eft.)/PA/i0 (NGO,

•/- . «.....

IG O )

(Alok Mukhopadhyay) Under Secretary (Pol)

19.9.2001

aSQSSTBRED WITH A/pFrom Tarakesuar P^L*.C ..

HIGH COURT CALCUTTA Bar Association Hoorn No 5

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To

Smt. Sangita Gairola, Joint Secretary, ( I S - I ) , Ministry o f Home A f fa i rs , Gov1*. o f India,North Block.,New Delhi - 110 Oul.

Senior Standing Counsel to the Govt.of India in Justice Mukherjee Commission.

August, 26 2001

Dear Madam,

He. } Your Letter No. 1/12014/10/2001-1S (D .I I I ) dated 4th July, 2001.

- And -Written opinion including written opinion on evidence as to avennents/contentions/ allegations made in the A ff idavit dated& 31st January, 2000 by Sri Bijan Ghosh, the deponent Ho. 19 before the Hon1ble Justice Mukherjee Commission.

Thefollows

case of the abovementioned deponent is as

»a) That no useful and effective purpose can be had out ofthe present Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry i f the documents/records c lass i f ied are not produced before the Hon'ble Commission, parfciculary, th<*fe leading decission of the Government Of India in 1992 fo r conferring "Posthumous Bharat Ratna'* upon the Neta ji .

y b) In view o f the stand o f the Govt. of. India taken in Writ [ ckhU Petition No. 11195(W) o f 1999 (Bijan Ghosh - vs - Union of

Indi& ^ Others) in the High Court at Calcutta, to the effect

Jr-Cfc flCVN

' o 1

o.U t U

j

v, * that the Govt, of India w i l l “render a l l assistance to theQ l i Commission i,et up fo r enquiry as regards the whereabouts of^ i ’ ; Neta ji . . . . “ as recorded in the order dated 1st December, 1999

•t {> *VN>6' passed by the Hon‘ ble Justice Satya Brata Sinha, the Actingv-v 'V6* Chief Justice (as His Lordship the'frf was) and the Hon1 ble

( Justice M.K.S. An sa r i , the Govt, o f India, through bound,( no Produced (on declassify ing) documents/files -

° o r td ' " F /2I ‘ I

» -

From ; Tarakeswar Pal,Advocate

HIGH COURT CALCUTTA Bar Association Room No. 5

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particularly the 9000 f i le s pertaining to Netaji and IN A (those are remaining in the Red Fort under the Ministry of Defence) a fter declassifying and sending about 1000 f i l e s to the National Archives of India before the Hon1 ble Justice Mukherjee Commission.

g ) Tho Govt, of India hus also not produced "some further (C ) N&e> contemporary o f f ic ia l documentary record^'1 relying on which the v,0Hon’ ble Prime Minister of India informed on &8th August, 1978 the Parliament that doubts and contradictions cropped up and aa such the reports of Shah Nawaz Committee and Justice Khosla Commission were declared not decisive,

d) The Late Morarji Desai, Ex-Prime Minister o f India (except whom - e v e n M .P. was allowed) examined the boxes/diplomatic — cambis bags fu ll of gold ornaments and Jewellaries (o f the Ajad Hind Government) as were kept in National Museum after i t were brought from one's personal custody where the same were collected from the spot of the alleged plane crash killing the Netaji (on 18th August, 1945). Those articles should be ordered to produce before the Hon* hie Commission along with demand for accounts as to the money and treasure of tho lawful Ajad Hind Oovernment Bank,

\ .e) The Netaji, being a Wat Criminal, is not a cit izen of IndJLa

as per Part I I of the Constitution of India, and to face this the!^ records as to declaring each War Criminal be produced, and the Neta.li

being a war Criminal or "International" category, the working o f the present Justice Mukherjee Commission to know this whereabouts, ift-i

impossible, although the Hon1 ble Orissa Higli jSraered on 23rd October, 1998 directing the Govt, of India to take all^steps to remove the j name of .the Netaji from the War Criminal l i s t .

f ) Volumious documents in possession o f the State Archives of West Bengal and other States should be ordered to produce before the Hon'ble Commission,

g) Classified documents pertaining to the Netaji and INA inU.K., U.S.A., Russia, Vietnam, Mongolia^ Taiwan, Gerciany, I t a ly and China should be ordered to collect.

h) Full text of Volumes VI and VII of Transfer Of Power should be ordered to be produced.

i ) The total proceedings of Red Fort INA Tria{.,Shah Nawaz Committee and Justice Khosla Commission should be produced.

c o n t d . . .p /3

From : Tarakeswar P a l , r ^ s f j

Advocate-----HIGH COOirr CALCUTTA

Bar Association Room No 5 Phonos : 24B-3190/3169

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2. Aa the points raised by the deponent are mainly as to documents/files/records with some aspects of facts which are c lea r in i t s e l f and you are required to comment in yourA ff idav it as to ava i lab i l i ty , non-availab il ity with reason and producing o f the available records except which have already been produced before the Hon1ble Commission, and to state ao to the facts relating to c lass i f icat ion of the records as alleged, part icu lar ly in respect o f 9000 f i l e s in the Ministry of Defence, Draft A ff idavit may be sent to me. The Affidavit of Sri Bijan Ghosh is sent back. ';o you herewith, with request to send copy of

■ said A ff idavit to me fo r the purpose of subsequent evidence andargument.

3. However you are to comment on sub-paragraphs ( a ) , (b ) and ( e ) to ( i ) o f foregoing f i r s t Paragraph.

Thanking you,

Yourc. fa ith fu l ly ,

j

C Tarakeswar Pal )Advocate

Senior Counsel-I to Copy to the Govt, of India.l ^ S ^ t . Archana Ranjan, Director, P.M.O., South Block, New Delhi -

110001 - fo r comment and affirm due Aff idavit to be f i led before tfte Hon»ble Commission on sub-paragraphs (a ) ancl (c ) to (e) of foregoing f i r s t Paragraph.

2. Shri Jayant Pras&d, Joint Secretary, Ministry of ExternalA f fa i r s , Govt, c f India, South Block, New Delhi - 110001 - for comment and affirm clue A ff idav it to be f i led before the Hon'V^e Commission on bm j-Paragraphs ( e ) , ( g ) and ( i ) of the foregoing f i r s t Paragraph.

National Archives o f India-----—

( Tarakeswar Plu )Advocate

Senior Counsel-I to the Govt, of India.

3. Dr. S. Sarkar, Director General, to comment and f i l e a f f id av it cn the matters in a l l the items ( a ) to ( i ) o f the foregoing 1stparagraph as may be relevant.

From j Tarakeswar pal ,Advocate

REGISTERED WITH A/D h igh COURT CALCUTTABar Association Room No 5

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Senior standing Counsel to the Govt, pf India ir. Justice Mukherjee Cociraission.

August, 29, 2001Smt. Sangita Gairola bftv-U 4 ,Joint Secretary, ( IS -1 ) , ■> € |>K^« •Ministry o f Hone Af fa ira ,Govt, o f India,North Block,New Delhi - n o QQi .

Dear Madam,

Ra. j Your Letter No. 1/12014/10/2001-13 (D .1 I I ) datttd 4th July, 2001.

- AndWritten advice including advice on evidgtipe in resper.t cf jLVornecits/contentionu/a^loga- tions o f the deponent Sr i Ani l Krishna Mukherjee on his behalf and on behalf o f tho A l l India Forward clock, a p o l i t i c a l party ( being Deponent No, 19).

1, The case o f the aboveraentioned Deponent No. 19 i s as fo l lows $-

a) Jawahar<£ak. Nehru stated on 11th September, 1945 at

Jhansi $o A .P . l . that he did not be l ieve the death

report o f the Netaji*, on 5th March, 1902 to tha P a r l i a

ment thit the N e ta j i ' e death wiis a oett led fa c t , <w»

29th September, 1355 to the Parliament o f the p o s s ib i l i t y

o f an enqui^ry by the Govt, of Japan on the factuia o f

death o f the Netaj i , but on the verge o f sett ing pp o f a

non-o f f ic ia l committee to enquierj the aaid fa c t o f death

'T con td . . . 2

- is -

Froa i Tarakeswar f a l , , ^ , ,HIGH COURT CALCUTTA

Bar Association Room No 5 Pticncs ■ 248-3190/3169

fax (033) 248-2313 E mail : barasoho ©cat croc, no! in

Residence .

o f the N e ta j i under the Chairmanship o f Dr, Radhabinod

Pal , Juwahar Lai Nehru appointed in 1956 a committee* but*

f o r such e n q u i r y tjteet^Shah Navaz Khan who v i s i t e d Japan

on 4th May, 1956 to in terv iew only the people who might

o f f e r d i r e c t evidence on the N e t a j i 1a death (as reported on 6th May, 1956 in Indian News Paper) and thus his report

was made, ae J awahar Lai Nehru wanted^ In the same l in e the■7?

report o f the Justice Khosla Commission, 1970 (appointed

on public pressure) was made discarding the evidences as

c ircumstancia l evidence (which are massive against hef§6£ty statement o f the N e t a j i 1 e death ) . And on £8th Auguisfc, ife)VU,

the then Prime M in is ter o f India , Morar j l Desai, declared

in Parliament that the reports o f Shah Nawaz Committee anda be

Just ice Khosla Commission can not.accepted as dec is ive on

con t rad ic t ion s e tc . and on "some further contemporary

documentary records" - m as was also c i t ed in writ ten

statements made in September, .1979, in the Parliament by

the Hon* ble M in is ter Dhaniklel Mondal againnt proposal fo r

bringing the a l leged ashes o f the N e ta j i from Renkoji*O'V' -wo. v-tocy*-

^ ( i ) The information as to the documents leading fchs Sevt*

to such stand i s , s t i l l being scutt led , and,

( i i ) the Govt, has not made any formal announcement that

a l l f i l e s on the N e ta j i and INA w i l l be d ic losed .

b) The a l leged plane crash on 18th August, 1945 at TaihokuA

k i l l i n g the N e ta j i a*e^not proved and be l ie vab le in view

of. the d iscr ipanc ies and contrad ic t ions as fo l low ing :


HIGH COURT CALCUTTA Bar Association Room No 5

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3 » E .m ail: barasohc 9 c a l cmc. not. inResidcnco; i

%( i ) News item by Domei, a Japanese pr ivate news agency *

circulated on aiind August, :t.945 as reported in London on

£3rd August, 1945 bjr the Reuter as reproduced on 24th August,

1945 in India, by the Amrita Bazar Patrika reporting the

death news o f the Netaji contain doubts as to death, a lleged

places o f treatment, dates o f death and announcement thereof^, - w

incident^of alleged plana crash and draft ing of the N eta ji*s

death announcement by Shri S.A. I y e r , M in ister of Publicity

and Propaganda, provisional Government of Free India, to

Domei, as per his book t i l s t i t l e d 4 "Unto Him a WitnflBs"*

( i i ) The unusual conducts o f the Japanese author i t ies , part icu lar ly

o f Colonel Tada and Rear Admiral Chuda g iv ing news o f death

of the Netaj i to Shri S.A. Iyer without d isc los ing source o f

such information at any time any where and misleading Shri

S .A . Iyer to Tokyo in the name o f leading him to Taihoku,

the alleged place o f plane crush and to f a c i l i t a t e meeting

Col. Habib-ur-Rahman under treatment due to said plane

crash, read with, Signal To Hikari Kikan (Japanese' I n t e l l i

gence Organisation) on August, 13, 1945 stating incidence o f

August, 17, 1945 by General Isoda d irec t ing to inform Indian/*>! A oV IK-*- fa ScC<jJ*A ,-rr

Community^ this signal was to Bangkok from Chief o f S ta f f ,

Southern Army, Southern ArnySignal 303, as seized by therr

Brit ish Intell igence from Bangkok) suggest^that the announce

ment o f death news o f the Netaji was a fabr icated one to

mislead the world with a view to v e^ i l the N e t a j i 1 a o r ig in a l

«’« « « “ “ • T c o n td . . . , p/a



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( i i i ) r^ith the statements o f Shri S .A. I y e r , in h ie book, "Unto Him

a /Jitne3a" ,

a) the s igna ls o t Hikari KAkan received at Bangkok ;

b) Lord Mount^batten*a comment as "a poss ib le plant" to the

death news o f the N e ta j i d iabe l ieve ing the same as recorded

on £i.nd November, 1945 in his d iary ;

c) Contradictory statements by Col. Hibib-ur-Rahman on d i f f e r *

ent da t eG ae to the incidence o f the a l leged plane oraah

and aftermath as de ta i led in the book t i t l e d "N e ta j i Dead

or A l i v e ?" by P ro f . Samar Guha ;

d) comments o f Colonel Figgess< o f the B r i t i sh In te l l i g ence

in h is report dated May 19, 1946 to In te l l i g en c e Bureau,

New Delhi ( in f i l e No. C-5 at Page 5 aa re fe rred to at

page 223 in Pro f , Sanar Guha's said book , 'N e ta j i Dead or

, A l i v e ?) ;

e ) aerioua contrad ic t ions in Doctors* reporta and StHiiefcientf- by Dr. ! . Yoahimi, Dr. Tauruta Toyoshi and Dr. Yoahlfc flfi

d i f f e r e n t dates before A l l i e d Inte l l igence , , Netajd. Inquiry^,

Committee, 1956 and N e ta j i Inquiry Commission, 1970 ;

f ) n ecess i ty o f in ves t iga t ion of ' truth in the death news of

the N e ta j i aa seen in ReportsAby J. G. Figgea

o f the M i l i t a r y Adviser o f the United Kingdom

L ia ison Mission in Japan, B r i t i sh Embassy, Tokya and thata

o f October, 16, 1945Athe HQ, SAC3EA Commission No. 1,

Saigon (C o l l e c t i v e l y Annexure - ’ B* to the A f f i d a v i t

c o n td . . . .p/€i

From j Tarakeswar pal,Advocate


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consideration) showing the existence o f two death e a r t l f i e a t$ s

none of which have aver been produced.

) Due to devolution of obligation to t rea t the N e ta j i as a War

Criminal, to Indian Dominion In 1947 frora the Br i t ish India

Govt,, the Netaj i planned to escape to Russia and reached

INA's Embassy in Omsk o f Siberia a f te r 18th August, 1945 as

N e ta j i ' s plan of escape and arr ival at Omsk are traced in

M i l i tary Intel l igence Reports and f indings o f the As ia t ic

Society scholars. The Mil i tary In te l l i g ence records are

as follows »-

( i ) Book t i t l e d "German Mili tary In te l l i g ence " aa aUfefllilfcdiiJ

to and included in the proceeding, o f the N e ta j i Inquiry

Commission, 1970 including argument o f Sri Bhasin, which '

record Russian Co-operation to the N e ta j i during his stay

in Russia in the spring of 1941 (the N e ta j i escaped frora

Calcutta on 16th January, 1941),

( i i ) While the f i l e being 249/lNA-GH^ on the case - Bose and

Russia, records of Russia's att itude in favour o f In d ia 's

independence has been in consideration o f the Netaji, j tha

N e ta j i ' s l e t t e r dated November, £0, 1944 from Imps|?4§l

Ho te l , Tokyo to Jacob Malik., the Soviet Ambassador^ Tokyo

desiring to meet him recording Russia 's favours to India>y> )

and his^likings for Russia ( th is l e t t e r being Annexure-'C1

contd,...p/6

From : Tai'akeswar pal ,Advocate


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The Secret F i l e No. 249-JNA-ll (H) GHQ case on Suhhaa Chandra

Boae records that the N e ta j i waa preparing to v i a i t and Vieifced

Russia in 1944 (when to mislead B r i t ish in t e l l i g en c e whiuh

already guessed N e t a j i 1s movement to Ruooia, Japan aired Natali

' s death towards the end o f 1944) and from Head quarter Main

F i l e 25?9/i INA 10 lii isc, i t i s known that during th is time the

Nejraji a rr ived Saigon where Isoda was also present and withA lift (VttJ c'f’

the help o f Japanese in t e l l i g e n c e , Hikari Kikan, was allowed M

to go to Russia under the cloud o f fa l s e story o f the N e t a j i 18

death and the N e ta j i * s entry to Russia required no confirmation

from Russia as per the Head Quarter Main F i l e No. 273 INA

(Misc. INA) .

The Head Quarters Main F i l e 273/INA records that the N e ta j i

wished to enter India from Ruosia. v ia Ch it ra l as the N e ta j i

informed in h is l e t t e r to Jawhar Lai Nehru and i t has also

been recorded in th is f i l e that in December, 1945 the Russian

Ambassador in Kabul informed the Governor o f Afgan Province

o f Khost that the N e ta j i among many Congress refugees was in

Moscow, and l/.oradoff, the Russian Vice Consul General d isclosed

in March, 1946 that the N e ta j i was in organising a group o f

Russians f o r the freedom o f Ind ia .

The N e ta j i * e existence a f t e r the a l leged plane crash a t

1400 hours on August^ 18, 1945 are evident from the fo l low ing

records » -

j i ) N e t a j i ' s l i v e Radio speech broadcast from Singaporei

contd...p/7

From j Mr. TarakeswarHIGH COURT CALCUTTA

8ar Association Room No &Phonos : 240.3190/3169

Fax (033) 248-2313- j 7 1 - E mail :barasohc ©cai cmc net in

Residence :

at &115-25 hours on August, 18, 1945 (Monitoring serv ice records, recorded by M.L. Khosla, A l l India Radio, Simla,Volume j I I available in National Archives o f Indiu-Annoxure

•D" to the A f f idav i t )

i i ) European member, Sri A .A. Wise did not want to condole

the death o f the Netaj i at the meeting o f the Calcutta "

Corporation assembled on 28 th August, 1945 to condole tho

fleath o f the Neta j i , as he was not a dead man - the European

members went out o f the Council Chambers. (Corporation Proceeding

dated 28th August, 1945 - annexed e.s 'E 1 to the A f f i d a v i t ) ,

i i i ) News items published in the Hinduethan Standard on 30th August,

1945 ; 3rd September, 1945 5 4th April , 1956 (with Thevgr’ s

Statements) inform the N e ta j i ' e presence in Saigon on August,

25, 1945 as per American correspondent, with further information

that the Anglo-American Mil i tary c i r c le s did not b e l ieve the Japanese report of the N e ta j i ' s death. The report o f Sri

Muthuramalinga Thevar, MLA, Madras Assembly and a Forward Bio?

leader 3 tated in a press conference on 3rd Ap r i l , 1956 that

as the Japanese Commander, Kimura, accompanying the N e ta j i In

the crashed plane did not die rather, signing Japanese surrender

in Singapore, so is the case with the N e ta j i with whom he l i v ed* 1 5°

from January, 1950 to O c t o b e r , a n d at the time o f his

statement, the Netaj i was in China. ( News paper c l ipp ings are Anriaxmes - 'F' 'G1 and ' K* to the said A f f i d a v i t ) and the

International Biographic Pres3 Service published on ,1,0th 0 c t ' ^ 9 r i* oo-kwe.

1949,^the a r t i c l e on the Neta j i stating that the Neta.ji was

From • Tarakeswar pal,Advocate


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waiting fo r an opportunity to hold h i t grip over the polit ica l*a/KYUj<lc(.

back-ground o f A.-3ia, the tex t o f which isAas Annexure-J to the

A f f i d a v i t .

i v ) The session o f the A l l India Congress Committee held on islst

September, 1945 resolved that the N e ta j i should not be included in

the l i s t o f those who died since the la s t session as held on 8tho

August, 1942. This resolution i s at page 27 o f P ro f . Sara a r Guha's

"N e ta j i Dead or A live" .

v) Dadabhai N a r o j i ' s grand daughter Siut. Khurshed Naonkji informed

Louis F ischer by her l e t t e r dated ££:nd July, 1946 on the impression

o f Gandhiji and the Congress in the event the N e ta j i takes help<yy~

o f Russia at that time - suggesting thereby o f the a l i v e N e ta j i .

This l e t t e r i s ava i lab le in the Archives o f Princeton Univers ity - a copy o f which is annexed as 'H' to the A f f i d a v i t .

v i ) The American Consulate Guard, Bombay wr i tes on 23rd Way, 1946 to tJ.

tho Secretary o f S tate , Washington D .0. that i f the N « t a j i PafeUfflw

to India there would ba1 trouble . In another l e t t e r dated £0th

February, 1964 by Deputy D irec to r o f Security informs to his

superior that aa d irec ted he cross examined a person o f the U.S.A.

who with document asserted that the N e ta j i wbb trying rebe l l ion

against Nehru Government in India,, These ( d e c la s s i f i e d ) l e t t e r s

a je remaining in the CIA custody, copies o f which are c o l l e c t i v e l y

annexed as ' I ' to the A f f i d a v i t .

contd, . . . p/9

From s Mr. Tarakeswar pal,Advocate


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-5 9 j - Email : barasohc ©cal. cmc net. inResidence .

v i i ) From the documents in Vol. VI of the Transfer o f Power 1942-1947,

particulary, (A) Lord Wavel's note in his diary on 24th August,

1945 record3 suspect of the death news o f the N e ta j i f o r the

N e ta j i ' s going underground, (b) Lord Wavel's l e t t e r dated 20th

August, 1945 to Lord Pethick-Laurence records feis proposal f o r

not sending the Netaj i back to India, ( c ) L e t te r dated 23rd August,

1945 by F. Moudie (Home Liember in the V iceroy 's .Executive Council)

to S. Jenkins (Private Secretary to the Viceroy) records proposal

fo r dealing with the Neta j i , (d) the itera No. 109 at Pages from

262 to ^63'o f the said volumy VI indicates the secret not<,of

U i l i t a r y Inte l l igence dated 14th September, 1945 indicate ex istence

o f the Neta j i underground, and, (e ) the records o f the meeting o f

the India and 3u.rma Committee o f the B r i t i sh Cabinet presided over

by the Prime Minister^ Atlee held on 25th October. 1945 show o f

considering the steps to be taken fo r the N e ta j i - suggesting his

existence at the time underground branding him a8 "on ly c i v i l i a n

renegade o f importance".

v i i i ) Tho declassi f ied documents in the National Archives o f India(a )

contain a secret report datec1 19th September, 19.45 by R. T o t i e B -

ham, Secretary, Horae Department .where contemptation f o r taking

strong action against the Neta ji has been recorded ( F i l e No.

16/3/45 - Po l l ( i ) , (b) the note dated 20th October, 1946 by

Major Hugh Toye ( in F i le No, 75/JNik in the National Archives o f

India), recording a Russian broadcast saying the N e ta j i would do

another Imphal from the West of India, ( c ) , A.P.X. News Agency's

contd . . . .p/10

F ■orj : Mr- Tarakeswar pal ,Advocate

HIGH COURT CALCUTTA 0aF Association Room No 5

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, f. E.m ail: barasohc 0 col cmc. net in"" • -LU X •• .rtesidence :

report dated fclst Decemtrer, 1945 stat ing H .V. Kamath'a statement

that the N e ta j i was s t i l l a l i v e copy ia a n n e x e d as U to the•rr

A f f i d a v i t ) , (d ) as per l e t t e r dated 16th January, 1946 by W’.G.

Lata.s, Deputy Inspector General o f Po l i c e , C IS , Bombay province,/yr*

Sh iva j i Nagar, Poona - 5 to J J I . De Chazel, AsBtt. D irec tor (W)

I .B * , H .D. Govt, o f India informs o f a Hews a r t i c l e published

in the Dainik Samachar on i;0th December, 1945 wherein the war

correspondent Shri Naruyun in fo mud u f te r tour in Far Baat that

no evidence i s ava i lab le to prove the N e ta j i * s death in the

a l leged plane crash, ( e ) Gandhijj i 'a knowledge o f the N e t ; . j i ' s

ex istence in India i s recorded in Dai ly INA report No. t dated

5th February, 1946,. ( f ) in l e t t e r dated 19th February, 1946 by

W. Mck Wright o f 1 .3 . (H.D.) New Delh:l-3, to Major Courtenay

Young recording d iscr ipanc ies in the xkx versions o f Japanese

Govt, and Habib-ur-Rahraan as to cremation and funeral o f the

N e t a j i ' s body at Taihoku and Tokyo , and General Isoda.'s message

to inform the Indians in Bangkok o f the N e t a j i ' a death - was

preparation fo r hiding by the N e ta j i , ( g ) the secret correspon

dences dated 8th A p r i l , 1946 and 1st August, 1946 between

Mekwright and Major Young record Nehru13 rece ip t o f the N e t a j i 1a

l e t t e r and Sarat Bose's b e l i e f in January that the N e ta j i was

a l i v e , and p o s s i b i l i t y o f the N e t a j i ' a escape, (h) froi.. the

4 Uestiono put by Yuveraj Dutta Singh in the Council o f States

on 6th November, 1946 and 17th February, 1947 and answers onr r -

behalf o f the Government o f India by Shri A.E, Por te r^ i t i srr> -

r r i-' tri . . . r , / l 1


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revealed that the Government, in place df accepting death news

o f the N e ta j i ' * was in search o f the Netaji and to prevent him

front entering India. Copies Of The declassi f ied documents remain

ing in the National Archives o f India ara being Annexures L to T

to the A f f idav i t .

The scholars of The Asiatic Society worked, in various Archives

in Russia under a Govt, sponsored research pro ject on "F ive

hundred years" Indo-Societ relations" while Dr. Purabi Roy among

those scholars came upon various documentary materials on the X

N e ta j i ' s existence in Russia a f te r the alleged plane cfcash on

18th August, 1S46. She also studied in 1996 several records in

London under the Asiatic society sponsored research pro ject and

there also she found materials on the N e ta j i ' s said Russian

Linkage. However, as per the rules of the pro ject the findings

and materials collected in the said studies in Ruottia and Low'-^

had been submitted to the Asiatic Society. The said materia ls h<a;e

not been disclosed in public which should be ordered, as the said

materials re late to the Netaj„i's existence in Russia a f t e r the

alleged plane crash on 18th August, 1945. This information h a ^

been derived from the following :

i ) News item on 26th October, 1982 in the Times o f India informing

that the Neta j i had great respect for Russia and he to

Join Germany against Russia.

i i ) A r t i c l e , "Subhas Chandra Base and Soviet Russia" by P r o i .

con td ........... p/12

From j Mr. larakoowar Pal,Advocafe

HIGH COURT CALCUTTA 8ar Association Room No 5

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E mail : barasohc @cal cmc. net. in Residence :

P ro f . A. Raikov and introduced by Mitrokhen publisher} in 1990 in

journal , "Sov ie t Land" where i t has been said that N e t a j i 1s name

was not allowed to mention f o r long and Glaanost has brought

opportunity to study on Indian p e rsona l i t i e s (meaning also N e t a j i ) .

i i i ) Y .L . Kuznets* volume re leasing documents o f the period 1941-45

through Gorbachev Foundations concern pe rsona l ! t l e s i ik e the

N e ta j i and Bhagat Ham Talwar havinfc connections with various

embassies in Kabul and KGB afeent 2 am an o f USSAR Eitbassy throw

new l i g h t on the N e t a j i ' s (w ith secret code i S i l v e r Moon.)

connection in Russia.

i v ) A r t i c l e s "The l i f e and death o f N e ta j i Bose" by A. Vinogradov,

and "Against whom Subhas Chandra Bose fought during wosrld war I I ” ,

by V. Turadzev - both published AScott ish Church^Commemoration^ f ->vv

Volume in 1992-93, convey t*fe that there are not o n l y ’ records butr~also studies in Russia relat ing, to the N e t a j i ' b true state o f

bya f f a i r s a»dATuradzev was asked by the Indian Embassy to stop, war*

^ A *

n?'

v ) A.Raikov says in his art ic le " , "Secret o f Subhas Chandra Bose"

published in 1993 in Asia and A f r i ca Today from Russia, that truth

about the N e t a j i ' s death would b-s revealed from the K.G.3. and

P res id en t 's Archives.

v i ) As per Programme Of Cultural S c i e n t i f i c and Educational Exchange

between the As ia t ic Society was to prepare one Volume on archival

contd.. .. i--/13

From , Ur- T a r a k e s w a r , # ^HIGH COURT CALCUTTA

Bar Association Room No 5 Phones : 248-3190/3169

Fax:(033) 248-2313 E.mail: barasohc fica l cmc not. in

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materials in Russia from 1917 to 1947 and the 3eoret&ry c f the

Asiatic Society Dr. Chandan Roy Chowdhury expressed in a press

note that the scholars had found materials on the N e ta j i but they

have not been allowed to study the ru»B and pax Pres ident 's

Archives. On 11th September, 1995, Dr. Roy Choudhury saya that

Soviet Agent D . i , Sayad Neyats carrying Nehru's f e t t e r dated 3rd Sepo

September, 1946 front India to Moscow told to Soviet Consul in

Teheran Embassy that the Neta j i was trying to contact Forward

Bloc leaders.

On 14th September, 1995 the Amrita Ba2ar Patrika and the atatsaraah

inform that the disbanded KGB ha s documents on the N e ta j i but the

Asiatic Society scholars had troubles in g-ettinfc access to various

Archives in Russia, communication by Nehru in August -1 A.

September, 1946 to Russia as to the Neta j i suggesting Live N e ta j i

in Russia.

The news items and a r t ic l rs published on 15th September^ 1995 ;

19th September, 1995 and 21st September, 1995 in the Times o f Ind ia ,

Bombay ; The inaian Express, New Delhi ; and The Bartmaxi, Bengali

Daily, Calcutta respectively, informing o f materia ls on the N e ta j i

in Russian .archives many o f which have Dot been allowed to the

Scholars o f the Asiatic Society.

<r

I I

14 I -

From > Mr. TarakeswarHIGH COURT CALCUTTA

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The news items dated 3rd December, 1D96 published in The Statesman,

Calcutta says that there is no records on the Ne ta j i * s defith in

Russia.

i ) A. KolesnikoV's a r t i c l e , "A Russian Tribute to N e ta j i Subhas"or?

published on 3rd January, 1997 in journal " P a t r i o t " (Russian) and

on 19th July , 1997 in Mainstream (English t rans la t ion ) records

p o s s i b i l i t y o f the N e ta j i * s stay in Russia,

J) In the B r i t i sh Archives a Japanese news paper dated 20th December,

1945 i s found Informing the N e ta j i * s v i s i t o f Tokyo on his way to

Russia and Indian Po l i c e In t e l l i g e n c e report dated 2nd May, 1946

infonus o f l i v e N e ta j i in Russia (These news items, a r t i c l e s , press

note have annexed as U,V,W,X,Y,3., AA, AB, and AC to the A f f i d a v i t ) .

fc) That there had been a conspiracy againBt the N e ta j i in declaring

him a War Criminal by adopting the Indian Dominion status o f the

U.K. agreeing to continue with the Br i t ish Indiauft^ membership in

the U .N ,0. ( in t e rn a t ion a l p e rsona l i ty ) ob l iga t ing India a f t e r 15th

August, 1947 and even a f t e r adopting o f the Consti tution in 1950 to

have bounden by the Old t r e a t i e s including that ton War Criminal under

which the N e ta j i i s an In ternat iona l War Criminal. This Conspiracy

continues in signing the t r e a ty on way criminals* t r i a l in 1971 by

Ind ia , Govt, o f India has withheld the records aa to the N e ta j i * s

status as War Criminal (whi le - the Br i t ish decied on 25th October,

1945 to adopt ant *on the spot* M i l i t a r y Court Mart ia l branding

the N e ta j i as the "on ly c i v i l i a n renegade o f importance")i during

enquirifcfci by Shah Nawaz Committee as wel l as Just ice Khai3 la

;■' -r:r;--. :. '-v . ..

..-

j.;U 1-.. 's.';; i

.A

t.

|S |

r . *->*-

fv. '

Commission. contd. . .p/l.5

A

15

Mr. Tarakeswar Fal.Advocate

HIGH COURT CALCUTTA Bar Association Room Mo 5

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, The deponents' allegations against the Govt, o f India are as

fol lows J-

a) That the Govt, o f India has withheld the records as to-the Warii

Criminal status of the Neta j i (This may re la te with the Minie-

! ' t r ie s o f Home and External A f fa i rs ) .

b) The said Govt, also did not dis;close the records leading Jawahar

Lai Nehru saying and doing t

i ) On 5th March, 1952 that the N e ta j i ' s death waa a se t t led f a c t ' ]

i i ) On 11th September, 1945 at Jhansi to API that he did not

believe the story o f the Ne ta j i1 s death on rece ipt o f a

number o f reports ;

i i i ) On 29th September, 1955 that the Govt, o f Japan would proceed

fo r an enquiry on the Ne ta j i 's death and opposed formation

any o f f i c i a l enquiry in India ;

i v ) but a few months later he formed Ne ta j i Enquiry Committee,

1956 under Shah Nawaz Khan when a n o n -o f f i c ia l Committee was

going to set up under Dr. Radhabinod Pal .

v) saying, something should be d :>ne to f in a l ia e the question o f

N e ta j i ' s death" in 1964, before death in a reply l e t t e r to

Amiya Nath Bose. (These may relate to the P ,Lu .0, and the

Ministry of Home A f f a i r s ) .

c ) That the Neta j i Enquiry Committee, 1056 under Shall No was Khan

gave i t s verdict in l ine with what Prime Minister Neh ru wanted

__ i t to be. (This may relate to the P.M.O.)

d) That the Justice Khofela Commission, 1970, ytas set

jv»o

up under

e)

*0

16 i -

Tarakeswar Pal,Advocate


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public pressure, but, with a view to acquire another support

to the plane crash theory for tho N e ta j i ' a death f o r the purpose

o f with holding the records. (This may re la te to the P.M.O.)V—** rr-'

The Govt, o f India has not d isc losed Che records on which the

Prime M in is ter u o ra r j i Desai to ld on 28th August, 1978 to the

Parliament that i t was d i f f i c u l t to accept the verdicts; o f the

N e ta j i hqnuiry Committee, 1956 and Justice Khosla Commission,

1970, in view o f doubts as to correctness o f the ve rd ic ts^ andr-r-

contrad ic t ions in the testimonies along with some further contempo

rary o f f i c i a l documentary records. (These may r e la te to the P.tt.0#

arnd also the Min is try o f Home A f f a i r s ) .

f:~‘ ■ • t"V’ &.V

f ) Thei Govt, o f Ind ia has also not d isc losed the records re ly ing on

which the Hon'ble M inister Sri Dhoniklal Mondal made written

statenents to the Parliament against bringing the a l leged ashes

o f the N e ta j i from Henkoji. (This may r e la te to the M inistry of

Horae A f f a i r s ) .

g) The Govt, o f India has not yet discloned the documents/records

which,are contrary to the N e t a j i ' s death by plane crash , 'on 18th a ,

slate tc* the p .k .0 . and the M inistry o f hr 'A**m ‘

August, Jl9 4 5 . (This may r e l

Home A f f a i r s ) . ,M ^ {h •v'l y i

h) The Govt, o f India has yet not made any formal announcer.lsnt that ’^ ,s t

a l l f i l e s on the N e ta j i and INA w i l l be d isc losed . (This; may a f. h-o-

e I f ix * # *

( t f ) r e l a t e to the P-&=& • and the Ministry, o f Home A f f a i r s )

^ T\ c ontd., . p/17

BAR

1)

17 : -


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The Govt, of indie, ia not according co-operation, permission

and in i t i a t i v e in allowing the researchers to study c la s s i f i e d and

non-classif led records in the Archives ou ts ide . India , rather,

o f fe r ing resistance, as in eases of KGB, St.- Fetersburg and other

Archives in R u s s i a , xhe Govt, has not yet allowed further researches.

(This may re late to the Ministry of External A f f a i r s ) .a, 4 V \ C *}- & io'J.Oy A cAoWs

Ihe Govt, of India has kept several records^cl&ssif ied on mea^greu

grounds. (This may relate to the P.14.0, and the Ministry ( i f Home

A f f a i r s ) .

The Committee of 1956 and Commission o f 1970 were denied access

by the Govt, of India to f i l e s asfred fo r there, and the deponents

apprehend such repitation by the Govt, o f India before the present

Justice Mukherjee Commission too. (This may re la te to the P.M.O.

and Ministry of Home A f fa i r s ) .

The Ministry of Defence, Govt, of India has yet not d ec la ss i f i ed

9000 f i l e s . (This relates the Ministry o f Defence) .

| m) The Govt, of India shoul d negotiate formally with the Govt.s o f

v?the U.S.A., the U.K., Russia, Japan, Germany, East European

.^ cou n tr ie s , Central Aeian and South-East Asian Countries to f a c i l i -5-

tate researches in their Archives. (This re la tes to the P.M.0. and

the Ministry o f External A f fa i r s ) .

con td . . . IB

From : Mi-. Tarakeswar Pal ,Advocate

HIGH COURT CALCUTTABa> Association Room No. 5

19 ! -

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The Govt, o f Ind ia is to d isc lose the fo l low ing f i l e s o f the

Prime M in is t e r ' s o f f i c e (when Nehru was the Prime Minister )

August. 24, 1953, from I’ M . ' a Secre tar ia t to Mohd. Yunus, MEA

i i i ) 27-A (Memo NO'. 2/53/1971/3/601 151) dated October 13, 1953

from Mohd . Yunus. MEA (SEA) to P .M .' s Secre ta r ia t ,

i v ) 33-B ( l e t t e r No. 20/62 (Accts ) dated Ap r i l 82, 1954, from the

Jo int Secretary , INA (Ehquiry and R e l i e f Committee, 82,

Datyaganj, D e lh i ) t o the President,

v ) 37-A (Rajya Sabha's Starred Question No. 60 dated September, 2? ,

1954),

v i ) 35-B (Note f o r supplin.entariea),

v i i ) 37-A (Lok Sabha Starred Question No. 334 dated August 2, 1955),

i i i ) 37-BCD (Enclosures to S.No. 37-A).

i x ) &od Notes 11,12,13 ,14,15 ,1619,23 ,24,25, 26 and 29 F i l e No.

23 (156)/51-P .Ui, ( Indian National Army (INA) in the Far East ) .

x) 23 ( l l )/56-57 PM (INA T reasu re ) ,JT

x i ) 12 (226)/56 PM ( In v e s t i g a t io n into the circumstances leading

f o r the death o f Subhas Chandra Bose).

(These r e la t e to the P.M.0.)

i ) U ~ ' -A, 16-A (U.O. Note No. D/S-86 6,- dated

(SEA, BIO,

i i ) 17-A (U.O. Note Wp. D .3788-SEA/53, dated August 27, 1953

from Mohd* Yanus US, ME A (SEA) to E .MJs Secre tar ia t ,

contd. . .p/20

Frora » Tarakeswar pal,Advocate

HIGH COURT CALCUTTA Bar Association RoorrrNo 5

Phones ' 248-3190/3169 o q Fax : (033) 243-2313*“ * E mail : barasohc S eal cmc. net. in

Residence :o

The Govt, o f India should release the h is tory o f INA by la te

Dr. Pratul Chandra Gupta. (This relates to the Ministry o f

Defence),

The Govt, of India, should disclose the fo l lowing t

i ) J .L . Nehru's l e t te rs to the British Prime Min is ter A t t le e

on the Netaji during 1945 and 1947.

i i ) Correspondences of Louis Fischer with Gandhiji , Khurehed

Naoroji , the President o f the U.S.A, the Prime Minister and

other p o l i t i c a l Leaders o f the U.K. , and Stalin on the N e ta j i

and India 's Independence. (These may re la te to the P.M.O.,

the Ministry o f Horae A f fa i rs and the National Archives o f

In d ia ) .

In view o f above you are to comment/reply on the a l lega t ions

enumerated in the foregoing Paragraph No. 2 or on any otherI

relevant point as you raay consider necessary. The said A f f i d a v i t

o f the Deponent No. 19 is sent herewith. Yoar d ra f t reply/countsi

a f f id a v i t raay be sent to me along with a copy o f the said A f f ida *

v i t at an early date as the sarae i3 required fo r hearing o f tho

commission during recording evidences here ina f ter and also f o r

argument.

Be i t mentioned that the allegations and demands against the

Govt, o f India by a l l of the deponents are mostly as to d isclosure

and submitting the records before tho Hon'ble Commission . By

several orders and directions the Hon1 ble Cor.lWiankm has also

contd. . . 7 - x

From : Mr. Tarakeswar pal£ CIO. ^


Baf Association Room No. 5

21

Phones : 248-3190/3169 Fax : (033) 248-2313

E.mail: barasohc @ca! cmc. net. in ' Residence :

asked for several records, in respect of which several replies

have already been submitted to the Hon’ ble Commission, coupled

with submitting several records too. 3o at the time of replying

or making counter a f f id av it , the references to ea r l ie r reply

and submission fa of records previously should be referred.

( Tarakeswar Pal )Advocate.

Senior Counsel-I To The Govt, of India,

to i (By Regd. Post,* with A/D).

Sri Jayant Prasad, Joint Secretary, Ministry of External A f fa irs , Govt, of India, South Block, Nev Delhi - 110001,

Sri Falguni Rajkumar, Joint Secratary (T rg . ) A CAO, Ministry g fDefence, Govt, o f India, South Block, New Delhi - 110001,

i

Sri Aloke Mukherjee, Under Secretary, P.K.O., South Block,New Delhi - 110001, *' -

Sri 3.M.R. B a q a r , Deputy Director, National Archives of India, Govt, of India, Janpath, New Delhi - 110001,

- f o r comment^reply by A f f i d a v i t on the r e le v an t a l l e g a

t i o n s e t c . enumerated and i d e n t i f i e d in Paragraph No, 2 and/or on any r e le v a n t po in t o f the fo re go in g l e t t e r .

Thanking you,

Yours fa i th fu l ly

Advocate.Senior Counsel-I to The Govt, of Indi

f 'n x :0091 -033-252-2765

Justice Mukherjee Commission of InquiryFor Inquiry In to the A lleged D isa pp e a r a n c e of

Nkta.ii SubhasCiiandra Bose. .‘B ’ Block. (Third Floor)

11/A M ira Ghalib Street, Kolkata 700 087

Hume:( 'luurnuin — 252-7035Stereo,ry - 2 5 2 -2 70 / Officer nn .Sf’cr u il lh i i \ — 252-2/G 5D jjk r - 252-2/GG/«1

C-nmil:jnit-inscfvi/ c i i l . - l . 'sn l.ncl. in

No . JMCI/ RUSSIA/U.O. Papers/2001/77/624 Kolkata, dated, March 21, 2002

From : Shri P.K. Sengupta Secretary

To : The SecretaryPrime Minister's Office Government of India, South Block New Delhi-110001.

Sub: Letter dated 3.11.160$ received from Dr . P . D.Mukherjee, Advi ser , P i anaing_Commlssi.onl_Retd_._2______

o r -

S i r ,

In inviting a reference to th is Office le t t e r No. JMCl/Russia/U.O. Papers/2001/77/526 dated 22.1.2002, I am directed to state that reply thereto from your end is yet to be received.

I am, therefore, directed to request you to furnish the Commission with your detailed report asked fo r in the aforesaid le tte r as expeditiously as possib le .

An early reply w i l l be highly appreciated.

Yours fa ith fu j ,

( P. K. Sengupta ) Secretary

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JM( ' ! ./Records/M.D e l h l /99-2000/37(I I )/ K o l k a t a , d a t ed . 14 th March • 2002.60 6 ( 2 ).

From : Shri P .K . Sengupta,S ecre ta ry

T O The S e c r e t a r y , Prime M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e , South B lo c k , New D e lh i - 1 1 0 0 0 1 .

2) The S e c r e t a r y , M i n i s t r y o f Home A f f a i r s , Government o£ I n d i a , N o r th E l o c k ,New De lh i -110001 .

K'•Vt>h

S i r ,

I ara d i r e c t e d t o send h e r e w i t h a c o p y o f U .O . N o te d a t e d 04.08.1972 o f the prime M i n i s t e r ' s S e c r e t a r i a t s e n t t o tne M in i s t r y o f Home A f f a i r s , Government o f I n d i a , w h ich appears at c o r .p a g e 64 o f the S e c r e t F i l e No. 2 (64 ) / 5 6 - 7 0 - PM. V o l . V o f th e Prime M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e and t o s t a t e t h a t f r om th e s a id U.O. Note i t appears t h a t V o l s . I and I I o f t h e Pr ime M in i s t e r O f f i c e ' s F i l e N o .F - 2 ( 6 4 ) /5 6 - 6 6 - PM r e g a r d i n g "Death o f Sh r i Subhas Chandra B o s e - a n appo in tm en t o f an I n q u i r y Committee" were sen t by t h e Pr ime M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e t o the M i n i s t r y o f Home A f f a i r s under t h e s a i d U .O . N o t e and t h a t no c o p i e s o f V o l s . I and I I o f t h e s a i d f i l e a p p e a r t o have been r e c e i v e d by the Commission f rom t h e P r im e M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e .

I am, t h e r e f o r e , d i r e c t e d t o r e q u e s t you t o s end t o th e Commission a u th e n t i c a t e d t r u e c o p i e s o f V o l s . I & I I o f Pr ime M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e F i l e No .F -2 (64 )/5 6 -66-PM , as ment ioned i n th e s a i d U.O. N o te , as q u i c k l y a s p o s s i b l e .

I am f u r t h e r d i r e c t e d t o r e q u e s t you t o send t o t h e Commission im m ed ia te l y a u th e n t i c a t e d t r u e c o p i e s o f P r im e M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e F i l e No.2_(67)/5 6-62-PM w h ic h a lo n g w i t h o t h e r f i l e s i n c lu d in g V o l s . ^ I ana I I of~~ P r im e M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e F i l e N o .2 ( 6 4 )/56-66-PM w ere r e t u r n e d b y t h e K h o s la Commission to'~tTfr5 Prime M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e under t h e s a i d Commiss ion 's d . o . l e t t e r da ted J u l y 5 , 1974 , * { c o p y e n c l o s e d ) which i s l y i n g a t c o r .p a g e 144 o f th e P r im e M i n i s t e r ' s O f f i c e s e c r e t F i l e N o .2 ( 6 4 )/56-70-PM . V o l . V .

V

, E n c lo su res : As s t a t e d above . You rs f a i t h f u l l y

( P . K. S e n g u p ta ) S e c r e t a r y

&vfu-

3 / I l _____

MOST IMMEDIATENo. G-16(4)/2000-NGO(Vol-l)PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE

(NGO SECTION )

SOUTH BLOCK, NEW DELHI DATED: 09.11.2006

OFFICE MEMORANDUM

Subject: Declassification of records

Reference is invited to this office UO Note of even number dated 14/15.9.2000 seeking Ministry of External Affairs concurrence to the downgrading/declassification of certain communications received from that Ministry in connection with their submission before the Hon’ble Justice Mukherjee Commission. MEA communicated their concurrence vide their letter No. 25./4/NGO (Vol.V) dtd. 19.9.2000. The undersigned is directed to request that copies of the letters enclosed to the above mentioned PMO UO note of even number dated 14/15.9.2000 may kindly be furnished to this office urgently.

Under Secretaryo K

Ministry of External Affairs [ Shri L.D. Ralte, JS (CNV)]South Block, New Delhi.

* NGO SECTION

While considering for providing papers in connection with an application filed by one Shri Anuj Dhar under the RTI Act, six top secret files have been identified. These files are less than 25 years old and put up for review if their contents arract the provisions of section 8(1) of the RTI Act.

2. In this connection, DS(A) desired that a group of Section Officers may be formed to scrutinize all relevant old papers with particular reference to view taken on declassification earlier while sending papers to Mukherjee Commission or in relation to court cases and submit a statement with comments on that basis as well as comments on, declassification for any papers not considered earlier. For papers that have not been declassified earlier and those not proposed to be declassified now, comments also be given with reference to section 8 of RTI Act.

3. It may be suggested that Shri Raj Kumar. SO(Dak) who is my predecessor and Shri Sanjay Singh, SO(Pol) may be included in group of SOs to complete the above work.

Submitted.

(P.L.N. Murthy)7 > 1.06

- f o -

S A \ - o bJSftT’s OFFICS W *Y' 1 ^sagtfV*4) „ * X ^

Shri Anuj Dhar has made an application under RTI stating that while attending to Justice Mukheijee Commission oflnquiry, he gathered that PMO and R AW are holding several classified records on Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.

2. In this context he wanted to know whether the information is true or not I f the information is yes, he wanted to have list o f all records and materials [classified and unclassified] on or related to Netaji, PMO and R AW are holding. He also wanted to know whether PM O has any plans to transfer these records/materials to National Archives. .

3. Political Section has now furnished a list o f 45 files in the custody o f Political and NGO Sections concerning Netaji Subhash Bose. The files include unclassified, Confidential, Secret and Top Secret files.

4. In this connection, the following aspects may be taken into account while deciding the matter—

(i) Information which is covered under Section 8(1) of tha Act can only be denied

(ii) Notwithstanding anything in the Official Secrets Act nor any o f the exemptions under Section 8(1) o f the Act, information can still be provided if disclosure outweighs the harm to the protected interests.

(iii) Information relating to any occurrence, event or matter which has taken place, occurred or happened 20 years before shall be provided [subject to 8(1) (a), (c) andCO]

(iv) In terms o f extant instructions any classified document that has survived 25 years , stands declassified subject to national security: Moreover, documents surviving 25 years are also required to be transferred to National Archives o f India.

Reference preceding notes.

5. In the first instance the following decisions may be taken -

• The list o f tiles that can be given to the applicant

• Declassification and transferring o f files to NAI.

i tf t D S(A ) may be requested to examine and a draft reply in the matter.

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NGQ SECTION

Reference notes on pages 1-3/N.

Out o f 45 files contained in the list prepared by Political Section in consultation with this Section only 8 files listed below belong to NGO Section. A ll o f these files are Top Secret. 2 o f the 8 files are more than 25 years old and rest belong to the year 1994 and onwards.

SI. No. File No. Subject1. ' 23( 1 D/56-57-PM IN A Treasure2. T-2(64)/78-PM Death of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose

appointment of an Inquiry Commission to go into the Circumstances of death. “

3. G-l2(18)/94-NGO Controversy regarding Netaji's deathand bring his ashes to India from Japan

4. G-4(2)/95-NGO Proposal to bring the mortal remains ofNetaji Subhas Chandra Bose from Japan to India

5. G-16(3)/95-NGO Proposal to bring the mortal remains ofNetaji Subhash Chandra Bose from Japan to India

6. G -12(3)/98-NGO Transfer of the Ashes of Netaji SubhasChandra to India

7. G-16(4)/2000-NGO Death/Disappearance of Netaji Subhas (Vol. I) Chandra Bose - Justice Mukherjee

Commission of Inquiry G-16(4)/2000-NGO DeathyDisappearance of Netaji Subhas (Vol.II) Chandra Bose - Justice Mukherjee

Commission of Inquiry

w X2. As per the instructions contained in MHA OM No. III/l 1014/'6/97-IS(D.Ill) 6;n February , 2002. "Automatic declassification" of the classified records may take piace after 25 years except in cases where particular information may require to remain classified beyond this period for reasons of National Security and National interest. An officer one level higher than the officer competent to review the files for declassification may take a decision in such cases. In PMO an officer o f the rank o f Director and above is competent to conduct such review for declassification o f TS files more than 25 years old. Concurrence of the originating Ministry/Department is not required in such cases.

3. We may submit the above mentioned 2 TS files that are more than 25 years old to JS(M) for review so that if found fit for declassification they are made open to access or transferred to the National Archives.

4. The rest of the 6 Top Secret files that are less than 25 years old are also put up for review if their contents attract the provisions of section 8(1).

Submitted please.

lA '

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ISMost Immediate

PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE[POLITICAL SECTION]

South Block, New Delhi - 110 101

Sub: Writ Petition No.8215(WV2008 filed in the Calcutta High Court bv the Subhash Chandra Basu & Anr. Vs UOI & Ors.

Reference is invited to Ministry o f Home Affairs’ ID note no. 12014/6/2008-Cdn datedMarch 16, 2009 on the above subject.

2. The following relevant documents on the subject are being forwarded:

(i) Copy o f the letter by which the list o f the files on Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose provided to CIC with reference to a RTI request o f Shri Anuj Dhar, r/o Vikas Puri, New Delhi.

(ii) Copies o f the letters dated July 4, 2000 and July 25, 2000, by which the list o f files on disappearance o f Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose was provided to the Justice Mukherjee Commission oflnquiry.

(iii) Copy o f the letter dated July 24, 2000 by which the list o f Top Secret files on disappearance o f Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose was provided to the Justice Mukherjee Commission oflnquiry. [Top Secret document, being sent separately],

3. The Justice Mukherjee Commission oflnquiry was not made available the following 4files due to the following reasons, out o f the list o f files made available to CIC:

(a) Files at SI. No. 19 and 20 - The files does not relate to disappearance o f Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, but related to Bharat Ratna Award.

(b) Files at SI. No. 30 and 31 - Request o f Justice Mukherjee Commission o f Inquiry seeking relevant Top Secret files, were dealt with on these two files.

4. I am directed to request that the Ministry o f Home Affairs may kindly take necessaryaction in the matter.

(Am it Agrawal) Director

Tel. 2301 2613 Fax No. 23016857

o !-Home Secretary

PMO ID no. 1249196/PMO/2009-Pol.

Enel: as above

Dated March 19, 2009

. Copy, with enclosures, to:

Ministry o f Home Affairs [Attn: Shri S. K. Malthora, Deputy Secretary]

T - S.OLve. -Aa/v ''VeA. - •


No. G-16(4)/2000-NG0 Dated the 2000.

From! Ms. Archana Ranjan, Director,Prime Minister's Office, South Bl®ck,New Delhi-110011.

To: Shri P.K. Sengupta,WBHJS(R«td.),Secretary,Justice Mukherjee Commission cf Inquiry, B-Block (Third Floor), ll/A, Mirza Ghalib Street,Calcutta-700 087.

Sir,

In c©ntinuati®n of my letter N©.915/ll/C/2/2000-Pol dated 4th July, 2000, the phste-cspies of the fallowing Top Secret/Secret f i le s are forwarded:-

S jjk ia s l

- I.N .A . Treasure.- 1. Death of Shri Subhash

Chandra Bose.2. Appsintment of an

Enquiry Committee to go into the circumstances of the death,

- Csntroversy regarding N e ta ji 's death and bringing his ashes t© India from Japan.

- Proposal to bring the mortal remains of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bese from Japan to India.

- Proposal to bring the mortal remains of Neta ji Subhash Chandra Bose from Japan to India - (Cabinet Meeting).

- Transfer of the Ashes of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose to India.

- Death of N eta ji Subhas Ch. Bose - Appointment of an inquiry commission to go into the circumstances of death. ,. .2 / -

© ~ 1. ° x 23(11 )/56-57-PM (T .S .)2. c / 2(64)/56-66-PM (T .S .)

(V o l.I I )

3. G-12(l8)/94-NGO (T .S .)

4. ' G-16(3)/95-NG0 (T .S .)

5. ' G-4(2)/95-NG0 (T .S .)

a 6. G-12(3)/98-NGO (T.S. )

7. o / T-2(64)/73-PM (Secret)

pea- l30 - ld\c .

k

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(0 /

- 2 -

2. Pleas© acknowledge receipt.

3. I t is further requested that while information contained in the 'Top Secret' papers may be made use of by the Commission, in camera, since these are classified as 'Top Secret', they may kindly consider net publishing the same.

Yours faithfully,

(Archana Ranjan ) Director

w

1 v#

fg r^ r ^MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS

NEW DELHI

Confidentialmrto wrt Jayant Prasad

Joint Secretary(CNV)Tel: 301-1357 & Fax: 379-2285

No. 25/4/NGO-VolV November 23. 2000

Dear Dr. Chaydhury,

Apropos your letter No. DGNM-2/2000 dated November 22, 2000 regarding declassification o f records in connection with papers to be shown to the Justice Mukherjee Commission, we notice that the enclosures to your letter proposed for declassification did not originate from MEA. There is no question, therefore, o f our giving any clearance for declassifying them. The papers are apparently extracts of the accession register o f the National Museum itself. Your organisation may therefore, like to take the view on their declassification.

2. I might add that on part o f this Ministry, we have already conveyed our ‘No Objection’ to the Commission viewing Netaji’ s treasures.

Yours sincerely,

Mrs. Arch,ana Ranjan, Director, PMO, New Delhi.

PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE *

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