The contribution of Subhas Chandra Bose and the Indian
National Army (INA) occupies an important place in the final phase of
India's freedom struggle. Bose believed that British rule could not be ended
only through constitutional negotiations and non-violent resistance. During the
Second World War, he organized the INA and sought to liberate India through
armed struggle.
Although the INA's military campaign ultimately failed to
defeat the British, its political and psychological impact was significant. The
INA trials held at the Red Fort in 1945–46 generated widespread public sympathy
and brought together people from different political and social backgrounds in
support of the accused soldiers.
There is also a widely cited account concerning former
British Prime Minister Clement Attlee. According to a later account by
P. B. Chakraborty, who had served as Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court
and Acting Governor of West Bengal, Attlee told him during a 1956 visit to
India that the activities of the INA under Subhas Chandra Bose and the
subsequent weakening of loyalty among Indian servicemen were important factors
behind Britain's decision to leave India. Chakraborty's account also claimed
that Attlee regarded the impact of the Quit India Movement on the final British
decision as “minimal.”
However, historians should treat this statement with caution
because the conversation is not supported by an independently verified
contemporary transcript or primary British government record. Therefore, it is
more accurate to describe it as a reported statement attributed to Attlee,
rather than as an established fact.
The Revolutionaries and Their Contribution
The Indian freedom movement was not limited to
constitutional politics or non-violent movements. Revolutionaries played a
significant role in keeping the idea of complete independence alive and
inspiring generations of Indians to challenge colonial rule.
Among the important revolutionary figures were Khudiram
Bose, Prafulla Chaki, Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan, Chandrashekhar Azad,
Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, Rajguru, Surya Sen and the Chapekar brothers.
Revolutionary organizations such as the Hindustan
Republican Association (later Hindustan Socialist Republican Association) and
groups associated with the Anushilan Samiti and Jugantar sought to
challenge British authority through armed resistance.
Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru became particularly
influential symbols of revolutionary nationalism. Their willingness to
sacrifice their lives had a profound impact on Indian youth. Bhagat Singh's
political writings also demonstrated that revolutionary nationalism was
connected with broader ideas of social justice, equality and freedom.
The Chittagong Armoury Raid of 1930, led by Surya
Sen, was another important revolutionary episode. It demonstrated that
organized resistance against British authority continued even during the period
when mass politics under Gandhi was becoming increasingly prominent.
Revolutionary activities did not by themselves remove
British rule, but their psychological and political influence was considerable.
They challenged the idea that British authority was invincible and inspired
young Indians to participate in the larger national movement.
The 1946 Naval Mutiny and the Changing Loyalty of Indian
Forces
One of the most important but comparatively under-discussed
events in the final phase of the freedom struggle was the Royal Indian Navy
Mutiny of 1946.
Beginning in Bombay in February 1946, the revolt spread to
other naval establishments and eventually involved thousands of Indian sailors.
Contemporary and later scholarship has examined the event as part of the wider
post-war nationalist upheaval.
The mutiny was particularly significant because the British
depended heavily on Indian personnel to maintain colonial military power. The
INA experience, the public response to the INA trials and subsequent unrest
among sections of the armed forces raised questions about how reliably Britain
could continue governing India through its military establishment.
The 1946 naval uprising therefore provides an important link
between the wartime activities of the INA and the final crisis of British rule.
It would nevertheless be an oversimplification to claim that the naval mutiny
alone forced Britain to grant independence.
Was India's Independence Due to Gandhi or Bose?
The historical evidence does not support reducing India's
independence to either Mahatma Gandhi alone or Subhas Chandra Bose
alone.
Gandhi transformed the freedom struggle into a mass movement
and mobilized millions through Non-Cooperation, Civil Disobedience and the
Quit India Movement. His emphasis on non-violence, mass participation and
political legitimacy placed enormous pressure on the colonial government.
At the same time, Bose and the INA introduced a different
form of pressure. Their activities challenged British confidence in the loyalty
of Indian soldiers, while the INA trials and the 1946 naval uprising
demonstrated the political consequences of this changing atmosphere.
The revolutionary tradition also played an important role.
From the Revolt of 1857 to Bhagat Singh and Chandrashekhar Azad, revolutionary
nationalists repeatedly challenged British authority and inspired political
consciousness among Indians.
Therefore, India's independence is best understood as the
result of multiple forces working over several decades—mass non-violent
movements, revolutionary resistance, the INA, changing attitudes within the
armed forces, economic and political pressures created by the Second World War,
and Britain's declining ability to maintain its empire.
The freedom struggle was consequently not the achievement of
one individual. Gandhi, Bose, the revolutionaries, political leaders,
soldiers, workers, students, farmers and countless ordinary Indians all
contributed to the long struggle that eventually culminated in independence on
August 15, 1947.