While the mystery over the death of Subhas Chandra Bose persists, the declassified Netaji files released online by the government on 23rd january2016 show that the Central government had made up its mind on the matter over two decades ago.

The declassified files were released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on the occasion of Bose’s birth anniversary, at the National Archives 23rd january2016. Bose’s family members were present on the occasion.

Many people had approached the government to resolve the mystery of Netaji’s disappearance. George Fernandes wrote a letter to then PM Narasimha Rao in July 1994 noting that the “controversy over the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose death needs to be settled without further delay… I notice that there is now a dispute about bringing into India the ashes of Netaji… You must take some initiative in this manner… It does not behove our country to keep the ashes of Netaji in Japan despite repeated requests from the Japanese that they be returned to India.”