Documents show Indian hero Subhas Chandra Bose died in Taipei plane crash

The Japanese government recently declassified archival materials to help settle the long-held controversy over the death of Subhas Chandra Bose, a hero of India's independence movement. The materials show Bose died in a plane crash in Taipei just after the end of World War II.

The documents recently became available to the public at the Foreign Ministry's Diplomatic Archives in Minato Ward, Tokyo.

The persistent belief of some Indians - especially in the state of West Bengal - that Bose is still alive has made it difficult for Japan to return his remains, which currently reside in the country. A section of Bose's family are hoping the declassification will help bring the remains back to India.

According to conventional wisdom, Bose died in a plane crash in August 1945. But many Indians - especially residents of his birthplace, Kolkata in eastern India - have insisted the accident was staged and that he actually went to live in what was then the Soviet Union after the war. They have opposed the return of Bose's remains, claiming their authenticity cannot be verified.

The Indian government has conducted three official investigations in the past. In 2006, it announced that the plane crash and the authenticity of the remains could not be confirmed because the Taiwan side was unable to produce a record of the accident.

India asked the Japanese government to conduct its own survey in 1956. A report on the survey, "Investigation on the cause of death and other matters of the late Subhas Chandra Bose," was recently declassified ahead of its publication and given to Bose's bereaved family.

The report is based on the testimonies of witnesses and military doctors who were at Bose's bedside when he died. According to the report, a plane heading to the Chinese city of Dalian crashed at 1:50 p.m. on Aug. 18, 1945, immediately after taking off from Taipei, a fueling base. Bose suffered severe burns over his entire body and was taken to Taiwan's Army Hospital, where he reportedly told doctors to treat others first. He was in fact treated first but died at 7 p.m. the same day. The document also explains how his remains and belongings were sent to Japan.

Born in 1897, Bose became president of the Congress Party for India's independence but resigned from the post following differences with Mahatma Gandhi. He exiled himself in Germany before moving to Japan. In 1944, he commanded the Indian national army at the Battle of Imphal, a clash during the now-defunct Imperial Japanese Army's invasion of British India through Burma, now Myanmar. He was said to have aspired to continue fighting in the former Soviet Union after the end of World War II, but died without seeing the independence of his country.

Bose's only daughter is Anita Bose Pfaff, 73, who currently lives in Germany. She said she hopes the latest release of materials will settle the dispute and that his remains will be returned to India, a country whose independence he earnestly desired.

Journalist Ashis Ray, a relative of Pfaff who has investigated Bose's death, says the belief that he is still alive originates from people in his hometown who are reluctant to admit the death of their hero. This view has also been held for political purposes, and Ray hopes the disclosure of the documents will help more people accept he died in the accident.

Bose's remains currently reside in Renkoji temple in Suginami Ward, Tokyo.

Temple priest Kyozen Mochizuki, 42, said, "The remains were supposed to have been kept here temporarily." However, the Indian government's unclear position on Bose's death has prevented Renkoji from returning the remains for the last 71 years.

Mochizuki is hopeful the release of the archival materials will result in Bose's remains being returned to India.

The temple held a funeral for Bose after his body was cremated in Taiwan and the remains brought to Tokyo. Every year since, it has honored him with a memorial service on the anniversary of his death.

Renkoji also contains a bust of Bose erected in 1990 by former soldiers of the now-defunct Imperial Japanese Army.

The temple has hosted Indian prime ministers including Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and other prominent political figures.