The contoversy around Netaji's death discussed in an engaging session at the Times LitFest Kolkata

Not getting back Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's ashes from Renkoji temple in Japan has been an act of criminal shame towards that great hero of India’s freedom movement by successive Indian governments. This was the essence of a discussion between journalist and historian Ashis Ray had with diplomat Pavan Varma at the Times Litfest in the city on Sunday.
The session 'Subhas Chandra Bose : Laid to Rest? ' was centred around Ray's latest book on Netaji in which he raises the question and asserts categorically that Netaji did indeed die in the air crash at Taipei on August 18, 1945.
Varma set the ball rolling by asking Ray, whom he introduced as the longest serving diplomat and historian, "If the facts are so categorical and clear, why has there been such a swirling controversy on his demise?" Ray replied that after decades of research on Netaji's death, he has discovered the triger to this problem, which was the premature death of Netaji's elder brother Sarat Bose. "Had Sarat Bose lived for some more time, there would have been no controversy," said Ray.
Ray then went on to set at rest the controversy surrounding Netaji's death. "There is absolutely no doubt that Netaji died in the air crash at Taipei on August 18, 1945. The investigation did not start till 1956." It has now been established that he breathed his last six hours after the crash in a Japanese military hospital where he was taken with severe burns sustained at the crash site. He found himself below the burning fuel tank of the aircraft after it crashed and his cotton khaki clothes were on fire. He died the same night.
Ray then rued that "Netaji's remains continue to languish inside Renkoji temple in Japan. This is a story of neglect and a real crime against Subhas Chandra Bose, his wife and daughter. "