[Broadcast over AZAD HIND RADIO (Germany) on August 31, 1942]
COUNTRYMEN! KEEP FIGHTING!
“This is Subhas Chandra Bose speaking to you over the Azad Hind Radio”
When Netaji left India in disguise and arrived in Germany in 1941, he was greeted by Joachim von Ribbentrop, who had served as Germany’s Foreign Minister from 1938 to 1945 and was Adolf Hitler’s, right-hand man.
Without mentioning the Berlin-based Azad Hind Radio, Netaji’s stay in Germany would not be complete. Under the direction of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Azad Hind Radio was established on January 19, 1942, to inspire Indians to struggle for their independence. Although it was initially established in Germany, after the war in South East Asia, its headquarters were moved to Singapore and then to Rangoon. A.C.N. Nambiar, the head of the Indian Legion (in Germany) and afterwards the Ambassador of the Arzi Hukumate Azad Hind in Germany, carried on the German operations after Netaji had left for South East Asia.
On February 19, 1942 in his first broadcast to the world over the Azad Hind Radio Netaji indicated the war aims of the Azad Hind movement. He ended his address with these words: “The hour of India’s salvation is at hand. India will now rise and break the chains of servitude that have bound her so long. Through India’s liberation will Asia and the world move forward towards the larger goal of human emancipation.”
To reach potential recruits for the Indian Legion in Germany and the Indian National Army in Southeast Asia, the station exclusively broadcasts weekly news bulletins in English, Hindi, Tamil, Bengali, Marathi, Punjabi, Pashtu, and Urdu. Most of the participants were only able to communicate in these Indian languages.
The transmissions of radio stations affiliated with the Allies were intended to be countered by Azad Hind Radio. ‘Jai Hind’ was the salutation he used, and that is how the general populace responded. The British Broadcasting Corporation and the All India Radio were referred to by Netaji as the “Bluff and Bluster Corporation” and the “Anti-Indian Radio,” respectively, on the Azad Hind Radio.
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), which in his words, was being used by the British government to spread propaganda. And the establishment of Azad Hind Radio was a counter to BBC’s propaganda.
The things that Netaji had said about BBC during the freedom struggle are proving to be absolutely true in the present scenario. Publishing the documentary by BBC reflects the colonial mindset where England used BBC only to broadcast propaganda. On the one hand, India is continuously moving forward on all parameters under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on the other hand, India has left behind the economy of England. England has probably forgotten that India’s economy was 25 per cent of the world’s economy in 1700 and it was just 1 per cent when it got independence in 1947. The reason for this was loot and plunder by England. And BBC has been justifying all these facts in one way or the other through its fake articles. The comment made in the context of the Prime Minister is an introduction to the same colonial mentality, as well as it is the result of his falling credibility on the world stage and the effect of India’s growing influence.
