THE NETAJI DISAPPEARANCE MYSTERY ... 6
Indo-French historian J.B.P. More has affirmed in the documentary of 'Discovery Science' that Netaji had stayed overnight at the house of Leon Prouchandy (More's grandfather) in Saigon on 17 August, 1945 and thereafter spent some more time on 18 August as well. More's mother has herself testified to More on this count but could not say as to where Netaji had gone from their house on the 18th and as to his whereabouts thereafter.
Mr. More has raised a pertinent point here. If Netaji was still there for a part of 18 August at his grandfather's house in Saigon, how could he have possibly boarded the aeroplane at distant Taihoku that very afternoon and crash-landed to death? Moreover, how could Netaji have spent the previous night (17 August) at Tourane en route to Taihoku when he was expressly, in the words of eye-witness Mrs. More, at her father's (Leon Prouchandy's) house in Saigon that night?
These are discrepancies in the story, perhaps, and either party must be wrong. The protagonists of the Air-crash Theory will in all probability say that Mrs. More has made a mistake about the date on which she claims Netaji had stayed overnight at her father's residence. It must have been 16 August and not the 17th when, as per the official narrative, Netaji had boarded the Tourane-bound plane from Saigon at 5.15 p.m. and spent the night at Tourane itself before leaving for Taihoku on the morning of the 18th. If this natural lapse of memory had occurred in Mrs. More's eye-witness account, then the official dates fall into place and Netaji could very well then have spent the 16th night at Prouchandy's residence at Saigon, boarded the plane on the 17th for Tourane, spent the night there at Tourane, boarded the plane for Saigon on the 18th, reached there at 2 p.m. and crashed at 2.30 p.m. after lunch.
But did Mrs.More make such a casual mistake about an event of such momentous historical significance? Was it not also the greatest day in her family's life to have hosted Netaji overnight? Are not women very particular about endearing familial recollections? Did she make a mistake or was she right in her recollection after all which would lend an altogether different twist to the whole disappearance affair?
Given below is the YouTube link to the aforesaid documentary :
Written by Sugata Bose
Photo : courtesy, Wikipedia
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