Relatives of 20 INA soldiers in Haryana seek assistance

Tribune News Service

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Rohtak, October 3

In the past 10 days, descendants of 20 soldiers of Indian National Army (INA) led by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose have approached Shri Bhagwan Phogat, son of an INA soldier, who has been working hard for the past eight years to get the unsung heroes of the INA recognised.

“The descendants belonging to Rohtak, Hisar, Sirsa and Fatehabad districts have provided me details of their ancestors associated with the INA. They have requested me to find out their association with the INA in the records so that they could avail of the government scheme. This has happened due to The Tribune which published a story on my mission on September 21,” said Phogat (60) of Dhani Phogat village (Charkhi Dadri) who currently resides in Rewari city.

He maintained the Centre had rejected a large number of applications moved by descendants of INA soldiers for ‘Swatantrata Sainik Samman Pension’ as the kin could not produce evidence about the association of their forefathers with the INA.

All these rejected files are — at present — lying at the National Archives of India, which is a repository o

the non-current records, Phogat added.

“I have also identified 14 INA soldiers belonging to Rohtak and Jhajjar district who laid down their lives during World War-II. But their descendants are yet to be traced to move applications for pension. The widows of INA soldiers are entitled to pension. These soldiers belonged to Bhali, Sunaria, Bahu Akbarpur, Pilana, Nindana, Katesara villages of Rohtak and Kheri Khummar, Chimni and Bamdoli villages in Jhajjar,” he said.

Phogat maintained that in the past eight years, he had identified 250 INA soldiers and traced their association with the INA in the records. All cases had been sent to the state government for pension.

“A large number of soldiers of the then British army had joined the INA following the call given by Bose. Many of them attained martyrdom fighting against the British army. Several others had to face physical torture at the hands of the British who deliberately did not give any record to the kin of the martyrs,” he claimed.