Sarat Chandra Bose, A Vision Denied

Sarat Chandra Bose (1889–1950) was a visionary leader of India’s historic struggle against British rule in the first half of the twentieth century. An eminent barrister by profession, and older brother, mentor and lifelong support to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, he embraced in his life and work the highest principles and philosophy from East and West – of humanism and philanthropy; democracy, freedom and equality; socialism and internationalism. Sarat Bose’s constant quest was to achieve ‘Complete Freedom’ for India where all communities of the sub-continent and its neighbours could live in peace, harmony and prosperity. His ceaseless efforts to prevent partition along religious lines in 1947 were thwarted by the short-sighted politics of the time; but he remained steadfast in his belief that partition would only compound the nation’s problems manifold. His concept of the United Nations of South Asia (1948) predated the formation of regional organisations in other parts of the globe. This book is a significant and rich compendium of primary and archival materials of a key period of Indian history and its principal players. It will be an important resource for researchers and scholars of colonial and post-colonial history, including the partition of India, and politics. It holds Bose’s writings, speeches and correspondence, articles by his prominent contemporaries who had known him well, and extracts from British classified files of the time that reflect the importance the colonial rulers attached to the role played by Sarat Chandra Bose in the unfolding history of India.