Between his resignation as Congress President in Calcutta on 29 April 1939 and his escape from his Elgin Road home on the night of 16-17 January 1941, Subhas Chandra Bose provided India with an alternative leadership in place of the old guard represented by the Gandhian High Command. His alternative was based on a commitment to anti-imperialism and future socialism.

This volume brings together the writings and speeches of a crucial phase in Bose's political life immediately prior to his emergence as the Netaji of lndia's army of liberation. The themes dealt with here include the role of the left within the Indian independence movement, the Second World War as a conflict between rival imperialisms, and the need for Hindu–Muslim unity and Congress–Muslim League understanding.

Sisir Kumar Bose (1920–2000) founded the Netaji Research Bureau in 1957 and was its guiding spirit until his death in 2000. A participant in the Indian freedom struggle, he was imprisoned by the British in the Lahore Fort, Red Fort and Lyallpur Jail. In the post-independence period he played a key role in preserving the best traditions of the anti-colonial movement and making possible the writing of its history. He authored and edited biographies,
memoirs, monographs and research papers on Netaji’s life and times. One of India’s best pediatricians, he was Director and later President of the Institute of Child Health, Calcutta.

Sugata Bose is the Gardiner Professor of History at Harvard University. He is the author of several books on the economic, social and political history of modern South Asia including His
Majesty’s Opponent: Subhas Chandra Bose and India’s Struggle against Empire (The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 10th anniversary edition 2022).

Preface to the 2023 Edition    xi
Editors’ Introduction             xv

Speeches, Articles and Statements

1939:
1. Why Forward Bloc (5.8.39)     
2. The Role of Forward Bloc (12.8.39)
3. Statement on Disciplinary Action (19.8.39)
…
15. A Reminder (16.12.39)
16. The Correct Line (26.12.39)
17. Leaders Misleading (30.12.39)

1940:
18. An Address to Students of India (Jan 1940)
19. Danger Ahead (6.1.30)
20. Ramgarh (13.1.40)
21. Our Problem (20.1.40)
22. Stem the Rot (10.2.40)

…