Narendra Modi inaugurates Subhash Chandra Bose Museum at Red Fort, says 'we are committed to fulfilling his ideals'

On the 122nd birth anniversary of Subhash Chandra Bose, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a museum dedicated to the revolutionary and his Indian National Army at Red Fort in Delhi on Wednesday. Modi then inaugurated three other museums — Yaad-e-Jallian Museum (based on the Jallianwala Bagh massacre and World War I), the museum on 1857 (India’s first war of Independence), and Drishyakala (a museum on Indian Art) — at the same venue.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits the Yaad-e-Jallian, a museum on Jallianwala Bagh, at Red Fort in Delhi. pic.twitter.com/aAkNpzRFjC

— ANI (@ANI) January 23, 2019

The prime minister also took a tour of all the museums at Red Fort during his visit. The artefacts showcased at the museum on Bose include a wooden chair and sword used by the leader, as well as medals, badges, uniforms and other artefacts related to the Indian National Army. Bose’s family contributed several photographs to the museum based on his life, CNN-News18 reported. Earlier on Wednesday, Modi hailed Bose as “a stalwart who committed himself towards ensuring that India is free and leads a life of dignity”. “We are committed to fulfilling his ideals and creating a strong India,” he said in a tweet. Ahead of his Red Fort visit, Modi said on Twitter, “These museums being inaugurated today will deepen the connect between our glorious history and our youth as well as add to the patriotic fervour among citizens.” On 30 December, Modi had renamed the Ross Island of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands as the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Island. In the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections, these developments underline a certain political messaging by the BJP, which has been ensuring that its efforts focus more on leaders who do not belong to the Nehru-Gandhi family.