Initially Bose's ashes were kept for safekeeping and then when they were not claimed they remained in Japan carefully kept and honoured at this shrine.
Renkoji Temple, where a statue of Bose stands, has received a series of Indian dignitaries over the years. Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in 1957. President Rajendra Prasad in 1958. Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1969. External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh in 2000. And Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 2001 (his second visit). And plenty of Indian tourists surprised to find a memorial to Netaji in Japan.
Incidentally Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who is in India on a state visit, will be visiting Kolkata and meeting relatives of Bose.
Photograph: Netaji's statue at Renkoji Temple. Image: Toshifumi Kitamura/AFP/Getty Images
Also read: Bose the forgottten hero
Advertisement
