INA Defence Committee
Encyclopedia
The INA Defence Committee, later the INA Defence and Relief Committee, was a committee established by the Indian National Congress
in 1945 to defend
those officers of the Indian National Army
who were to be charged during the INA trials
. Additional responsibilities of the committee also came to be the co-ordination of information on INA troops held captive, as well as arranging for relief for troops after the war.
The committee declared the formation of the Congress' defence team for the INA and included famous lawyers of the time, including Bhulabhai Desai
, Asaf Ali
, Jawaharlal Nehru
.
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
in 1945 to defend
Defense (legal)
In civil proceedings and criminal prosecutions under the common law, a defendant may raise a defense in an attempt to avoid criminal or civil liability...
those officers of the Indian National Army
Indian National Army
The Indian National Army or Azad Hind Fauj was an armed force formed by Indian nationalists in 1942 in Southeast Asia during World War II. The aim of the army was to overthrow the British Raj in colonial India, with Japanese assistance...
who were to be charged during the INA trials
INA trials
The INA trials or the Red Fort Trials refer to the courts martial of a number of officers of the Indian National Army between November 1945 and May 1946 variously for treason, torture, murder and abetment to murder....
. Additional responsibilities of the committee also came to be the co-ordination of information on INA troops held captive, as well as arranging for relief for troops after the war.
The committee declared the formation of the Congress' defence team for the INA and included famous lawyers of the time, including Bhulabhai Desai
Bhulabhai Desai
Bhulabhai Desai was an Indian freedom fighter and acclaimed lawyer. He is well-remembered for his defense of the three Indian National Army soldiers accused of treason during World War II, and for attempting to negotiate a secret power-sharing agreement with Liaquat Ali Khan of the Muslim League.-...
, Asaf Ali
Asaf Ali
Asaf Ali was an Indian independence fighter and noted Indian lawyer. He was the first ambassador from India to the United States. He also worked as the governor of Orissa....
, Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru , often referred to with the epithet of Panditji, was an Indian statesman who became the first Prime Minister of independent India and became noted for his “neutralist” policies in foreign affairs. He was also one of the principal leaders of India’s independence movement in the...
.
See also
- Indian National ArmyIndian National ArmyThe Indian National Army or Azad Hind Fauj was an armed force formed by Indian nationalists in 1942 in Southeast Asia during World War II. The aim of the army was to overthrow the British Raj in colonial India, with Japanese assistance...
- INA trialsINA trialsThe INA trials or the Red Fort Trials refer to the courts martial of a number of officers of the Indian National Army between November 1945 and May 1946 variously for treason, torture, murder and abetment to murder....
, the courts-martial of INA officers at Delhi that began in late 1945. - Maj Shah Nawaz KhanShah Nawaz Khan (general)Shahnawaz Khan was an Indian soldier who is remembered as an officer who served in the Second Indian National Army during World War II and later came to be one of the three defendants in the first of the INA trials in 1946....
, Gurbaksh Singh DhillonGurbaksh Singh DhillonGurbaksh Singh Dhillon was an officer in the Indian National Army who was charged with "waging war against His Majesty the King Emperor". Along with Shah Nawaz Khan and Prem Kumar Sahgal, he was tried by the British at the end of World War II in the INA trials that began on November 5, 1945 at Red...
and Col. Prem Kumar Sahgal, Colonel Habib ur RahmanRaja Habib ur Rahman KhanRaja Habib ur Rahman Khan was an Indian freedom fighter during British colonial rule of India, Rahman was an officer in the Indian National Army who was charged with "waging war against His Majesty the King Emperor". Along with Gen. Shah Nawaz Khan, Col. Prem Kumar Sahgal & Col...
defendants in the first INA trial. - Captain Lakshmi SahgalLakshmi SahgalLakshmi Sahgal née Swaminathan, also known as Captain Laxmi. is an activist of the Indian independence movement, an ex-officer of the Indian National Army, and the Minister of Women's affairs in the Azad Hind Government.A doctor by profession, Captain Lakshmi came into the limelight in India...
, who commanded the Rani of Jhansi RegimentRani of Jhansi RegimentThe Rani of Jhansi Regiment was the Women's Regiment of the Indian National Army, the armed force formed by Indian nationalists in 1942 in Southeast Asia with the aim of overthrowing the British Raj in colonial India, with Japanese assistance...
, and was also the minister in Charge of Women's affairs in the Azad Hind Govt. - Indian National CongressIndian National CongressThe Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...