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1583_1 | Escanaba was the name of an Ojibwa village in this area in the early 19th century. The Ojibwa are one of the Anishinaabe, Algonquian-speaking tribes who settled and flourished around the Great Lakes. The word "Escanaba" roughly translates from Ojibwe and other regional Algonquian languages to "land of the red buck", although some people maintain that it refers to "flat rock".
As a European-American settlement, Escanaba was founded in 1863 as a port town by surveyor Eli P. Royce. Early industry was the processing and harvesting of lumber, dominated in this area by Daniel Wells Jr., Jefferson Sinclair, and Nelson Ludington. Ludington later moved his headquarters to Chicago, where he also entered banking. I. Stephenson established a successor lumber company in the area and also became a capitalist. |
1583_2 | Before the war, iron ore was being mined from the Marquette Range, which shipped out on barges from Escanaba. By the time of the American Civil War, this port was important to the Union as a shipping point for these ores, in addition to lumber. The Menominee Range and Gogebic Range of Michigan became important for iron ore after the war, in the 1880s. Michigan still produces about 25% of the iron ore nationally. Initially lumber was still integral to shipbuilding, and supported the construction of houses in cities throughout the developing Midwest. Iron ore supported industrialization, and became part of steel and other industries in the Midwest. |
1583_3 | As shipping increased, a lighthouse was needed to warn of a sand shoals in Little Bay de Noc, which extended from Sand Point, a sandspit located just south of and adjacent to the harbor area. The United States Lighthouse Service approved construction of the Sand Point Lighthouse at a cost of $11,000. Construction began in the fall of 1867 and was completed in early spring 1868. |
1583_4 | Present day
Until 2017, Escanaba continued to be an important shipping point for iron ore to other Great Lakes ports, especially south to Chicago and northern Indiana. The local paper mill, for many years owned by Mead Corporation's Publishing Paper Division, is currently operated by Verso Corporation. Located on the outskirts of the city alongside the Escanaba River, it is now Escanaba's largest employer.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. |
1583_5 | Climate
This climatic region is classified as humid continental climate, abbreviated "Dfb", according to the Köppen-Geiger climate classification. It is typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. Escanaba is described as being in the banana belt of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. While most of the peninsula is affected by significant lake-effect snow, Escanaba's winter climate is much milder due to its location on the leeward Lake Michigan shoreline.
Demographics
2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 12,616 people, 5,622 households, and 3,090 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 6,178 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 93.5% White, 0.4% African American, 2.6% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.3% from other races, and 2.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.2% of the population. |
1583_6 | There were 5,622 households, of which 26.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.8% were married couples living together, 13.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 45.0% were non-families. Of all households 38.2% were made up of individuals, and 17.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.82.
The median age in the city was 41.4 years. 21.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.6% were from 25 to 44; 26.4% were from 45 to 64; and 19.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.1% male and 52.9% female. |
1583_7 | 2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 13,140 people, 5,800 households, and 3,294 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,038.3 inhabitants per square mile (400.7/km2). There were 6,258 housing units at an average density of 494.5 per square mile (190.9/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 95.66% White, 0.11% African American, 2.61% Native American, 0.33% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.18% from other races, and 1.09% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.66% of the population. 17.0% were of German, 16.5% French, 11.4% French Canadian, 8.8% Swedish, 6.4% Irish and 5.2% English ancestry, according to Census 2000. |
1583_8 | There were 5,800 households, out of which 26.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.2% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.2% were non-families. Of all households 37.0% were made up of individuals, and 18.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.88.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 22.5% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 21.2% from 45 to 64, and 21.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.3 males. |
1583_9 | The median income for a household in the city was $29,125, and the median income for a family was $36,995. Males had a median income of $32,310 versus $21,204 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,589. About 10.8% of families and 13.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.7% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.
Culture and contemporary life
Although the Upper Peninsula is part of the state of Michigan, Escanaba and the western Upper Peninsula sometimes have closer cultural ties to the state of Wisconsin.
Yooper culture
Pasties are a significant tourist attraction. Many ethnic groups adopted the pasty for use in the Copper Country copper mines; the Finnish immigrants within the region mistook it for the traditional piiraat and kuuko pastries. The pasty has become strongly associated with all cultures in this area. |
1583_10 | Theater and performing arts
Escanaba is home to the William Bonifas Fine Arts Center, The Waterfront Art Festival, The Players de Noc, The Bay de Noc Choral Society, the Escanaba City Band, and many smaller arts organizations, art galleries, and musical performing groups.
Parks and recreation
Parks |
1583_11 | Ludington Park: A three-quarter mile stretch of lake shore where the city's easternmost point extends into Little Bay de Noc, it is one of the largest city parks in Upper Michigan. Karas Band Shell is located on the south end of the park and it is where concerts are hosted during the summer. A veterans memorial is located in the center of the park. At the north end of the park (across from municipal marina) there is a scenic gazebo and fountain.
Harbor Hideout: Located within Ludington Park, the 22,500 square foot playground is constructed of wood and features handicap accessible play areas.
Kiwanis Musical Playground: In June, 2018, the Escanaba Kiwanis installed a new handicap accessible musical play area next to harbor hideout. The equipment that was installed included a metallophone, a set of chimes, a kettle drum, and a goblet drum. All of the new equipment installed is ADA compliant. |
1583_12 | Boating and beaches
Escanaba yacht club: Established in 1934, it hosts several races and events for members during the summer.
Escanaba Municipal Beach: located on Aronson Island, is open from early June to mid-August. The beach-house includes a changing facility with restrooms and showers. In addition, there is also a small playground and picnic area available for public use. The beach house usually has paddleboards and kayaks available for renting.
Aronson Island Boat Launch: In order to use the boat launch a day-pass or seasonal permit is needed prior to launching a boat. The launch has a weight restriction of 6,000 pounds and a length restriction of 26 feet, if a boat exceeds this, a special permit must be obtained from the harbormaster.
North Shore Boat Launch: located on the Escanaba River.
Places of interest |
1583_13 | The House of Ludington - A landmark historic hotel in downtown Escanaba. Originally built in 1865 as the Gaynor House Hotel, it was renamed in 1871 after prominent lumberman Nelson Ludington. It was rebuilt as a brick structure in the Queen Anne Style in 1883, becoming the New Ludington Hotel. It is believed that Al Capone utilized the tunnels located below the basement of the hotel during the prohibition era.
Sand Point Lighthouse & Delta County Historical Museum - Deactivated in 1939, this lighthouse was used by the United States Coast Guard to house seamen assigned to Escanaba. The building was completely restored to its original design in the late 1860s, and has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places, along with Escanaba's central downtown district.
U.P. Steam & Gas Engine Museum
Carnegie Public Library (Escanaba Public Library)
Hiawatha National Forest
Days River Pathway or Days River Nature Pathway
Escanaba Farmer's Market
Laws and government |
1583_14 | Government
Escanaba is located in US Congressional District 1 represented by Jack Bergman (R-2017). The City is in Michigan's 108th State House District and 38th State Senate District, represented by Beau LaFave (R-2017) and Ed McBroom (R-2019), respectively.
As the most populous area in Delta County, Escanaba's four precincts span three of Delta County's five Districts:
The Escanaba City Council consists of five council members who are elected to four-year terms. A Mayor, and a Mayor Pro-Tem are selected by the council members at the first regular meeting following the election.
2022 Election
Three of the five seats were open in the 2022 election cycle. Council Member Peggy O'Connell did not seek re-election, and Mayor Tall and Council Member Blasier were incumbents running for re-election. Both incumbents received the lowest vote totals of the six candidates running for the seats.
* Incumbent
Police and corrections |
1583_15 | Escanaba established its own Department of Public Safety in 1975, which provides police and firefighting services to city residents.
Director of Public Safety: Robert LaMarche
Escanaba is also home to the Delta County Sheriff's Office, which employs ten deputies assigned to road and marine patrol. Additionally, the city is home to the newly constructed $17.9 million Correctional Facility with a capacity for 160 inmates.
Sheriff: Edward Oswald
The Delta County Sheriff's Office participates in the Upper Peninsula Substance Enforcement Team (UPSET) as part of a multi-agency operation to arrest criminals engaged in the use, sale, and distribution of drugs throughout Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
Courts
The Delta County Courthouse serves all of Delta County. The courthouse includes the 47th Circuit Court, the 94th District Court, and Probate Court.
Education |
1583_16 | In 2003, the school board opted to completely renovate the historic 1930's junior high school, rather than move it outside of town. Escanaba Area Public Schools operate the public schools in Escanaba, which includes various elementary schools, the middle school, and the high school. There is also a private school, Holy Name Catholic School, which teaches pre-school children all the way up to eighth grade.
Bay College, a public 2-year college, was founded in the city in 1962. It offers various two year degrees and certificate programs ranging from welding, public safety, business, nursing, among others. |
1583_17 | Media
Local radio stations include KMB Broadcasting's WDBC 680 AM (adult standards) and WYKX 104.7 FM (country music), Lakes Radio's WCHT 600 AM (news/talk), WGLQ 97.1 FM (adult top 40), WCMM 102.5 FM (country), and WGKL 105.5 FM (oldies), and standalone WUPF 107.3 FM (classic hits). Escanaba is also served by low-power translator stations of WNMU translator W296AX from Marquette, MI (at 96.5 FM), WRPP translator W254AG from Sturgeon Bay, WI (at 98.7 FM), and WHWL translator W261AI from Marquette, MI (at 100.1 FM). WJMN-TV, the local television station on channel 3, is mostly a satellite of WFRV in Green Bay and carries CBS programming. Radio and television signals originating from Door County, WI across the bay are also generally easily received in the Escanaba area as well.
Infrastructure
Escanaba's Harbor Tower, an 18-story apartment building, is the tallest building in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. |
1583_18 | Transportation
runs eastward to St. Ignace and the Mackinac Bridge, to the east. Along the way it passes through Gladstone, north/east and Manistique, east. It runs west concurrent with US 41 until Powers, and from there west to Iron Mountain.
connects with Marquette to the north and with Powers west before turning south to Menominee.
runs northwest through undeveloped areas to Gwinn. Going south, it provides a direct route along the shore of Green Bay to Menominee, to the southwest.
runs northwest toward many rural communities before ending at Crystal Falls.
Airport
The city is served by Delta County Airport (KESC), with daily flights to Detroit and Minneapolis via Delta Connection.
Buses
Indian Trails provides daily intercity bus service between St. Ignace and Ironwood, Michigan and between Hancock, Michigan and Milwaukee, Wisconsin |
1583_19 | Railroads |
1583_20 | The Escanaba area has been serviced by several railroads. The former Chicago & Northwestern Railroad connected Green Bay to their main system around the same time that they built their mainline to Escanaba. The CMSP&P otherwise known as the Milwaukee Road connected Escanaba to their system shortly thereafter. In 1898, the Escanaba & Lake Superior owned by Issac Stephenson constructed a line from its connection to the Milwaukee Road. Both the C&NW and the CMSP&P ran passenger service to the Escanaba area as well. The C&NW also connected to the Duluth Missabe & Iron Range railroad in Escanaba. The C&NW would acquire the CMSP&P's trackage in Escanaba and Wells. With the creation of the Wisconsin Central railroad, Most of the lines in Escanaba were unified in a single operation with the exception of the DMIR and the E&LS. In 2004, when CN controlled the WC, the DMIR sold to Canadian National. As of April 2021, just the E&LS and CN remain. CN owns the last two yards in Escanaba, being the |
1583_21 | Gladstone Yard, and the Escanaba Ore Docks. |
1583_22 | Notable people
Tom Bissell, author and Guggenheim Fellow
Kevin Chown, American bass player most notable for his work with Chad Smith of Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Tarja Turunen, Finnish soprano artist.
Fahey Flynn, television news reader
Karla M. Gray, Montana's first female chief justice
Becky Iverson, professional golfer
Nelson Ludington, settler who named the city
Eli Parsons Royce, founder of city
Willard A. Saunders, Rear admiral, USN and Navy Cross recipient during World War II
"Roaring Dan" Seavey, Great Lakes pirate
Kevin Tapani, baseball player
Chauncey W. Yockey, Wisconsin State Assemblyman.
Image gallery
See also
References
External links
Escanaba Michigan, Bays de Noc CVB
City of Escanaba
The Daily Press
Escanaba Area Public Schools
Escanaba Post Card Museum
Antonis Wolfe (Resident's site)
Cities in Delta County, Michigan
County seats in Michigan
Micropolitan areas of Michigan
Michigan populated places on Lake Michigan |
1584_0 | Duck Head is a brand name for clothing and shoes in the United States. First registered as a trademark in the late 19th century, the name has been used by several different manufacturers and retailers of apparel, primarily in the southern United States. Duck Head apparel had a period of great popularity in the 1980s and early 1990s.
History |
1584_1 | O'Bryan Manufacturing
The Duck Head brand was founded in 1865 in Nashville, Tennessee by George and Joe O'Bryan, two brothers who were buying surplus U.S. Army tent material. The material was a heavy canvas known as "duck", and the brothers began making work pants and shirts out of the strong material. Their company became known as the O’Bryan Brothers Manufacturing Company. The brothers sought to register the name "Duck" as a trademark in 1892, but the U.S. Trademark Registration Office rejected their application because the term was in general use. They registered the trademark "Duck Head" instead. The company operated into the late 20th century, producing work clothing such as overalls and denim jackets under the Duck Head brand. |
1584_2 | In 1978, David Baseheart, the O'Bryan Company's young, energetic sales director, developed an idea that quickly converted Duck Head into a fashionable brand. Baseheart fashioned a shipment of cotton khaki fabric into dress pants, applied the mallard logo to a bright yellow tag on the back of the pants, and went on the road to sell them, visiting first the University of Mississippi campus bookstore where he sold his first batch of the new Duck Head khakis. The pants sold out quickly, and a new southern U.S. trend was born. Soon, and throughout the 1980s, Duck Head khakis were standard in Southern fashion, leading a writer for Forbes magazine to observe some years later: "For a preppy southern college guy in the 1980s, Duck Head Apparel khakis were as indispensable as a pair of worn Topsiders and a pink Polo shirt." |
1584_3 | Delta Woodside Industries and Tropical Sportswear International
Baseheart bought the O'Bryan Company in 1985. In 1989, the brand was purchased by Delta Woodside Industries in an attempt to create a national brand. The Duck Head brand was very successful for Delta Woodside in the early 1990s. The Duck Head product line had been limited to casual cotton pants for men, but Delta Woodside expanded it by adding woven and knit shirts, shorts, and women's clothing to the Duck Head brand product line. During the company's 1992 fiscal year, gross sales revenue from Duck Head clothing totaled more than $130 million. In the following years, however, the brand's popularity declined and Delta Woodside experienced financial losses, and in 1999, the company spun off Duck Head Apparel in an attempt to save the company. Tropical Sportswear International bought the Duck Head Apparel company in 2001, but went bankrupt in 2005. |
1584_4 | Shoes
Duck Head Shoes began being produced in the 1990s by Old Dominion Footwear of Madison Heights, Virginia.
Goody's Family Clothing
In 2003, Goody's Family Clothing purchased rights to the Duck Head clothing brand for $4.1 million and made it into a private label brand, sold exclusively at Goody's stores. Sales of Duck Head branded clothing totaled more than $97 million in 2004, the last year when Goody's was a publicly traded company required to disclose financial information. |
1584_5 | Prospect Brands Ownership
After Goody's underwent Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2008 and then liquidated and closed all of its stores under a Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing in 2009, the Duck Head brand was put up for sale by Streambank LLC. Streambank sold the brand at auction in 2009, for a reported price of $2.65 million. It was purchased by a business group headed by Virginia retailer Ross Sternheimer, who outbid Perry Ellis International. The acquiring business established Duck Head USA, based in Richmond, Virginia, and announced plans to expand the Duck Head brand into a full line of men's, women's and children's apparel and accessories to be sold through various retailers. Prospect Brands LLC has announced it purchased the Duck Head brand from the Richmond group and the brand will be relaunched and based in downtown Greensboro, North Carolina. Greensboro is also home to apparel giant Kontour (spun out from VF Corporation) which owns brands such as Lee and Wrangler Jeans. |
1584_6 | Current Ownership
The Lanier Apparel Division of Oxford Industries (NYSE: OXM) based in Atlanta, Georgia acquired the Duck Head brand in 2016. The initial re-launch was primarily online, with chinos, sport shirts and t-shirts available for purchase directly from the company. In March 2018, Bill Thomas, founder of menswear brand Bill’s Khakis, was announced by Oxford Industries as the Brand Director of Duck Head.
References
External links
Duck Head Footwear
Duck Head International LLC
Companies established in 1865
Clothing brands of the United States
Companies based in Nashville, Tennessee
1865 establishments in Tennessee
1980s fashion
1990s fashion |
1585_0 | Bhagwanji, also known as Gumnami Baba (), was an ascetic who had lived approximately last 30 years of his life in different parts of Uttar Pradesh, a state in Northern India. His most remarkable trait was his undying commitment towards remaining incognito. Only a handful of people had the privilege of seeing him in person. Most of the visitors had to converse with him separated by a curtain, with his face hidden all along.
During his stay in Uttar Pradesh, he changed his dwelling place multiple times in order to avoid unwanted attention.
His first appearance can be traced back to the mid 1950s in the city of Lucknow, where he was first reportedly sighted. Several rumours about him still live on, as his true identity is yet to be confirmed.
Bhagwanji died on September 16, 1985, in Ayodhya. There are counter claims calling his cremation as staged so as to arrange a passage for him to leave for another secret destination. |
1585_1 | Places of stay
Lucknow: Reportedly, Bhagwanji entered India from Nepal aided by Mahadeo Prasad Mishra, a Sanskrit teacher in Nepal, some time in the early 1950s. The exact year could not be confirmed. According to Rajkumar Shukla, grandson of Mishra, Bhagwanji accompanied by Rajkumar's mother Saraswati Devi and him, moved to Singar Nagar in Lucknow in 1955. During this period of stay at Lucknow, as per the current owners of B N Baijal opticals a renowned shop selling spectacles, Bhagwanji visited their shop once, where some customers and workers in the shop thought of him as Netaji, because of his close resemblance with the latter. |
1585_2 | Neemsar: Neemsar, a localized name for ancient Naimisharanya, is a temple city in Uttar Pradesh. Bhagwanji along with Saraswati Devi and Rajkumar Shukla came to Neemsar around 1958. They used to stay in a dilapidated temple called Shibala at Neemsar. Without any financial means for sustainability, they faced great deal of hardship in the initial years. It is reported that they had even spent days without food during this period. Situation looked up considerably since many of Netaji's followers namely Pabitra Mohan Roy and Leela Roy came to know about him and started providing for him.
Ayodhya/Faizabad: Ayodhya and Faizabad are twin cities and Bhagwanji lived in multiple places between these 2 cities after leaving Neemsar. In 1964, Bhagwanji with his companions moved to Shankar Niwas, an abandoned palace of Maharaja of Ayodhya, in Faizabad. Later he moved to Lalkothi at Ayodhya. |
1585_3 | Basti: Around, 1967 he, along with Saraswati Devi and Rajkumar, were received as guests by king of Basti, Onkar Singh. They stayed in Raja Maidan until 1974. Durga Prasad Pandey, a scholar and lawyer from Basti, came in contact with Bhagwanji and became an ardent devotee of Bhagwanji.
Back to Ayodhya/Faizabad: Bhagwanji along with his 2 companions moved to Ayodhya again in November 1974. He initially stayed in the house of Panda Ramkishore in Ayodhya followed by Lucknowa Hatta and then moving to Gurudwara Brahmkund, Ayodhya. At this place many people from Faizabad came to know about his presence and took a liking of him. Prominent among them were Dr. R P Mishra and Dr T C Banerjee. In 1983, Bhagwanji moved to Ram Bhawan in Faizabad a house of Sardar Gurubasant Singh Sodhi. He died here on September 16, 1985. His body was cremated at Guptar Ghat, not a designated cremation ground but a holy ghat on the banks of river Sarayu, on September 18, 1985.
Quotes from Bhagwanji's discourse |
1585_4 | I have undergone complete Metamorphosis. The biggest asset of my life is sacrifice. I am not a great man, so I do not need biography.
To understand a man you have to understand the bedrock on which he stands and his works. My most and only beloved mother was a direct initiated disciple of Ramakrishna Paramhamsa Deva. My Governor, first tutor guardian gave me a missionary sacrificing zeal and all fighting, all overcoming stamina....I have never played false with myself.
If anybody ascribes that he is an authority on me, I would call him a darned fool. Know yourself first then try to know others.
If Bengal hopes that she will get back "him" – that is a mistake. "He" is dead, Bengal has killed "him".
I am just a Will-o'-the-wisp...It is born, does it work, runs around, stays still for a while, vanishes from one place and then, shows up at another place. It manifests itself but cannot be caught. I am just not here. I have no existence. |
1585_5 | Very strange are you and your government that they constitute ‘loaded dice commissions’ over and again just to know, whether he is dead or not! You all are the reason behind this. Populus Vult Decipi – You All People Wish To Be Fooled
My real identity is that I am a dust particle of Bengal. My false identity is Frankenstein, which I neither did want nor deserved. You have raised this Frankenstein and now feelers are being sent to him. It is too late.
Indian politics. Ugh. It stinks. Statesmen are a rarity everywhere. But in India there is no Statesman.
It is God's truth and take it from the horse's mouth, Communism shall die at the place of its birth. Even Gods have not the power to nullify these solemn words. But you must pay the price.
In the inviolable and most divine name of mother Jagadamba Durga, Bhabani, Chandi – The Bengal – India shall rise again in her full glory. Corrupt people on my motherland's soil will be completely eliminated gradually. |
1585_6 | Legacy
Gumnami Baba or Bhagwanji never had a huge circle of followers. His clandestine way of conducting day-to-day affairs, limited his option of making followers among the mass. Yet few followers from Calcutta used to frequently come and meet him. Most of them were related to Leela Roy's group.
For many of his followers and admirers he was none other than, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose himself, spending the rest of his life as a renunciate in the state of Uttar Pradesh, after his mysterious disappearance in 1945. Nonetheless two investigating commissions have refused to accept him as Netaji.
Bhagwanji's lectures used to be published in a Bengali monthly named "Jayashree", of which Roy was the editor. Roy's nephew Bijoy Nag later published a book named "Oi Mahamanab Asey (Here comes the great man)" which is a collection of lectures published in the Jayashree monthly.
Bhagwanji's lectures often included matters on contemporary politics, theology, music and even metaphysics. |
1585_7 | In April 2017, the Government of Uttar Pradesh decided to digitize all the books recovered from Gumnami Baba's belongings.
As per order passed by Allahabad High Court, Government of Uttar Pradesh under chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, allocated funds to set up a museum for public display of items used by Bhagwanji. A gallery has been dedicated to him in the "Ram Katha Sangrahalay" museum located in Ayodhya. The gallery is yet to be inaugurated.
Items recovered from Bhagwanji's belongings
Several items were recovered from Bhagwanji's belongings which were sent to district treasury in 26 wooden boxes. Details of those items were reported in many news papers. Items contained huge collection of books in English, Hindi and Bengali, numerous Indian and foreign magazines and newspapers, many foreign made items, letters from some very important political and national leaders, maps, photographs of Netaji's family members and some Indian National Army memorabilia. |
1585_8 | Many letters were found, written to Bhagwanji from former Indian National Army officers and mainly Pabitra Mohan Roy. Some letters were written by Bose family members. A letter from M. S. Golwalkar, director of RSS was found where he had addressed Bhagwanji as Pujyapad Shrimaan Swami Vijayanandji Maharaj. The letter read – "I received your letter written from August 25 to September 2 on September 6, 1972. If you point out one particular location out of the three places mentioned in the letter, then my job will certainly become easier." Another letter was from famous revolutionist Trailokyanath Chakravarty who in a letter written in 1963 to Bhagwanji, reminisced many accounts of spending time with Netaji in Mandalay jail and concluded that he along with thousands of ill-treated and oppressed people of East Pakistan, are still waiting for him to return. |
1585_9 | A large collection of books in Bengali, English, Hindi and Sanskrit, were recovered. Complete work of Rabindranath Tagore, Saratchandra Chatterjee, William Shakespeare, Atharv Ved Samhita in Bengali by Durgadas Lahiri, Vivekananda Bani (Bengali) by Kumar Krishna Nandi, ' Sadhak Ramprasad' by Swami Vivekananda, Bulletin of Netaji Research Bureau of January 1966, Freedom and after by Rabindranath Khan, Hindi copy of 30 years in Jail by TrailokyaNath Chakrovarty, selected work of P G Wodehouse, Charles Dickens, Lewis Carroll, Victor Hugo, Henry Miller, Swami Abhedananda, Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam were few to mention. Many books pertaining to modern history and politics viz. The Last Days of the British Raj by Leonard Mosley, History of the Freedom Movement in India 3 volumes by RC Majumdar, The Lessons of History by Will Durant and Ariel Durant, India Wins Freedom by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Netaji Through German Lens by Nanda Mookerjee, Himalayan Blunder by Brigadier John Dalvi, India's |
1585_10 | China war by Neville Maxwell, Moscow's Shadow over West Bengal by Rajni Mukherjee, The Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, copy of International Military Tribunal for the Far East, few books of journalist Kuldip Nayar, a copy of Hanuman Chalisa and Bhagwad Gita . |
1585_11 | Among artefacts found, there were framed photographs of parents of Netaji, his school teacher Benimadhab Das, elder brother Suresh Chandra Bose (draped in a typical Bengali silk), group photo of Netaji's family, single photo of Netaji's parents, Netaji's photo in INA uniform, photographs of several INA colleagues, INA uniform, medals and insignia, an English made typewriter, German made binocular, needles, European crockery set, a Rolex golden watch and 2 golden round Omega watches (similar to what Netaji's father had gifted him), smoking pipes and 3 US made Sheaffer pens.
Several maps along with two hand-drawn maps of Bangladesh and of a route originating in Eastern Russia, moving through Mongolia, China, Tibet and Nepal were also found along with several newspapers and magazines of which some were internationally published. |
1585_12 | Correspondence and meeting with famous people
Among people who had met Bhagwanji were some of the notable names of politics in post independent India. |
1585_13 | Atul Sen ; was a professor and an ex-MLA from Dacca, Bangladesh. He knew Netaji beforehand as it was on Netaji's insistence he ran for office and won the election in the 1930s. He had a chance meeting with Bhagwanji sometime in the early 1960s at Neemsar. Upon being convinced he wrote a letter to prime minister Nehru, stating "I take the liberty of addressing these few lines to you in the matter of the widely prevalent belief that Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose is not dead. Mine is not mere belief but actual knowledge that Netaji is alive and is engaged in spiritual practice somewhere in India. Not the sadhu of Shoulmari, Cooch Behar, in West Bengal about whom some Calcutta politicians are making a fuss. I deliberately make the location a little vague because from the talks I had with him for months together not very long ago, I could understand that he is yet regarded as Enemy No.1 of the Allied Powers, and that there is a secret protocol that binds the government of India to deliver |
1585_14 | him to Allied ‘justice’ if found alive. ". To that Nehru replied stating the India is not bound to any such clause in any agreement. Because of Sen's overzealousness, Bhagwanji asked him not to meet him again. Sen however informed Pabitra Mohan Roy in Kolkata about Bhagwanji. |
1585_15 | Pabitra Mohan Roy ; a physician by profession who was also an intelligence officer in Indian National Army, carried this information to Leela Roy. Mr Roy met Bhagwanji in 1962 at Neemsar and maintained contact with him till Sept,1985. Numerous letters written by Mr. Roy were receovered from Bhagwanji's belongings and likewise lot of letters from Bhagwanji were recovered at Roy's place at Dum Dum, Kolkata. |
1585_16 | Leela Roy ; someone who knew Netaji for almost 2 decades, was the most renowned of all who had met Bhagwanji. She along with Mr. Roy met Bhagwanji in 1963. Leela Roy met Bhagwanji, accompanied by Kaviraj Kamalakanta Ghosh, Shaila Sen(called by Bhagwanji as Shailukumari), Prof Samar Guha, & Anil Das (Renu) of INA Secret Service. Leela Roy with her team stayed their for 10/12 days. Bhagwanji presented a Tea cup with plate wrapped in saffron cloth, later he presented his self used Scheaffer Pen to Lee as a token of remembrance. It is said that Bhagwanji addressed Leela Roy as 'Lee', as Netaji used to do in the days of their working together.
Leela Roy in a letter to Dilipkumar Roy, a close friend of Netaji, mentioned that your friend is still alive and is living as a mystic in India and she isn't entitled to say anything more of it.
She started providing for Bhagwanji and used to send items as requested by Bhagwanji till her death in 1970. |
1585_17 | Samar Guha ; an ardent Netaji follower, revolutionist, elected Member of Parliament 3 times in a row, professor at Jadavpur University and writer of famous books on Chemistry, visited Bhagwanji along with Leela Roy. Several of his letters were found at Bhagwanji's place. He kept in touch with Bhagwanji till 1985 and used to visit him almost every year.
Sunil Krishna Gupta ; brother of famous revolutionist Dinesh Chandra Gupta, first visited Bhagwanji in 1963, after requested by Suresh Chandra Bose, Netaji's elder brother. Later his nephews Surajit Dasgupta and Jagatjit Dasgupta also used to accompany him, along with Tarun Kumar Mukhopadhyay. They deposed in front of Mukherjee commission and testified that Bhagwanji was Netaji only. |
1585_18 | Apart from these, Sunil Das, Santosh Bhattacharya, Dulal Nandy and Bijoy Nag used to visit Bhagwanji, who were associated with Jayashree publications, started by Leela Roy. Bijoy Nag later testified in front of Mukherjee Commission, that Bhagwanji was Netaji.
Unconfirmed reports of visits from famous people viz. Dr. Sampurnanand, Anandamayi Ma, Pranab Mukherjee and Charan Singh also exist. Letters from Dr Sampurnanand and Ghani Khan Choudhury has been recovered from Bhagwanji's belongings. |
1585_19 | Search for his true identity
The life story of Bhagwanji was first published by a group of journalists; Ashok Tandon, Ram Tirth Vikal and Chandresh Kumar Srivastav, in a daily called Naye Log in Faizabad few weeks after Bhagwanji's death. Mr. Tandon went on to write a book called Gumnami Subhash in 1986. At the same time another magazine "Northern India Patrika" started publishing a series on Bhagwanji or Gumnami baba relating him with Netaji.
As there were no claimants on Gumnami baba's belongings, district administration decided to auction the items. The attempt was stopped by local people and to quote Ashok Tandon - |
1585_20 | "After the reports emerged that the state administration is likely to auction the belongings of Gumnami Baba, Kauser Hussain of Northern India Patrika along with Vishwa Bandhav Tiwari and Mohd Haleem approached the court to stop the auctioning. The court ordered the administration to make the inventory of all the things that were found at Baba's place and submit it to the treasury. One of the letters found at Gumnami Baba's place was written by Basanti Devi, wife of Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das, who considered Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose as her own son."
In early 1986, Lalita Bose a niece of Subhash Chandra Bose, arrived at Faizabad and upon going through the items, came to the conclusion that those belonged to her great uncle only. She identified her mother's handwriting on a copy of the dissentient report submitted by Suresh Chandra as part of Shah Nawaz Committee, where she had addressed her brother in law as "Param kalyaneeya devar chiranjiveshu – Pranadhik sneh ashirvad". |
1585_21 | She filed a writ petition (no. 929(M/B)) in Allahabad High Court, along with M Haleem and V Tiwari, demanding an immediate stop to auctioning the items, preparing an inventory of items and after due enquiry if it's ascertained that Gumnami baba was Netaji, hand over the items to her as she has right to inherit.
As per interim order passed by the court, an inventory was prepared of all the items recovered from Ram Bhawan. 25 wooden trunks full of clothes, literature, letters and other artefacts were recovered. The state government had filed a counter affidavit to the petition, where they did mention that all the items recovered surprisingly relate to Netaji. They also observed that on every January 23, the birthday of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, a closed door ceremony used to take place in Bhagwanji's room where people from Calcutta used to be present.
Hanoi note
In a note found among the articles, written in Bengali by Bhagwanji, it said |
1585_22 | 2.9.45—Japs surrendered/Annamite Govt. became ‘Govt. of Vietnam’ under Ho Chi Minh/Hanoi/Liu Po Cheng
Oct 1945: South China, General's Guest/Contact with Annamite Govt./One American Intelligence agent—Alfred Wagg—found out, told his Govt."
Liu Bocheng/Liu Po Cheng was a famous Chinese military general fighting for People's republic. A writer named Shiv Prasad Nag wrote a book in 1950s called Liu Po Cheng or Netaji? A copy of the book was found among Bhagwanji's belongings along with a letter from Nag. A letter from Bhagwanji to Nag was also found where he wrote few lines in Bengali; |
1585_23 | যাকে তুমি বহুদিন আগে জেনেছিলে তাকে ভুলে যাও, সে মরে ভূত হয়ে গেছে। তাই সেই লোকটার মাপকাঠিতে এই শরীরকে বোঝার চেষ্টা করলে ভুল করবে। সেই আগের তিনি আর নেই, বাইরের থেকে এবং ভেতরে সে এক মৃত ভূত, ভাবলেশহীন, স্থবির এবং সবার ধরা ছোয়ার বাইরে. (Do forget the one, you once knew, for he has turned into a ghost. Comparing this physical being with that person will only be misleading. That man is long gone. Physically and emotionally he has turned into a dead ghost, void of emotions, unwavering in conduct and beyond everyone's reach.)'
As to Alfred Wagg, he was a wartime correspondent for Chicago Tribune, who on August 29, 1945, openly challenged Jawaharlal Nehru during a press conference, regarding why Netaji shouldn't be treated as a war criminal and also claimed that Netaji is alive and was seen four days back in Saigon.
DNA Analysis of teeth |
1585_24 | Anuj Dhar an investigative journalist, found a match box containing 9 teeth among Bhagwanji's belongings. Assuming those belonged to Bhagwanji, he requested Justice Manoj Kumar Mukherjee for a DNA analysis to be conducted on the teeth.
In 2004, 2 separate samples were sent to Central Forensic Science Laboratory, Hyderabad and Central Forensic Science Laboratory, Kolkata along with blood samples from Netaji's relatives from paternal and maternal side.
The report from Hyderabad was inconclusive and the reason mentioned, the teeth "did not yield DNA suitable for complete analysis".
The report from CFSL Kolkata was conclusive and reported that the DNA samples of the teeth didn't match with the DNA from Netaji's family members. |
1585_25 | Noted DNA expert Professor Gyaneshwar Chobey of Banaras Hindu University, who has studied CFSL's report, said he was disappointed to see the analysis. He said, "There are many problems with the analysis as the software used to analyse samples (bioedit) is not meant for electropherogram analysis. Only four of 20 markers could not be used to infer anything about parental lineage." He further observed, "Height cannot be measured by dental morphology. Moreover 40-100 mg of pulp from a tooth is practically impossible."
While replying to an RTI filed by Sayak Sen, the CFSL director said on February 4, 2020, that Electropherogram report, related to the test is not available with CFSL, Kolkata.
After few days, they did a volte face and replied on February 24, 2020, |
1585_26 | "In continuation of your online RTI application vide Registration No DIRFS/R/E/20/00002 dated May 1, 2020 and our earlier reply letter number CFSL(K)/19-20/20/II/RTI-55/SS/475 dated February 4, 2020, the required information is furnished below: 1. Some additional records related to the RTI application have been found which contain the Electropherogram as sought in this RTI query. This information pertains to the third party, hence it cannot be provided."
Handwriting Analysis of Bhagwanji |
1585_27 | Anuj Dhar approached B Lal Kapoor a retired Chief Examiner of Questioned Documents, top most position held by any Indian Govt official with respect to handwriting verification, with a set of handwriting of Bhagwanji and Netaji. Once B Lal gave a positive report about matches found, he was asked to join Mukherjee Commission to do the same job. This time he went through numerous writings from Bhagwanji and Netaji both in English and Bengali and came to the conclusion that both handwritings belong to the same person.
Justice Mukherjee was obliged to seek examination from Government experts in this regard who provided negative report. Compared to B Lal's report the official report was short and not extensive. The report from Government experts mentioned finding similarities in English handwriting but not in Bengali handwriting. |
1585_28 | The handwritings were later verified by Curt Baggett a famous expert from USA, and concluded "Based upon thorough analysis of these items and application of accepted forensic examination tools, principles and techniques, it is my professional expert opinion that the same person authored both the writing on the known (proved as letters written by Bose) and on the questioned documents (accessed from Roy and other revolutionaries by the authors)."In a recent webcast veteran handwriting expert Ashok Kashyap also confirmed that volumes of handwriting cannot be forged so perfectly. |
1585_29 | Counter claims and refutations
Netaji's family has long been distancing itself from Gumnami Baba or Bhagwanji and has abhorred the possibility of Netaji being Bhagwanji almost in all possible occasions. Sugata Bose, grand nephew of Netaji called it a "travesty of history", while another grand nephew Chandra kumar Bose observed, "it is a "criminal offence" to term "Gumnami Baba" as Netaji in disguise without any documentary or photographic evidence to support it".Eminent historian Dr Purabi Roy, a proponent of the theory that Netaji's final days were in fact in Russia and not Taihoku, noted that calling Gumnami Baba as Netaji in disguise is mere sensationalism. She mentioned about Vishwambhar Nath Arora, a former principal of a college in Faizabad, visiting Gumnami baba's residence post his death and discovering cartons of cigarette and bottles of Scotch Whiskey. Netaji was never known to be an alcoholic in his life. |
1585_30 | V N Arora's testimony in front of Justice Sahai commission never mentions any thing about whiskey bottles though.
Justice Mukherjee commission
Justice Manoj Kumar Mukherjee commission was set up in 1999, to investigate whether Netaji perished in a plane crash in 1945 or not. He came across the story of Bhagwanji when journalist Ashok Tandon and Shakti Singh, the landlord of Ram Bhawan, approached him with details about Bhagwanji. They also mentioned about the petition filed by Lalita bose claiming Bhagwanji to be Netaji.
The commission visited the Faizabad treasury and out of 2600 items found from Bhagwanji's place, 700 were sent to Kolkata for research. The commission took the testimony of 31 witnesses in this regard. |
1585_31 | Most important were of those who had seen Bhagwanji face to face and had also seen Netaji. Durga Prasad Pandey, Srikant Sharma and Apurba Chandra Ghosh testified that Bhagwanji was Netaji and they have met both Netaji in the past and later Bhagwanji multiple times to clear any possible doubt. Mr Ghosh also added that once Bhagwanji enquired about one Bahadur who used to be a guard at Netaji's Elgin Road house and also asked if there is still a calendar with Maa Kali's photo in Netaji's room. Justice Mukherjee found their witnesses considerable. |
1585_32 | Another set of witnesses deposed in front the commission who had seen Bhagwanji face to face. Dr Priyabrat Banerjee a doctor from Faizabad, his wife Rita Banerjee and her mother Bithi Chatterjee recounted their experiences of meeting Bhagwanji. Father of Dr. P Banerjee, Dr. T C Banerjee once treated Bhagwanji and was convinced that he is none but Netaji as he had seen Netaji before. According to Banerjee couple, they used to visit Bhagwanji very often and converse with him face to face. They used to ask questions in Bengali and Bhagwanji used to respond in Hindi, with a thick Bengali accent though. Rita Banerjee narrated an incident when upon asking Bhagwanji whether he felt offended due to their frequent probing, he responded in a poignant tone - |
1585_33 | "রাগ? যার নিজের মা বাবা থাকতে মা বাবা নেই, নিজের ভাই বোন থাকতে ভাই বোন নেই, নিজের দেশকে নিজের বলার অধিকার নেই, সে কি রাগ করতে পারে? অভিমান করতে পারে" (A man who is deprived of his own parents and siblings, who can't call his country his own, can only feel hurt. He has no right to get angry)
Justice Mukherjee had to set aside their testimony as they had never seen Netaji in person and their testimony can be termed hearsay at best.
Upon receiving the official DNA analysis report and handwriting report which concluded as Bhagwanji not being Netaji, justice Mukherjee had no choice but to declare that Bhagwanji was not Netaji.
Interview exposure: In a casual discussion with film maker Amlan Kusum Ghosh, justice Mukherjee mentioned off-the-record that he was 100% sure that Bhagwanji was Netaji, as that was the most sensible view. Unbeknownst to him, the discussion got captured in camera and was telecast in different channels causing much controversy and uproar. |
1585_34 | Allahabad High Court verdict
In 2010, another writ petition, no. 10877(M/B), was filed by Shakti Singh, the current owner of Ram Bhawan, to return all the items collected by Justice Mukherjee commission to Faizabad treasury.
The Allahabad high court while passing the judgement in 2013, made several important observations on how prior commissions have worked and what compelled Justice Mukherjee to accept official DNA result as a proof to dismiss Bhagwanji being Netaji. The high court raised concern about accepting DNA test as full and final and commented as follows,
"Even little doubt with regard to the veracity of teeth will compel a man of common prudence not to ignore the oral and other documentary evidence, that too when there was difference of opinion with regard to handwriting of Netaji compared by the experts." |
1585_35 | The below statement made by Allahabad high court indicated that they have strong reservation about accepting the conclusion drawn by earlier investigating committees and would not rule out the possibility of Gumnami Baba being Netaji.
"79. Since still there is no conclusive finding through scientific measures with regard to Gumnami Baba, coupled with alleged accidental death of Netaji, the records and materials must be preserved and protected by all means for research scholars and future generation. Needless to say that we are trusties (Government) of the national assets. All the alleged materials and belongings of Gumnami Baba are national assets and must be protected for future generations so that at appropriate time by appropriate scientific methodological research truth may be unearthed or explored and addition may be made to Indian History with regard to life of Netaji or the person (Gumnami Baba) who has been treated as Netaji by the substantial section of public." |
1585_36 | The court criticized Government of India for being lacadisical in handling the matter of Netaji's disappearance and made following observations.
"84. So far as mystery with regard to the death of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in plane crash is concerned, it is for the Government of India to take a decision, more so when without assigning any reason, the report of Mukherjee Commission has been rejected."
Apart from ordering the state government of UP to establish a museum and preserve Gumnami Baba's belongings scientifically and also directing justice Mukherjee commission to return the items taken during investigation, it ordered setting up another committee to find out the identity of Gumnami Baba. |
1585_37 | "C) The Government of U.P is further directed to consider for appointment of a committee consisting of a team of experts and higher officers, headed by a Retired Judge of High Court, to hold an enquiry with regard to the identity of late Gumnami Baba alias Bhagwan Ji who resided in Ram Bhawan, Faizabad and cremated on 18.9.1985 (supra). Let a decision be taken expeditiously, say within a period of three months."
Justice Sahai commission
In 2016, Vishnu Sahai Commission was formed following the order of Allahabad High Court.
After 3 years of inquiry and deposition of 45 witnesses, justice Vishnu Sahai came to the following conclusions. |
1585_38 | "He was a Bengali; He was well-versed in Bengali,English and Hindi languages; He was an extraordinarily well-read person because a very large number of books in Bengali, English and Hindi, on a large number of subjects, were found in that portion of Ram Bhawan, Faizabad in which he lived; He was very well-informed about war, politics and current affairs; There was an air of authority in his voice/tone, similar to that in the voice/tone of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose; He had tremendous will-power and self-control which enabled him to live the last 10 years of his life in Ayodhya and Faizabad behind a curtain; People with whom he used to talk from behind a curtain were mesmerized after listening to him; He spent a considerable time in pooja and meditation; He was fond of good things of life like music, cigar and food; He was an admirer of Subhas Chandra Bose but whenever rumour started spreading that he was Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, he immediately changed his house; and He was |
1585_39 | disillusioned with the State of Governance in India". 29 of the witnesses claimed that Bhagwanji was Netaji |
1585_40 | 8 of the witnesses dismissed the claim that Bhagwanji was Netaji. All but one of them were family members of Netaji.
One Shitala Singh testified that Bhagwanji was K D Upadhyay a murderer at large. His claim was outrightly rejected due to lack of evidence.
Dr R P Mishra, a retired surgeon and very close follower of Bhagwanji described Bhagwanji like his own grandfather. Justice Sahai noted that it's a pity that Dr Mishra being most knowledgeable in this regard is not willing to disclose much about Bhagwanji. |
1585_41 | The rest of the witnesses claimed that Swami Sharadanandaji of Shoulmari was in fact Netaji and not Bhagwanji. Their claim was outrightly rejected for the want of evidence.Jayanti Rakshit grand daughter of Sarat Chandra Bose, elder brother of Netaji, and her husband Amiya Nath Rakshit had visited Faizabad later in mid 2000. After speaking to local people and meeting investigating journalists, they were convinced that Gumnami Baba was their granduncle Netaji. They were the first witnesses to be examined by Justice Sahai, who rejected their claim as mere hearsay. |
1585_42 | There was only one witness Ayodhya Prasad Gupta, who had seen both Netaji and Bhagwanji and testified that both were in fact same person. Justice Sahai dismissed his claim citing the clauses mentioned above and also owing to the fact the Mr Gupta falsely claimed of testifying in front of Mukherjee commission.
3 investigating journalist Anuj Dhar, Chandrachur Ghose and Ashok Tandon were also questioned. They produced their respective extensive research as exhibits and also testified that Bhagwanji was Netaji. Some important revelations were highlighted by Mr Tandon. - |
1585_43 | "A list was sent to Leela Roy and in one of the lists, it was mentioned 'photo of mother and father' ( it was not mentioned whose mother and father) Leela Roy sent to him photos of Janaki Nath Bose and Smt.Prabhawati Devi, father and mother respectively of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose." "Vishwanath Roy wrote a letter to Gumnami Baba mentioning the day he came in 1923 along with Deshbandhu and Gumnami Baba gave a speech in connection with Vidhan Sabha elections he decided that he was his Guru" "A small slip was found wherein in Bangla it was mentioned -"হরিপুরার থেকে ওয়েলিংটন পর্যন্ত যা ঘটেছিল তা যদি না ঘটত, তাহলে জীবণটা হয়ত অন্যদিকে মোড় নিত" ( In English it means that if what happened between Haripura and Wellington had not happened then life could have gone in a different direction). At Haripura Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose was elected as Congress President and in Wellington he resigned from the said post."Justice Sahai was moved by the set of evidences and commented - |
1585_44 | "I have bestowed my anxious consideration to the claim of Chandrachur Ghose that there was a very strong possibility that Gumnami Baba alias Bhagwanji and Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose were one and the same person. It should be borne in mind that Judicial Commissions of Enquiry (likethe present) do not reach conclusions on a very strong possibility; they only reach one when there is a very high degree of probability of the likelihood of something being true."
But he finally rejected their claims citing the DNA result and the fact none of them have seen Bhagwanji and all their work is based on hearsay. |
1585_45 | Rita Banerjee who testified in Mukherjee commission, deposed again. Out of all the witnesses she was the one who had seen Bhagwanji face to face for the longest duration. Her testimony was rejected citing 2 reasons mentioned above and also for the fact that she wrongly mentioned of not appearing before any other commission whereas she did appear in front of Mukherjee commission. This was made as a ground to reject her testimony.
3 witnesses Amita Singh, Nand Kumar Misra and Shiv Prasad Yadav had seen Bhagwanji face to face few times in their lives. Their testimonies were also rejected citing the first two clauses. |
1585_46 | 7 witnesses were Bose family members who outrightly rejected the idea that Netaji could possibly be spending the rest of his life as a renunciate. Dwarkanath Bose, Chitra Ghose, Nita Ghose, Krishna Ghose and Ardhendu Bose made the following statements in order to dismiss the claim."On account of serious afflictions and illness from which Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose suffered and his frequent confinement in Jails it is scarcely conceivable that he could have survived as a mortal human being until his late eighties, as would have been the case had he been Gumnami Baba. (Subhash Chandra Bose was born in 1897 and Gumnami Baba died on September 16, 1985)""Since neither the parents nor siblings of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose lived till late eighties, considering the perilous life which Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose had lived, it is most unlikely that he would have lived till the age of 88 years""Briefly, it is unthinkable that the person who was Netaji would disappear into seclusion from |
1585_47 | 1945,until his death 40 years later at the age of 88 years – decades in which his beloved India lurched from crisis to crisis, beginning with the monstrous tragedy of partition on religious lines. Would Subhash Chandra Bose have idly stood by while the agonies of communalism, massive poverty and bad Government assailed the people of India? I will be quite unequivocal in saying that this is impossible."They also added that mere discovery of certain artefacts related to Bose family in the custody of certain Bhagwanji is no way proof enough to establish him as Netaji. It is also to be noted that those items were procured by one Bijoy Nag at Bhagwanji's behest. |
1585_48 | Ardhendu Bose, son of Sailesh Chandra Bose, younger brother of Netaji, added that although his father was the real brother of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and had died in March,1984 and he (his father) had heard about Gumnami Baba and very frequently at his father's residence in Bombay a lot of discussion pertaining to the identity of Gumnami Baba used to take place, had his father felt that Gumnami Baba was Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, he would have certainly gone to visit/see him because that would have helped him to determine whether he was Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose or not.
Justice Sahai deemed that these statements hold merit and drew a conclusion accordingly |
1585_49 | Bulbul controversy: Justice Sahai based his judgement on a letter sent by a teenage girl named Bulbul'', asking Gumnami Baba to be present at a function to be held at her house on January 23, 1980, celebrating Netaji's birthday. Justice Sahai deduced that Gumnami baba couldn't be separately invited to celebrate his own birthday, had he been Netaji himself. Bulbul alias Suhita Bhattacharya was never asked to appear as witness, however, she later confirmed in an interview in a webcast that she always knew that Gumnami Baba was Netaji as told by her father Santosh Bhattacharya a frequent visitor to Gumnami Baba.
References
Year of birth missing
1985 deaths
Ascetics
Allahabad High Court
Faizabad
Indian monks
Indian Hindu monks
Indian religious leaders
20th-century Indian monks
Subhas Chandra Bose
Conspiracy theories in India |
1586_0 | Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men's college basketball head coach. Called a "coaching legend" by the Basketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Smith coached from 1961 to 1997 and retired with 879 victories, which was the NCAA Division I men's basketball record at that time. Smith had the ninth-highest winning percentage of any men's college basketball coach (77.6%). During his tenure as head coach, North Carolina won two national championships and appeared in 11 Final Fours. Smith played college basketball at the University of Kansas, where he won a national championship in 1952 playing for Hall of fame coach Phog Allen. |
1586_1 | Smith was best known for running a clean program and having a high graduation rate, with 96.6% of his athletes receiving their degrees. While at North Carolina, Smith helped promote desegregation by recruiting the university's first African-American scholarship basketball player, Charlie Scott, and pushing for equal treatment for African Americans by local businesses. Smith coached and worked with numerous people at North Carolina who achieved notable success in basketball, as players, coaches, or both. Smith retired in 1997, saying that he was not able to give the team the same level of enthusiasm that he had given it for years. After retiring, Smith used his influence to help various charitable ventures and liberal political activities, but in his later years he suffered from advanced dementia and ceased most public activities.
Biography |
1586_2 | Early years
Dean Smith was born in Emporia, Kansas, on February 28, 1931. Both of his parents were public school teachers. Smith's father, Alfred, coached the Emporia High Spartans basketball team to the 1934 state title in Kansas. This 1934 team was notable for having the first African American basketball player in Kansas tournament history. While at Topeka High School, Smith lettered in basketball all four years and was named all-state in basketball as a senior. Smith's interest in sports was not limited to basketball. Smith also played quarterback for his high school football team and catcher for the high school baseball team. |
1586_3 | College years
After graduating from high school, Smith attended the University of Kansas on an academic scholarship. He majored in mathematics and joined Phi Gamma Delta fraternity. While at Kansas, Smith continued his interest in sports by playing varsity basketball, varsity baseball, and freshman football. He was also a member of the Air Force ROTC detachment. During his time on the varsity basketball team, Kansas won the national championship in 1952. In 1953, the team was an NCAA tournament finalist. Smith's basketball coach during his time at Kansas was Phog Allen, who had been coached at the University of Kansas by the inventor of basketball, James Naismith. After graduation, Smith served as assistant coach at Kansas in the 1953–54 season.
Coaching career |
1586_4 | Early years in basketball coaching
Smith was commissioned as a second lieutenant on June 7, 1954, in the United States Air Force and was stationed at Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base in Germany where he was on a team that won the Air Force championship for Europe. He later worked as a head coach of United States Air Force Academy's baseball and golf teams. Yet, Smith's big break would come in the United States. In 1958, North Carolina coach Frank McGuire asked Smith to join his staff as an assistant coach. Smith served under McGuire for three years until 1961, when McGuire was forced to resign by Chancellor William Aycock in the wake of a major recruiting scandal, and consequently, an NCAA mandated probation. |
1586_5 | Years later, Aycock recalled that McGuire came to his office on a Saturday and told him he was resigning. Smith was waiting in McGuire's car outside South Building (UNC's main administration building), so Aycock called him in and asked him if he wanted to take over as head coach. Smith accepted, and the hiring was formally announced the following Monday. When Aycock named Smith as head coach, he told the 30-year-old Smith that wins and losses didn't matter as much as running a clean program and representing the university well. |
1586_6 | The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) had canceled the Dixie Classic, an annual basketball tournament in Raleigh, North Carolina, due to a national point-shaving scandal including a North Carolina player (Lou Brown). As a result of the scandal, North Carolina de-emphasized basketball by cutting their regular-season schedule. In Smith's first season, North Carolina played only 17 games and went 8–9. This was the only losing season he endured during his career. In 1965, he was famously hanged in effigy on the university campus following a disappointing loss to Wake Forest. After that game, UNC would win nine of their last eleven games, and Smith would subsequently go on to turn the program into a consistent success. From 1965 to 1966 onward, Smith's teams never finished worse than tied for third in the ACC. For the first 21 of those years, they did not finish worse than a tie for second. By comparison, during that time the ACC's other charter members each finished last at least once. |
1586_7 | His first major successes came in the late 1960s, when his teams won consecutive regular-season and ACC tournament championships, and went to three straight Final Fours, going all the way to the national championship game in 1968. They would appear in either the NCAA or NIT in every one of Smith's final 31 years in Chapel Hill. However, this run occurred in the middle of UCLA's stretch of 10 titles in 12 years, and in fact Smith lost to UCLA's John Wooden in the 1968 title game.
First national championship |
1586_8 | Smith's first national championship occurred with his 1981–82 team, which was composed of future NBA players such as Michael Jordan, James Worthy and Sam Perkins. After winning the NCAA Tournament, North Carolina had a record of 32–2. The other teams that advanced with North Carolina were Georgetown, Houston and Louisville. The Tar Heels actually finished in a tie for first in the ACC regular season with the Ralph Sampson-led Virginia Cavaliers. In the semifinals, North Carolina defeated Houston 68–63 in New Orleans, while Georgetown defeated Louisville 50–46. |
1586_9 | The national title game against Georgetown was evenly matched throughout. However, with 17 seconds left on the clock, and the Tar Heels behind by 1 point, Jordan made what ended up being the game-winning shot to put the Tar Heels up 63–62. On Georgetown's ensuing possession, Hoya guard Fred Brown inexplicably passed the ball directly to Worthy with no Georgetown player anywhere near the pass. Worthy attempted to dribble out the clock, but was fouled with 2 seconds left. He missed both free throws, but Georgetown had no timeouts left. The Hoyas missed a halfcourt shot as time expired, giving Smith his first national championship in his seventh appearance in the Final Four. |
1586_10 | Second national championship |
1586_11 | Dean Smith's 1992–93 squad featured George Lynch, Eric Montross, Brian Reese, Donald Williams, and Derrick Phelps. The Tar Heels started out with an 8–0 record and were ranked #5 in the country when they met #6 Michigan in the semi-finals of the Rainbow Classic. The Wolverines, led by the Fab Five in their sophomore season, won 79–78 on a last-second shot. North Carolina bounced back with nine straight wins before losing back-to-back road games against unranked Wake Forest and #5 Duke. After seven more straight wins, the Tar Heels were ranked #1 heading into the last week of the regular season (their first #1 ranking since the start of the 1987–88 season). North Carolina beat #14 Wake Forest and #6 Duke to close out the regular season and clinch the top seed in the ACC tournament. North Carolina reached the tournament final, but they lost 77–75 to Georgia Tech without Derrick Phelps, who was injured. Nonetheless, North Carolina was awarded the top seed in the East Regional of the NCAA |
1586_12 | Tournament, defeating #16-seed East Carolina (85-65), #8-seed Rhode Island (112-67), #4-seed Arkansas (80-74) and #2-seed Cincinnati (75-68) to reach the Final Four in New Orleans. |
1586_13 | In the National Semifinals, Smith's Tar Heels defeated his alma mater Kansas (coached by future North Carolina coach Roy Williams) 78–68. In 1991, the same two teams also met in the National Semifinals with Kansas prevailing and Dean Smith being ejected. The 1993 victory for UNC set up a rematch from earlier that season with #3-ranked Michigan in the Finals. |
1586_14 | The 1993 national title game was a see-saw battle throughout, but is remembered best for Chris Webber calling a time-out while trapped against the sideline by two defenders. Michigan didn't have any timeouts remaining and trailed by two points. Michigan was assessed a technical foul and North Carolina ended up winning 77–71, giving Smith his second national championship. After a six-year investigation by the NCAA, Webber's association and financial dealings with Ed Martin determined that there had been a series of violations and direct payments to players and was termed "the University of Michigan basketball scandal" and resulted in Michigan pulling down all of its banners and titles from that era. |
1586_15 | Retirement
Smith announced his retirement on October 9, 1997. He had said that if he ever felt he could not give his team the same enthusiasm he had given it for years, he would retire. His announcement was unexpected, as he had given little warning that he was considering retirement. Bill Guthridge, his assistant for 30 years, succeeded him as head coach.
During his retirement, Smith had a large influence on the North Carolina basketball program. In 2003 Smith talked to Roy Williams regarding his decision about whether or not to replace a struggling Matt Doherty as head coach. Williams had previously declined the head coaching position three years earlier when Guthridge retired. |
1586_16 | In July 2010, John Feinstein disclosed that he had planned to write a biography of Smith, but had to shelve it due to Smith's deteriorating memory. Shortly after, Smith's family released a letter on July 17, 2010, stating that he had a "progressive neurocognitive disorder", which has not been publicly disclosed as Alzheimer's or anything else. He had trouble remembering the names of some of his players, the letter said, but he could not forget what his relationships with those players meant. He also remembered words to hymns and jazz standards, but did not go to concerts. He had difficulty with traveling but continued to watch his former team on TV. Williams said, "He does have his good days and bad." |
1586_17 | Coaching profile
Smith-coached teams varied in style, depending on the players Smith had available. But they generally featured a fast-break style, a half-court offense that emphasized the passing game, and an aggressive trapping defense that produced turnovers and easy baskets. From 1970 until his retirement, his teams featured an shooting percentage of over 50% in all but four years. |
1586_18 | Smith was credited with creating or popularizing the following basketball techniques: The "tired signal," in which a player would use a hand signal (originally a raised fist) to indicate that he needed to come out for a rest, huddling at the free throw line before a foul shot, encouraging players who scored a basket to point a finger at the teammate who passed them the ball, in honor of the passer's selflessness, instituting a variety of defensive sets in one game, having the point guard call out the defense set for the team, and creating a number of defensive sets, including the point zone, the run-and-jump, and double-teaming the screen-and-roll. |
1586_19 | But strategically, Smith was most associated with his implementation of John McLendon's four corners offense, a strategy for stalling with a lead near the end of the game. Smith's teams executed the four corners set so effectively that in 1985 the NCAA instituted a shot clock to speed up play and minimize ball-control offense. Although fellow Kansas alum John McLendon actually invented the four corners offense, Smith got credit for utilizing it in games. Smith was also the author of Basketball: Multiple Offense and Defense, which is the best-selling technical basketball book in history.
Smith also instituted the practice of starting all his team's seniors on the last home game of the season ("Senior Day") as a way of honoring the contributions of the subs as well as the stars. In a season when the team included six seniors, he put all six on the floor at the beginning of the game – drawing a technical foul – rather than leave one of them out. |
1586_20 | During the 1993 run for the national title, Smith used a method that was introduced to him at a conference in Switzerland. At the conference, Smith was presented a tape by a lecturer who used doctored images to achieve his goal of losing weight. The photos showed the lecturer what he would look like if he were thinner as motivation to reach his weight-loss goals. Smith took a picture of the scoreboard from the 1982 Championship, modified it to read 1993 and erased the name Georgetown, leaving that space blank. He proceeded to place copies of the doctored photo in all of the players' lockers.
Student athletes under Smith achieved a graduation rate of 96.6% at North Carolina, and he established a reputation for running a clean program. Although athletes allegedly benefited from academic improprieties at the university during Smith's reign, there is no evidence that Smith was aware of the practice. |
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