The INA Defence Committee, later the INA Defence and Relief Committee, was a committee established by the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...

in 1945 to defend those officers of the

Indian National Army The Indian National Army (INA; ''Azad Hind Fauj'' ; 'Free Indian Army') was a collaborationist armed force formed by Indian collaborators and Imperial Japan on 1 September 1942 in Southeast Asia during World War II. Its aim was to secure In ...

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 Bhulabhai Desai (13 October 1877 – 6 May 1946) was an :Indian activists, Indian independence activist and acclaimed lawyer. He is well-remembered for his defence of the three Indian National Army soldiers accused of treason during World War ...

, Asaf Ali,

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

and as The British insisted that this was an Army Court Martial, Lt. Col Horilal Varma Bar at law and Prime minister of the state of Rampur was selected to head the defense Committee.

References

Letter from members of the Indian National Army Defence Committee to the Viceroy, 15 Oct 1945.The British Library. Accessed 12/07/07
Indian National Army trials Indian National Congress Organizations established in 1945 1945 establishments in India {{India-gov-stub

See also

References