Netaji’s comrade breathes his last at 99 in Hisar

HISAR: A 99-year-old freedom fighter, Bhale Ram Kuhad, supposedly a gunman of Subhash Chandra Bose and an active member of Azad Hind Fauj, breathed his last in village Hassangarh, Hisar, on Wednesday. He was lodged in Rangoon jail and when he did not return for eight years, his family had considered him dead before he reappeared after independence.

Mahendra Singh Rohilla, a local historian and former head of history department of DAV college, said that Kuhad participated in two operations of Netaji. “He was one of his gunman and an active member of NIA. He always believed that Netaji was still alive and had not died in the plane crash, as is widely held,” he said.

While sharing the stories, which was told by Kuhad himself to his family members, his nephew Kuldeep Kuhad said that during the fight in Pegu in 1945, he met Netaji for the last time. Kuldeep said that on June 16, 1945, Kuhad was arrested in Pegu and sent to Rangoon jail. He remained in that jail till independence.

Kuhad is survived by his wife Ginna Devi and four sons and two daughters. His eldest son Satbir Singh is a farmer and second son Randhir Singh is a headmaster at a government school. The third son Ranbir Singh is a sub inspector with Chandigarh Police while fourth son Rajbir Singh is a deputy principal in a private school. His two daughters are Biramati and Kamlesh. Ukalana MLA Anup Dhanak attended his funeral.