1st Edition
The Trial that Shook Britain How a Court Martial Hastened Acceptance of Indian Independence
The Indian National Army (INA) trials of 1945–46 have generally been given short shrift by historians in their cataloguing of the Indian freedom movement. This book examines to what extent the trials had an impact on the final phase of India’s quest for independence. In so doing, it unveils that, while the Indian National Congress’s extended odyssey was essentially about a passive push-back, at a critical juncture of its campaign to extinguish British colonialism in India, it applauded and capitalised on the INA’s use of force. The central, explosive narrative is about Britain holding a court martial of three officers of the INA – Shah Nawaz Khan, Prem Sahgal and Gurbaksh Dhillon – convicting them, before a dramatic turn in events.
The material unearthed by the book throws new light on a decisive juncture leading to the transfer of power in India. It will be indispensable for researchers interested in South Asia, especially the Indian freedom movement. It will be invaluable for students of history, colonialism, military studies, politics in pre-Partition India and law.
List of Figures
Profiles
Preface
CHAPTER 1: VIOLENCE AGAINST BRITISH RULE IN 19TH- AND 20TH-CENTURY INDIA
CHAPTER 2: THE INDIAN NATIONAL ARMY
CHAPTER 3: THE TRIAL THAT SHOOK BRITAIN
CHAPTER 4: REPERCUSSIONS OF THE TRIAL
I – Public Protest
II – The Naval Mutiny
CHAPTER 5: ACCEPTANCE OF INDEPENDENCE HASTENED
Countdown to a Concession
Glossary
Bibliography
Index
Biography
Ashis Ray has been a foreign correspondent since 1977, broadcasting on BBC, CNN and ITN and writing for Ananda Bazar Group, The Times of India, The Tribune, The Hindu, Hindustan Times, The Guardian, The Observer, The Times, Financial Times and Nikkei Asia, among other publications. He was CNN’s founding South Asia bureau chief before becoming the network’s editor-at-large. He has been elected president of Indian Journalists’ Association (Europe) for several terms. In 1982, the Commonwealth Institute selected him among 10 ‘eminent Indians’ in Britain. In 1995, he was conferred a National Press Award in India. He was elected an academic visitor by St Antony’s College, Oxford for 2021–22. He is now an Indian Diaspora Fellow at Bard College, New York and the School of Oriental and African Studies, London. The Trial that Shook Britain is his fourth book.
‘In this highly readable book, Ashis Ray argues persuasively, with the help of extensive archival evidence, the case that the INA trials and the impact they had on popular sentiment, mobilized very effectively by the Congress leadership, undoubtedly hastened the achievement of Indian independence. In doing so, he brings to life a very dramatic phase of the climactic years of British rule over its prize colony’.
Professor Mridula Mukherjee, former Chairperson of the Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University
‘This book sheds light on a crucial period in Indian history when British politicians finally came to realise that other than in war-time conditions, with a full mobilisation of the military, India had become effectively ungovernable’.
Professor Crispin Bates, Professor of Modern and Contemporary South Asian History, University of Edinburgh
‘A riveting account of one of the most important events in modern Indian history. The massive public support that the accused received during the INA trials allows Ashis Ray to interrupt the standard narrative of Indian nationalism and offer an alternative and more hopeful reading of the country’s freedom’.
Professor Faisal Devji, Professor of Indian History, University of Oxford
