Sad that Cheliah Nadar could not retrieve the Rs 42 crores deposited in Azad Hind Bank! What is the GOI doing? This is atleast Indian Bank...How about people who deposited all their earnings in foreign shores which get lost because of invasion or sudden policy change...One of my distant relatives lost his money in Kuwait when Saddam Husein invaded it...It was a rude shock which he could not bear..He had a heart attack & lost his life...There are similar stories from Uganda when dictator Idi Amin ascended the throne in 70's and Indians had to flee or in Vietnam in the 60's when it was attacked by US
Exclusive: Nadar's heirs give up on claim to Indian National Army treasure
Kavitha Muralitharan | Mail Today | Chennai, May 16, 2015 | UPDATED 15:03 IST
In 1983, when Cheliah Nadar died at his modest single-bedroom house in Washermanpet here, he was a sad man. For decades he tried to get back Rs.42 crore he had deposited in the Azad Hind Bank of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in the 1940s. But all his efforts were futile and the money was not retrieved.
His son Ramalinga Nadar also pursued the matter for years. But he, too, was not successful.
Possibly, seeing no hope, Ramalinga's daughter and son-in-law have decided not to pursue the matter anymore. There are documents that show that they have a valid point - the money was indeed deposited. But the protracted battle which they witnessed over the decades seems to have discouraged them to get back the money which was rightfully theirs.
The dusty lanes of Washermanpet tucked in North Chennai bears no trace of being the residence of a man who could have made it to the area's 'richest' list. Old-timers of the street vaguely remember Cheliah Nadar for his slow gait and Nehru cap. "Rangoon-returned Thopikaarar (the person who sports cap), right? He died long ago," says a textile shop owner on the busy MC Road. He, however, has no clue that the Thopikaarar, who often walked on the roads of Washermanpet, could have been the area's richest man. "We are very wary of letting the locals know. Some of them might just laugh it off," says a member of the family.
Unsuccessful struggle
Ramalinga Nadar also died three years ago after another unsuccessful, protracted struggle spanning over half a century. "He died of old age and by the time he was dying, he was perhaps reconciled to the fact that he might never get the money back," says KKP Kamaraj, Ramalinga Nadar's son-in-law. "He must have flown at least a hundred times to places like Kolkata, Delhi and Mumbai in search of the deposits. Once he was gone for 40 days and we had no idea where he was. He later came home and said he had gone to Kolkata since that was the first headquarter of Reserve Bank of India," he adds.
Ramalinga Nadar has two daughters and he had made his elder daughter Gandhimathi and son-in-law Kamaraj nominees for any transaction related to the Rangoon deposits. In 2011, a year before Ramalinga Nadar died, RBI officials had a meeting with Kamaraj and Gandhimathi and explained to them that the bank had no such deposits. "They said that RBI was formed in 1950 while Azad Hind Bank became non-functional in 1944. They suggested that the defence department might have the deposits," Kamaraj says.
The RBI followed it up by sending a letter which said the bank treated the matter as closed. "Even when Thopikaarar was alive, he was very hopeful that we would get the money back. He always said Nehru had promised in Parliament that the money will be returned with due interests. Many others had got their money back. So he was very hopeful."
Even Ramalinga Nadar was very hopeful when he began his treasure hunt. "But he was tired after spending several decades on a search that led him to nowhere. He did not speak much about it during his final days, but we think he always nurtured a secret hope that we would get it."
Kamaraj fondly remembers his father-in-law often sharing his stories of Rangoon. "Look at this… it is his (Ramalinga Nadar's) school certificate from Rangoon. He was very proud of the fact that he was a Rangoon-returnee in the locality," Kamaraj says.
Kamaraj claims he has no interest to continue the pursuit but finds it hard to conceal his excitement while showing the documents. "My father-in-law even had 2,800 Thikls (gold coins) deposited in the bank apart from Rs.42 crore."
But he is determined not to spend his time or money on a pursuit that might just be futile. Kamaraj says people still approach him, offering help in retrieving money and demanding a commission. "Last year we went to Mumbai and spent about a week when someone said the money is ready and waiting for our signature. Nothing happened. I tell people clearly I am not willing to spend money on this. It is almost meaningless," Kamaraj says.
But the gleam in the eyes of Gandhimathi, when talking of the deposits, can hardly be missed. "It is my grandfather's hardearned money. I would of course be happy if I get it. And he would be happy too," she says pointing to a photograph of Ramalinga Nadar at their Washermanpet residence. "After all, he lived all his life searching for it and died hoping he would still get it."
Exclusive: Nadar's heirs give up on claim to Indian National Army treasure : India, News - India Today
Exclusive: Nadar's heirs give up on claim to Indian National Army treasure
Kavitha Muralitharan | Mail Today | Chennai, May 16, 2015 | UPDATED 15:03 IST
Late Ramalinga Nadar (encircled), whose father reportedly had deposits worth Rs.42 crore in Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's Azad Hind Bank, at the wedding of his granddaughter.
In 1983, when Cheliah Nadar died at his modest single-bedroom house in Washermanpet here, he was a sad man. For decades he tried to get back Rs.42 crore he had deposited in the Azad Hind Bank of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in the 1940s. But all his efforts were futile and the money was not retrieved.
His son Ramalinga Nadar also pursued the matter for years. But he, too, was not successful.
Possibly, seeing no hope, Ramalinga's daughter and son-in-law have decided not to pursue the matter anymore. There are documents that show that they have a valid point - the money was indeed deposited. But the protracted battle which they witnessed over the decades seems to have discouraged them to get back the money which was rightfully theirs.
The dusty lanes of Washermanpet tucked in North Chennai bears no trace of being the residence of a man who could have made it to the area's 'richest' list. Old-timers of the street vaguely remember Cheliah Nadar for his slow gait and Nehru cap. "Rangoon-returned Thopikaarar (the person who sports cap), right? He died long ago," says a textile shop owner on the busy MC Road. He, however, has no clue that the Thopikaarar, who often walked on the roads of Washermanpet, could have been the area's richest man. "We are very wary of letting the locals know. Some of them might just laugh it off," says a member of the family.
Unsuccessful struggle
Ramalinga Nadar also died three years ago after another unsuccessful, protracted struggle spanning over half a century. "He died of old age and by the time he was dying, he was perhaps reconciled to the fact that he might never get the money back," says KKP Kamaraj, Ramalinga Nadar's son-in-law. "He must have flown at least a hundred times to places like Kolkata, Delhi and Mumbai in search of the deposits. Once he was gone for 40 days and we had no idea where he was. He later came home and said he had gone to Kolkata since that was the first headquarter of Reserve Bank of India," he adds.
Ramalinga Nadar has two daughters and he had made his elder daughter Gandhimathi and son-in-law Kamaraj nominees for any transaction related to the Rangoon deposits. In 2011, a year before Ramalinga Nadar died, RBI officials had a meeting with Kamaraj and Gandhimathi and explained to them that the bank had no such deposits. "They said that RBI was formed in 1950 while Azad Hind Bank became non-functional in 1944. They suggested that the defence department might have the deposits," Kamaraj says.
The RBI followed it up by sending a letter which said the bank treated the matter as closed. "Even when Thopikaarar was alive, he was very hopeful that we would get the money back. He always said Nehru had promised in Parliament that the money will be returned with due interests. Many others had got their money back. So he was very hopeful."
Even Ramalinga Nadar was very hopeful when he began his treasure hunt. "But he was tired after spending several decades on a search that led him to nowhere. He did not speak much about it during his final days, but we think he always nurtured a secret hope that we would get it."
Kamaraj fondly remembers his father-in-law often sharing his stories of Rangoon. "Look at this… it is his (Ramalinga Nadar's) school certificate from Rangoon. He was very proud of the fact that he was a Rangoon-returnee in the locality," Kamaraj says.
Kamaraj claims he has no interest to continue the pursuit but finds it hard to conceal his excitement while showing the documents. "My father-in-law even had 2,800 Thikls (gold coins) deposited in the bank apart from Rs.42 crore."
But he is determined not to spend his time or money on a pursuit that might just be futile. Kamaraj says people still approach him, offering help in retrieving money and demanding a commission. "Last year we went to Mumbai and spent about a week when someone said the money is ready and waiting for our signature. Nothing happened. I tell people clearly I am not willing to spend money on this. It is almost meaningless," Kamaraj says.
But the gleam in the eyes of Gandhimathi, when talking of the deposits, can hardly be missed. "It is my grandfather's hardearned money. I would of course be happy if I get it. And he would be happy too," she says pointing to a photograph of Ramalinga Nadar at their Washermanpet residence. "After all, he lived all his life searching for it and died hoping he would still get it."
Exclusive: Nadar's heirs give up on claim to Indian National Army treasure : India, News - India Today
