Red Fort Prison Which Once Held Indian National Army Soldiers Captive To Be Open For Tourists

The prison where once Indian National Army (INA) soldiers were held captive by the British regime will soon be open to the general public. The Archeological Survey of India (ASI) plans to do conservation work on the stepwell, which is located near the Chatta Bazaar of Delhi’s Red Fort. 

The stepwell has a room where Major Gen Shahnawaz Khan, Colonel Prem Sehgal and Colonel Gurubaksh Singh were held captive in 1946, after they rebelled against the Britishers in Myanmar (then Burma).

The three INA officers, who were part of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s army were sentenced to death by a military court, but their sentences were later commuted to life imprisonment. They were defended by prominent lawyers such as Bhulabhai Desai, Jawaharlal Nehru, Tej Bahadur Sapru, Kailashnath Katju and Asaf Ali.

ALSO READ: What Is Bharat Ratna? Which State Has Most Recipients? All About India’s Highest Civilian Award | Explained

The stepwell, which is also known as ‘Baoli’, is not mentioned in the list of monuments situated within the Red Fort and its origin is unclear whether it was built at the same time when the fort was constructed or later. It is believed that the British built the room in the stepwell to hide the INA officers from public view. 

ALSO READ: ERCP Project: Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan Sign MoU For Modified River Linking Project

Many tourists who know about the stepwell’s history want to see it but are currently not allowed to enter the historic site. The ASI hopes that the conservation work will restore the stepwell’s glory and attract more visitors to the Red Fort, which is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.