Thread by @sheshapatangi1

“I had undertaken this perilous swim not to gain fame or trophies but to prove once again to the world that Indians are no longer afraid”, said the man who swam into world record books by conquering the English Channel and Palk Straits.

You guys remember #MihirSen, he was the

first Indian to swim across the English Channel in 1958, and also set a world record by swimming in oceans in five continents in 1966. He had famously said, “I wanted to prove to the world that Indians are not afraid.” In 1967, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan.

How are heroes

treated in India?

Well, it is increasingly looking like the answer to this question depends on where you are, what you do, and whether you support the message of the Congress’s & its Croonies political establishment.

The story of Mihir Sen, a man who went onto show the world

that Indians were capable of greatness by becoming the only man to swim across oceans of five continents in one year, is both an inspirational and cautionary tale of how one hero was eventually let down by the very people he sought to champion.

Born prematurely on 16 Nov1930,

in a small village in Purulia district, West Bengal, there were fears that this sickly child would not survive very long.
Mihir survived, went to England, became a barrister.

Why did a man specialising in criminal law, but now a thriving silk exporter venture out to conquer the

seas?
“His motive for swimming the seven seas was primarily political. Being a young nationalist of uncommonly strong views and unorthodox ambition, he wanted to show the world what Indians are made of, to set for young Indians an example of courage and to tell them that one of

the best things to do with life is to risk it. In this way, he hoped to prepare them for what he saw as their destiny,” wrote Supriya Sen, his daughter, for The Telegraph.

Once he was done with his swimming career, he established a factory for silk exports in Calcutta. Through

his acumen, he transformed it into India's second largest silk exporter.
Then Jyoti Basu happened.
He requested Mihir Sen to campaign for his CPI in the 1977 election.
Mihir Sen refused, declined saying he was a capitalist and stood as an independent candidate against Basu.

Jyoti Basu won.
He then unleashed one of the most vicious personal vendettas in the history of vendettas, against Mihir Sen.
First they started spraying graffiti outside his factories and shops.
Repeated strikes started taking place in his factories, bringing production down to

zero. Trucks, filled with stocks, meant for export, were burnt down.
Police filed false cases against him. His house was raided multiple times, assets were frozen and cash was seized.
Mihir sen was hounded into Bankruptcy by Jyoti Basu. Poor guy had dementia by the time he

was 50. He died in penury at 67.
India's ace swimmer, a Padma Bhushan and a successful businessman, was hounded to death by our communist comrade Jyoti Basu.
Did a national hero deserve such a fate? Where were the people who once lauded him for making the country proud? Well,

they went missing for the most part except for his own immediate family.
Having said that, Sen’s enduring legacy remains his will to show the world that no matter the obstacles, Indians could dare to dream and achieve great things.
#ForgottenHeroes

#VANDEMATARAM