Hyderabad, Aug. 18 -- Ask anyone if they've heard the name Abid Hasan Safrani, and the likely answer will be a puzzled "No." For most, he is a stranger to history - despite giving India one of its most enduring patriotic slogans. Even former minister Asif Pasha had never heard of him - until a chance meeting in the 1970s brought the past to life.

The encounter was arranged by Shahnawaz Khan, a former Union Minister and an officer of the Indian National Army (INA) during World War II. Khan had served under the legendary Subhash Chandra Bose, and his visit to Hyderabad came with a personal mission: to meet an old comrade, Abid Hasan Safrani.

"I didn't know who Safrani was," Pasha admits. "But when Shahnawaz Khan told me he was a fellow IN...