Vasudev Balwant Phadke
| Vasudev Balwant Phadke | |
|---|---|
Vasudev Balwant Phadke bust in Mumbai
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| Born |
4 November 1845 Shirdhon village, Panvel taluka, Raigad district in Maharashtra (India) |
| Died | 17 February 1883 (aged 37) |
| Occupation | |
Revolutionary and Indian independence activist
Vasudev Balwant Phadke (
pronunciation ) (4 November 1845 – 17 February 1883) was an Indian independence activist and revolutionary who sought India's independence from British. Phadke was moved by the plight of the farmer community during British Raj. Phadke believed that Swaraj was the only remedy for their ills. With the help of Kolis, Bhils and Dhangars communities in Maharashtra, Vasudev formed a revolutionary group of Ramoshi. The group started an armed struggle to overthrow the British Raj. The group launched raids on rich English businessmen to obtain funds for their liberation struggle. Phadke came into limelight when he got control of the city of Pune for a few days when he caught the British soldiers off guard during one of his surprise attacks.
Phadke was born on 4 November 1845 in Shirdhon village of Panvel taluka based in Raigad district in Maharashtra state in a Chitpavan Brahmin family. As a child he preferred learning skills like wrestling, riding over high school education and dropped out of school. Eventually he moved to Pune and took the job as a clerk with military accounts department in Pune for 15 years. Krantiveer Lahuji Vastad Salve a then prominent social figure based in Pune was his mentor. Salve, an expert wrestler, operated a TALIM (training center for wrestling). Salve preached the importance of independence from British Raj. Salve belonged to the Mang community, an untouchable community, taught Phadke the importance of getting backward castes into mainstream freedom movement. It was during this period that Phadke began attending lectures by Mahadeo Govind Ranade which mainly focused on how the British Raj policies hurt the Indian economy. Phadke was deeply hurt by how this was leading to widespread suffering in the society. In 1870, he joined a public agitation in Pune that was aimed at addressing people's grievances. Phadke founded an institution, the Aikya Vardhini Sabha, to educate the youth. While working as clerk, he was not able to see his dying mother due to the delay in approval of his leave. This incident enraged Phadke and happened to be the turning point in his life
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