Date of Birth: 23 July 1856
Place of Birth: Ratnagiri,
Maharashtra
Parents: Gangadhar
Tilak (father) and Parvatibai (mother)
Spouse: Tapibai
renamed Satyabhamabai
Children: Ramabai
Vaidya, Parvatibai Kelkar, Vishwanath Balwant Tilak, Rambhau Balwant Tilak,
Shridhar Balwant Tilak, and Ramabai Sane.
Education: Deccan
College, Government Law College.
Association: Indian
National Congress, Indian Home Rule League, Deccan Educational Society
Movement: Indian
Independence Movement
Political Ideology: Nationalism,
Extremism.
Religious Beliefs: Hinduism
Publications: The
Arctic Home in the Vedas (1903); Srimad Bhagvat Gita Rahasya (1915)
Passed Away: 1
August 1920
Memorial: Tilak
Wada, Ratnagiri, Maharashtra
Bal Gangadhar Tilak
was an Indian social reformer and freedom activist. He was one of the prime
architects of modern India and probably the strongest advocates of Swaraj or
Self Rule for India. His famous declaration “Swaraj is my birthright, and I
shall have it” served as an inspiration for future revolutionaries during
India’s struggle for freedom. The British Government termed him as the
"Father of Indian Unrest" and his followers bequeathed upon him the
title of ‘Lokmanya’ meaning he who is revered by the people. Tilak was a
brilliant politician as well as a profound scholar who believed that
independence is the foremost necessity for the well being of a nation.
Childhood & Early Life
Keshav Gangadhar Tilak
was born on July 22, 1856 in a middle class Chitpavan Brahmin family in
Ratnagiri, a small coastal town in south-western Maharashtra. His father,
Gangadhar Shastri was a noted Sanskrit scholar and school teacher at Ratnagiri.
His mother's name was Paravti Bai Gangadhar. Following his father's transfer,
the family shifted to Poona (now Pune). In 1871 Tilak was married to Tapibai
who was later rechristened as Satyabhamabai.
Image Credit:columbia.edu
Tilak was a brilliant
student. As a child, he was truthful and straightforward in nature. He had an
intolerant attitude towards injustice and had independent opinions from an
early age. After graduating from Deccan College, Pune, in 1877 in Sanskrit and
Mathematics, Tilak studied L.L.B. at the Government Law College, Bombay (now
Mumbai). He received his law degree in 1879. After finishing his education, he
started teaching English and Mathematics at a private school in Poona.
Following a disagreement with the school authorities he quit and helped found a
school in 1880 that laid emphasis on nationalism. Though, he was among India's
first generation of youths to receive a modern, college education, Tilak
strongly criticized the educational system followed by the British in India. He
protested against the unequal treatment of the Indian students compared to
their British peers and its total disregard for India’s cultural heritage.
According to him, the education was not at all adequate for Indians who
remained woefully ignorant about their own origins. He started the Deccan
Educational Society with college batchmates, Vishnu Shastry Chiplunkar and
Gopal Ganesh Agarkar for the purpose of inspiring nationalist education among
Indian students. Parallel to his teaching activities, Tilak founded two
newspapers ‘Kesari’ in Marathi and ‘Mahratta’ in English.
Political career
Indian National Congress
Gangadhar Tilak joined
the Indian National Congress in 1890. He soon started vocalizing his strong
opposition to the moderate views of the party on self-rule. He maintained that
simple constitutional agitation in itself was futile against the British. This
subsequently made him stand against the prominent Congress leader, Gopal
Krishna Gokhale. He wanted an armed revolt to broom-away the British. Following
the partition of Bengal by Lord Curzon, Tilak wholeheartedly supported the Swadeshi
(Indigenous) movement and Boycott of British goods. But his methods also raised
bitter controversies within the Indian National Congress (INC) and the movement
itself.
Due to this
fundamental difference in outlook, Tilak and his supporters came to be known as
the extremist wing of Indian National Congress Party. Tilak’s endeavours were
supported by fellow nationalists Bipin Chandra Pal of Bengal and Lala Lajpat
Rai of Punjab. The trio came to be popularly referred to as the Lal-Bal-Pal. In
the 1907 national session of the Indian National Congress, a massive trouble
broke out between the moderate and extremist sections of the Indian National
Congress Party. As a result of which, the Congress split into two factions.
Imprisonment
During 1896, an
epidemic of bubonic plague broke out in Pune and the adjacent regions and the
British employed extremely rigorous measures to contain it. Under directives
from Commissioner W. C. Rand, the police and the army invaded private
residences, violated personal sanctity of individuals, burned personal
possessions and prevented individuals to move in and out of the city. Tilak
protested against the oppressive nature of the British efforts and wrote
provocative articles on it in his newspapers.
His article inspired
the Chapekar brothers and they carried out assassination of Commissioner Rand
and Lt. Ayerst on June 22, 1897. As a result of this, Tilak was imprisoned for
18 months on Sedition charges for inciting murder.
During 1908-1914, Bal
Gangadhar Tilak spent had to undergo six years of rigorous imprisonment in
Mandalay Jail, Burma. He openly supported the revolutionaries Khudiram Bose and
Prafulla Chaki’s efforts to assassinate Chief Presidency Magistrate Douglas
Kingsford in 1908. He continued to write during his years of imprisonment and
the most prominent of which is Gita Rahasya.
Following his growing
fame and popularity, the British government also tried to stop the publication
of his newspapers. His wife died in Pune while he was languishing in Mandalay
prison.
Tilak and All India Home Rule League
Tilak returned to
India in 1915 when the political situation was fast changing under the shadow
of the World War I. There was unprecedented celebration after Tilak was
released. He then returned to politics with a mellowed down outlook. Deciding
to re-unite with his fellow nationalists, Tilak founded the All India Home Rule
League in 1916 with Joseph Baptista, Annie Besant and Muhammad Ali Jinnah. By
April 1916, the league had 1400 members that increased to 32,000 by 1917.
He rejoined the Indian
National Congress but could not bring about reconciliation between the two
opposite-minded factions.
Image Credit:indianstampghar.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/scan0043.jpg
Newspapers
Towards his
nationalistic goals, Bal Gangadhar Tilak published two newspapers -'Mahratta'
(English) and 'Kesari' (Marathi). Both the newspapers stressed on making the
Indians aware of the glorious past and encouraged the masses to be self
reliant. In other words, the newspaper actively propagated the cause of
national freedom.
In 1896, when the
entire nation was gripped by the famine and plague, the British government
declared that there was no cause for anxiety. The government also rejected the
need to start a 'Famine Relief Fund'. The attitude of the government was
severely criticized by both the newspapers. Tilak fearlessly published reports
about the havoc caused by famine and plague and the government's utter
irresponsibility and indifference.
Social Reforms
After completing his
education, Tilak spurned the lucrative offers of government service and decided
to devote himself to the larger cause of national awakening. He was a great
reformer and throughout his life he advocated the cause of women education and
women empowerment. Tilak educated all of his daughters and did not marry them
till they were over 16. Tilak proposed Grand celebrations on ‘Ganesh Chaturthi’
and ‘Shivaji Jayanti'. He envisioned these celebrations inciting a sense of
unity and inspiring nationalist sentiment among Indians. It is a sheer tragedy
that for his allegiance towards extremism, Tilak and his contribution were not
given the recognition, he actually deserved.
Death
Tilak was so
disappointed by the brutal incident of Jalianwala Bagh massacre that his health
started declining. Despite his illness, Tilak issued a call to the Indians not
to stop the movement no matter what happened. He was raring to lead the
movement but his health did not permit. Tilak suffered from diabetes and had
become very weak by this time. In mid-July 1920, his condition worsened and on
August 1, he passed away.
Even as this sad news
was spreading, a veritable ocean of people surged to his house. Over 2 lakh
people gathered at his residence in Bombay to have the last glimpse of their
beloved leader.
Legacy
Although Tilak
nurtured strong Nationalist sentiments, he was a social conservative. He was a
devout Hindu and spent a lot of his time writing religious and philosophical
pieces based on Hindu Scriptures. He was one of the most popular influencers of
his time, a great orator and strong leader who inspired millions to his cause.
Today, Ganesh Chaturthi, started by Tilak, is considered as the prime festival
in Maharastra and adjacent states. Tilak has featured in a number of
biographies for being an iconic figure of Indian Freedom struggle. The Marathi
newspaper started by Tilak is still in circulation although now it is a daily
instead of a weekly during Tilak’s time.
