Bal Gangadhar Tilak Birth Anniversary

Current Context :  Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has paid tributes to Lokmanya Tilak on his birth anniversary on 23 July.

ABOUT BAL GANGADHAR TILAK

• Bal Gangadhar Tilak was a freedom fighter, social thinker, philosopher, and educator known for playing an instrumental role in India’s Independence effort.
• He was born as Keshav Gangadhar Tilak on July 23, 1856 in Mahrashtra’s Ratnagiri.
• Tilak was called ‘Lokmanya,’ which means ‘accepted as the people’s leader.’
• He graduated from Government Law College with an LLB in 1879.
• He established the Deccan Education Society in 1884 with a vision to impart nationalist principles to young people.
• Tilak popularised the celebration of Ganesh Chaturthi and Shivaji Jayanti to unite people and inculcate a sense of pride in Indian culture and history.
• He was often referred to as the “Father of Indian Unrest” by the British colonial authorities.
• His famous declaration, “Swaraj is my birthright, and I shall have it,” became a rallying cry for the Indian independence movement.
• He started two newspapers, ‘Kesari’ in Marathi and ‘The Mahratta’ in English.

He supported widow remarriage, opposed child marriage, and advocated for women’s education, understanding the importance of social progress alongside political freedom.