2019-02-19 Tue

Today, on this day in 1915, a great Indian philosopher and politician, Gopal Krishna Gokhale breathed his last. He was one of the senior leader of Indian National Congress and the founder of Servants of Indian Society. Gokhale was born on 9th May 1866 in the Ratnagiri of Bombay Presidency in a chitpavan Brahmin family.

He studied in Rajaram College in Kolhapur. In 1884 he graduated from Elphinston College and moved to Poona to take up a teaching job at a school.

In 1889 he became a member of Indian National Congress. In 1895, Gokhale along with Lokmanya Tilak became the President of the Indian National Congress and again in 1905 became the sole president. Gokhale was a moderate reformist. During his presidency, he founded the Servants of India Society for expansion of the Indian education.

Gopal Krishna Gokhale was a mentor to both, Gandhi and Jinnah. Gokhale continued to be politically active through the last years of his life. To commemorate India’s one the great, but less remembered sons, India post has issued 0.15 Paise commemorative stamp in 1966.

Image Courtesy: Mintage World

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