Gopal Krishna Gokhale 105th Death Anniversary: Interesting Facts About Social Reformer & Mentor to Mahatma Gandhi

Gopal Krishna Gokhale was a senior leader of Indian National Congress and the founder of Servants of Indian Society. Born on May 9, 1866, he passed away at an early age of 48 on February 19, 1915. Gokhale was known as the mentor to Mahatma Gandhi. He was a social reformer, whose goals were to promote non-violence and reform within the existing government institutions.

Gokhale was one of the most learned men in India during his time and among the most influential leaders of the Indian National Congress. Being one of the first generations of Indians to receive a college education, he was widely respected in the intellectual community. On the occasion of Gokhale's death anniversary, LatestLY has curated a list of interesting facts about the social reformer.

Check this video for interesting facts about Gokhale:

1. Gopal Krishna Gokhale was one of the founding social and political leaders during the Indian Independence Movement.
2. He was born in Kothluk, Ratnagiri, Bombay Presidency (now Maharashtra).
3. Gokhale married Savitribai in 1880. She suffered from a congenital ailment. He remarried in 1887 and his second wife died in 1900. He had two daughters with his second wife, Kashibai and Godubai.
4. Gokhale was reportedly one of the first Indians to complete graduation. In 1884, after his graduation in arts at the Elphinstone College, Bombay, Gokhale moved to Poona to take up a teaching job at a school.
5. He was a professor of history and political economy at Fergusson College, Pune. He remained on the staff, finally as principal, until 1902. Later he resigned from his job to join the political field.
6. Gokhale persuaded a young Mohandas Gandhi to return to India and help the Congress in struggling for India's independence.
7. He regarded Mahadev Govinda Ranade, a renowned scholar and jurist as his "Guru".
8. Due to his concern for the marginalised section of the society, Gokhale formed the Servants of India Society. The members of this society worked for the betterment and upliftment of the poor and the downtrodden. Ranade had helped Gokhale in the formation of society.Gokhale contributed a lot to India's development. However, he finally died in 1915 due to excessive exertion and this stress aggravated his diabetes and cardiac asthma. The great leader passed away on February 19, 1915.

   Note: The above piece of information is collated from different sources from the Internet. LatestLY doesn’t vouch for any authenticity of it.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 19, 2020 08:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).