Godavari Parulekar’s bust unveiled in Palghar college

Mumbai: Symbolising a moment of pride, a bust of the firebrand crusader and writer, Godavari Shamrao Gokhale-Parulekar was unveiled at a college named after her in Talasari town of Palghar, to mark her 118th birth anniversary celebrations, officials said.

The sculpture was inaugurated by L. B. Dhangar, 97-year-old Communist Party of India (M) and All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) veteran and CPI(M) Polit Bureau member and AIKS President Dr. Ashok Dhawale, before a huge gathering of students and activists cheering at the ‘Comrade Godavari Shamrao Parulekar College’ in Talasari.

Born on Aug. 14, 1907 and educated in Pune, Parulekar shattered many barriers when the country reeled under British Rule, and remained a respected figure till her demise in Oct. 1996).

Godavari became the first woman law graduate of Maharashtra, was the first female member of Servants of India Society founded by Gopal Krishna Gokhale, took part in and was jailed several times during the Freedom Movement, and years later became the first and only lady President of the powerful AIKS (in 1986).

Comrade Godavari’s bust was not just a tribute to a towering personality of the Independence struggle and farmers’ movement, but also a reaffirmation of the values that she lived and fought for, remarked the AIKS President on the occasion.

“The college is run by Adivasi Pragati Mandal (APM) since 1994 and proved a boon to educate thousands of Tribal youth from the most underprivileged strata, through its schools, hostels and colleges in both Talasari and Dahanu, with a combined pupil strength of over 8000 now,” Dhawale told ‘The Perfect Voice’.

A permanent exhibition showcasing the cultural and artistic objects created by the Adivasis – was also thrown open as a symbolic continuation of Parulekar’s beliefs in preserving and empowering local traditions.

Dr. Dhawale recalled that the proposal for the bust was mooted by the APM’s founding President the late Lahanu Kom, a former MP and veteran CPI (M) leader, who dedicated his life to the cause of tribal welfare.

Recounting Parulekar’s contributions, Dr. Dhawale said that rather than choose a conventional career, she jumped into the Independence Movement and then shifted to the cause of oppressed peasants and tribals.