Page 153 - Swatantrata to Atmanirbharta : Lokmanya Tilak’s legacy

aware about the hazards of alcohol consumption and its side
effects. He was looked upon as a strong supporter of alcohol
banning activity within the country in his time.
Another dimension of Lokmanya Tilak’s personality which
is vastly ignored is his poetry. His famous Sanskrit poem,
‘Matruvilap’ written in college days was quite famous. His
paperwork done in Mandalay prison gives us a glimpse of his
poetic inclination.

His love for Revolutionary activities was well known. Once
a part of revolutionary activities himself in young days, he
drifted apart as he believed that the Independence should be
achieved by legal means rather than brute force. However, he
did not hide his support towards young revolutionaries inspite of
suppression by British regime. He believed that the manpower
with the revolutionaries to overthrow the British government
was much less than the manpower the British had.

Lokmanya Tilak was the first political leader to emphasize
on Military independence. He insisted on development of
technology within the country to prepare arms and ammunitions
instead of importing it from England. During a public rally
in Pune, he had promised to provide five thousand youths to
British government during first world war. He further advised
that in case he is unable to provide the same we would handover
an amount of rupees fifty thousand as penalty (rupees ten per
youth).

His was naturally inclined towards uplifting people and
educating them. Thus, as the editor of ‘Kesari’ his role became
significant and critical during the freedom struggle. ‘Kesari’
touched upon major issues such as - social issues, financial
aspects, education, commerce, business initiatives etc. He was
always eager to provide the common man with solutions for
day-to-day issues.
Lokmanya Tilak was the first political leader to put forth
the idea of financial independence. He educated the masses
by teaching them that the British government was inclined to
suppress the people by making them economically weaker.
‘Bombay Swadeshi Co-Operative Stores’ was a byproduct of

151 Swatantrata to Atmanirbharata