‘This is the price a social reformer has to pay’

Dabholkar even though aware of the dangers lurking around him had apparently refused to any special security cover from the government.

“He used to say if I am covered,my detractors would go for my comrades. If anyone has to die,let it be me,” Dattaprasad said. Public transport was Dabholkar’s favourite mode of travel.

As the founder of Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmulan Samiti (MANS),Dabholkar spearheaded the fight to bring a legislation against superstition and black magic. A man full of conviction and grit,Dabholkar hailed from a family of rationalists and social reformers so much so that he had already donated his body.

“My mother and other elder brothers had also donated their bodies. So there were no religious rites after their death,” he said.

Dattaprasad said his younger brother was wedded to his cause so much so that he quit his profession. “His wife Shaila was a practising gynaecologist and she had to look after the family. His son Hamid is a qualified psychiatrist and his daughter Mukta is a graduate from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS),” Dattaprasad said. While Hamid practises in Satara,Mukta and her husband are involved in social activism in Dapoli.

A zealous reformer,he often turned a blind eye to his detractors who once told him that abolition of Sati was possible only because India was ruled by the British. He used to argue that such an initiative to wipe out superstition from society was possible as he believed in the basic goodness of human beings.

Hailing from a socially active and intellectual family in Satara,he was the youngest of seven illustrious brothers.

One of his elder brother D A Dabholkar was the vice-chancellor of Pune University during the 70s. Another of his brother left his career as a mathematician to popularise scientific farming in the state.

“After my retirement I decided to stay in Satara. I used to either meet or talk with Narendra over the phone. In fact the last time I spoke to him was two days ago,prior to my trip to Goa. It was a courtesy call and I had no idea that would be the last time I would speak to him,” he said.