ABSTRACT
Like Rānade and Tilak, Gokhale was a Maharashtrian and shared with them the cultural heritage and traditions of the Marāthī speaking people. A Chitpavan Braham, he inherited the legacy of leadership within Mahārāshtra that belonged to the Chitpavan community and worked closely with Rānade whom he regarded as his mentor. Born in Kotaluk in 1866 he attended Rajaram College where he was active in raising money for the defence of Agarkar and Tilak in a lawsuit filed against them by the diwan of Kolhapur. Later he transferred to Deccan College where he is reputed to have been a shy but diligent student with a love of poetry and English literature. His final years of study were spent at Elphinstone College in Bombay and on completion of his course he joined Agarkar and Tilak at the new English school in Poona and later shared the teaching of mathematics with Tilak at Fergusson College founded by the Deccan Education Society in 1885. Gentle in spirit, sensitive and soft spoken, Gokhale earned the respect of his students for his warmth and kindness, and his temperament fitted him for his careful, considered and moderate approach to social and political reform.
