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Narendra Dabholkar Age, Death, Wife, Family, Biography

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Death Date: 20/08/2013
Death Cause: Gunshot Wound
Age: 67 Years

Narendra Dabholkar

Bio/Wiki
Full NameNarendra Achyut Dabholkar
ProfessionSocial activist
Known forBeing the founder-president of Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti (MANS)
Physical Stats & More
Eye ColourBlack
Hair ColourGrey
Award2014: Padma Shri (posthumous)
Personal Life
Date of Birth1 November 1945 (Thursday)
BirthplaceSatara, Bombay Province, British India
Date of Death20 August 2013
Place of DeathPune, Maharashtra, India
Age (at the time of death)67 Years
Death CauseGunshot wound
Zodiac signScorpio
NationalityIndian
HometownSatara, Bombay Province, British India
School• New English School, Satara
• Willingdon College, Sangli
College/UniversityGovernment Medical College, Miraj, Sangli, Maharashtra
Educational QualificationMBBS
ReligionAtheist
CasteBrahmin [1]NDTV
Relationships & More
Marital Status (at the time of death)Married
Family
Wife/SpouseDr. Shaila Dabholkar (social activist)
Shaila Dabholkar
ChildrenSon- Dr. Hamid Dabholkar (psychiatrist)
Daughter- Mukta Dabholkar (social activist)
Narendra Dabholkar's son and daughter while holding his picture
ParentsFather- Achyut Dabholkar
Mother- Tarabai Dabholkar
SiblingsBrothers
• Devdatta Dabholkar (educationalist, socialist)
Devdatta Dabholkar
• Shripad Dabholkar (activist)
Shripad Dabholkar

Note: He had 9 siblings.
Other RelativesNephew- Atish Dabholkar (theoretical physicist)
Atish Dabholkar

Narendra Dabholkar

Some Lesser Known Facts About Narendra Dabholkar

  • During his college days, Narendra Dabholkar was the captain of the Shivaji University Kabaddi team.
  • He once represented India in a Kabaddi tournament against Bangladesh.
  • Narendra Dabholkar was the recipient of the Shiv Chhatrapati Yuva Award for Kabaddi from the Maharashtra government.
  • After completing his MBBS, he worked as a professional doctor for 12 years.
  • Narendra Dabholkar named his son, Hamid, after the social reformer Hamid Dalwai.
  • He often opposed grand wedding ceremonies. He arranged simple weddings for his children. He did not consult any religious book to choose a traditional auspicious time for the weddings of his children.
  • Narendra Dabholkar often supported inter-caste marriages and opposed caste panchayat orders that did not allow one to get married outside one’s caste or community.
  • He became a social worker in the 1980s and joined many social justice movements including Baba Adhav’s ‘One Village One Well’ initiative.

    An old picture of Narendra Dabholkar

    An old picture of Narendra Dabholkar

  • During his entire social service, Narendra Dabholkar worked on eliminating superstition. He was a member of the Akhil Bharatiya Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti (ABANS).
  • In 1989, he founded the Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti (M.A.N.S), an organisation that works against superstitions. It often challenges many fake holy men who claim to cure illnesses with miracles.
  • Narendra Dabholkar often criticized many religious priests who claimed to perform miracles and had many followers.
  • He was a founding member of Parivartan, a social action centre in the Satara district that helps poor people.
  • Narendra Dabholkar was closely associated with the Indian rationalist Sanal Edamaruku.
  • He was the editor of Sadhana, a Marathi weekly magazine. He was also the vice-president of the Federation of Indian Rationalist Associations (FIRA).

    Dabholkar on the stage at the 6th FIRA conference

    Dabholkar on the stage at the 6th FIRA conference

  • From 1990 to 2010, Narendra Dabholkar actively participated in many movements organised for Dalit equality. These movements were against the caste system and caste-related violence.
  • He often supported renaming Marathwada University after B. R. Ambedkar.
  • Apart from being a physicist, Narendra Dabholkar was a noted author who published many books on superstition and delivered more than 3,000 public speeches. Some of his books include Ladhe Andhashraddheche, Prashna Tumcha Uttar Dabholkaranche, The Case for Reason: Volume One: Understanding the Anti-superstition Movement, and Please Think.

    A picture of the book The Case for Reason Understanding the Anti-superstition Movement

    A picture of the book The Case for Reason Understanding the Anti-superstition Movement

  • In March 2013, when Asaram Bapu used drinking water to celebrate Holi in Nagpur, he criticised him for doing so. During that time, Maharashtra was facing a drought.

    Asaram Bapu while sprinkling drinking water to celebrate Holi in Nagpur (2013)

    Asaram Bapu while sprinkling drinking water to celebrate Holi in Nagpur (2013)

  • In 2010, Narendra Dabholkar tried several times to get an anti-superstition law passed in Maharashtra but failed. He, along with his organisation, M.A.N.S, then drafted the Anti-Jaadu Tona Bill (Anti-Superstition and Black Magic Ordinance).
  • The bill was opposed by some political parties such as the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Shiv Sena, and the Warkari sect. These parties claimed that this bill would harm Hindu culture, customs, and traditions.
  • Many Indian critics blamed Dabholkar for being anti-religious and anti-Hindu. However, he clarified that the bill did not mention anything about God or religion. It was about stopping fraudulent and exploitative practices.
  • On 6 August 2013, he stated during a press conference that the bill was presented in seven sessions of the state assembly but was never discussed. He criticized the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Prithviraj Chavan, for the same.

    Narendra Dabholkar during a media conference

    Narendra Dabholkar during a media conference

  • On 20 August 2013, Narendra Dabholkar was murdered during a morning walk near Omkareshwar temple in Pune. Dabholkar was hit in the head and chest and died on the spot.
  • He was shot by two gunmen at 7:20 am. They fired four rounds at him, then fled on a motorcycle.
  • The day after his murder, the Maharashtra Cabinet approved the Anti-Superstition and Black Magic bill, but it needed parliamentary support to become a law.
  • After 29 amendments, the ordinance was passed on 18 December 2013.
  • Narendra Dabholkar faced many death threats and assaults since 1983, but he always refused police protection. Once, asked about the threats, he said that he did not need any protection in his own country as he was fighting within the system of the Indian constitution. He added that his bill was not against anyone but for everyone.
  • The investigations after his murder revealed that his murder was planned by the Hindu group Sanatan Sanstha.
  • He had donated his body to a medical college, but the autopsy done after his murder made his body unsuitable for academic use.
  • Narendra Dabholkar was cremated in Satara without any religious rites.
  • His daughter, Mukta, lit the pyre, breaking the tradition that the son should do it. The ashes of his body were collected without any religious ceremony and scattered over his organic farm by his family members.
  • Narendra Dabholkar was a simple man who used to wear a khadi shirt, cotton pants, and slippers.
  • His murder was criticised by many political leaders and social activists.
  • Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan announced a cash reward of Rs. 1 million (US$13,000) for information about the attackers.
  • Many political parties announced a strike in Pune on 21 August 2013. Various institutions in Pune remained closed on the same day to protest Dabholkar’s murder.

    Activists of the Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmulan Samiti protests after the murder of Narendra Dabholkar in Pune

    Activists of the Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmulan Samiti protests after the murder of Narendra Dabholkar in Pune

  • The police suspected it was a planned murder since the attackers knew that Dabholkar used to stay in Pune only on Mondays and Tuesdays.
  • On 26 August 2013, Prithviraj Chavan officially announced that the police had some clues about the murder.
  • On 20 January, Pune police arrested two suspects, who had been previously accused of dealing firearms.

    The CCTV footage released in Narendra Dabholkar murder case

    The CCTV footage released in the Narendra Dabholkar murder case

  • On 9 May 2014, the Bombay High Court transferred the case to the CBI.
  • In 2017, a short film called ‘The Bookshelf’ was made in memory of Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare, and M. M. Kalburgi.
  • On 18 August 2018, the CBI arrested Sachin Prakasrao Andure, suspected of being one of the gunmen.
  • In 2018, the murder of Narendra Dabholkar was featured in the documentary mini-series ‘Vivek-Reason’ by Anand Patwardhan. It also featured the assassinations of rationalists Govind Pansare, M. M. Kalburgi, and journalist Gauri Lankesh.

    The poster of the documentary mini-series 'Vivek-Reason' by Anand Patwardhan

    The poster of the documentary mini-series ‘Vivek-Reason’ by Anand Patwardhan

  • In 2019, the CBI found that Sanatan Sanstha’s counsel, Sanjeev Punalekar, helped in destroying the weapons used in the murders of Dabholkar.

    Sanjeev Punalekar after being arrested by the police in Pune

    Sanjeev Punalekar after being arrested by the police in Pune

  • On 11 May 2024, a special court convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment Sachin Prakashrao Andure and Sharad Bhausaheb Kalaskar guilty of shooting Dabholkar to death on 20 August 2013. The court acquitted the other three accused due to lack of evidence.
  • The Anti-Superstition and Black Magic Bill has been used to charge people involved in serious fraud, often with sexual assault. The law only applies in Maharashtra.
  • After him, Dabholkar’s daughter, Mukta, and other activists began campaigning for a national anti-superstition law.
  • The All India Peoples Science Network (AIPSN) celebrates 20 August as National Scientific Temper Day in honour of Dr Narendra Dabholkar.

    South Mumbai art exhibition while celebrating Dr Narendra Dabholkar legacy

    South Mumbai art exhibition while celebrating Dr Narendra Dabholkar’s legacy

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