Mahadevappa Pattan passes away at 107

The freedom-fighter was active in the tax-denial Satyagraha against the British

Mahadevappa Shivabasappa Pattan and his wife Sharadamma M. Pattan in Bangalore. (FILE) Photo: Bhagya Prakash K.

Freedom fighter and former MLA Mahadevappa Pattan died in Ramdurg in Belagavi district in the early hours of Friday. He was 107.

He is survived by his wife and former MLA Sharadamma M. Pattan and his son Ashok Pattan, who is the Congress MLA from Ramdurg and the Congress chief whip in the Assembly, and daughter Mrunalini Siddaramappa.

Role in tax-denial Satyagraha

Mr. Mahadevappa was active in the tax-denial Satyagraha against the British. He also led an uprising against King Rao Saheb Bhave in 1939. The Ramdurg administration issued shoot-at-sight orders against Mahadevappa. He went underground for nearly 10 years only to return to launch another Satyagraha against the kingdom. He was jailed for some time.

He founded the Lok Seva Sangh for Sarvodaya movement. He served as the Ramdurg MLA, by defeating the Congress nominee in 1957. He joined the Congress later. He retired from politics in the early 1970s to engage in Khadi and other social activities.

The Pattans are one of the only two families in Karnataka where the father, mother and son have been MLAs from the same district. The other is of that of Allum Veerabhadrappa who represented Kurgod constituency in Ballari four times in the past.