Veteran freedom fighter from Goa and Padmashri Mohan Ranade (89) died on Tuesday in Pune, after a prolonged illness.
Ranade was a member of the Azad Gomantak Dal, a group of revolutionaries who believed in the doctrine of armed attacks against the Portuguese colonial rule and participated in ambushes on several Portuguese installations in Goa. Police stations were their major targets.
Following his arrest in 1955 for an armed attack on Betim police station, the Sangli-born Ranade, who was undercover as a Marathi school teacher in Goa, was sentenced to 26-year imprisonment at Fort of Caxias near Lisbon.
He was arrested after he received gunshot wounds to his lungs, from which he recovered. He served first five years in a solitary confinement in Goa, after which he was tried in Portugal.
He served 14 years in prison on account of his struggle for Goa’s independence.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has expressed grief over his demise. “Ranade has contributed immensely to the struggle movement of Goa and was imprisoned for 14 years,” the Chief Minister said.
He paid tribute to the departed freedom fighter, at a public function near Panaji on Tuesday.
Urban Development Minister Milind Naik represented the State government at the cremation ceremony in Pune on Tuesday afternoon and offered condolences to the bereaved family.
