SATURDAY, APRIL 20, 2024
Goa has just commemorated the 75th anniversary of its Revolution Day, recalling the day on which the call went out for Liberation. One of Panjim’s arterial streets is named 18th June Road, the main maidan in Margao is named after Dr Ram Manohar Lohia and Goa paused once again on June 18 this year and paid homage to the martyrs and freedom fighters remembering them and their deeds. But, did it really recall that day and pay homage to the leaders of that day? Most political parties did their bit on this day, by turning this into a political platform, with an eye of the elections and making promises to the people.
In his address, Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant said that the government will recruit 10,000 people in the next six months and also announced a financial grant of Rs 5000 to marginal groups that have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Congress Goa observer Dinesh Gundu Rao said that if the party comes to power it will cancel all projects that are harmful to the environment. Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party’s Ramkrisha (Sudin) Dhavlikar said that if the need arises, the party will get into an alliance with other regional outfits and not the national parties. On this Revolution Day, politics downplayed the significance of this day, as parties jostled to reach out to the electorate, with only the symbolic garland being placed at the foot of the statue of Lohia.
On the 75th anniversary of Revolution Day, Dr Ram Manohar Lohia and Dr Julião Menezes were just names that were perfunctorily brought up in speeches. Lohia was remembered but Menezes was again forgotten or rather his role was not given the importance it deserves. Revolution Day exists because of these two friends, who turned a period of recuperation for Lohia in Menezes’ Assolna home into a day to be remembered in the annals of Goan history. The events of June 18, 1946 in Margao gave the Goa freedom movement one of its biggest boosts. It was the spark that ignited the flame that burnt for another 15 years until Goa was liberated on December 19, 1961. Not surprising therefore that at least one political party – Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party on the eve of the day – sought to bring about another revolution on this day.
It may not require a revolution, but just the alertness of the people to ensure that the development plans for Goa are not skewed. In the past months there have been a slew of issues that have come up in Goa and people have taken up. The Coastal Zone Management Plan is one such instance that has brought victory to the people with the government directed to hold the public hearings again. Goa needs people to be alert to such instances so that they can be taken up before they become a fait accompli and more difficult to reverse.
This was the 75th anniversary of Revolution Day, with subdued celebrations due to the COVID-19 pandemic that has spread across the State. Goa being still under a curfew, albeit with several relaxations, did hold very symbolic ceremonies, and then the Chief Minister addressed the State online. So, Menezes again missed receiving the honour he deserves for the role he played on June 18, 1946, that ultimately led to the Liberation of Goa. He remains the unsung hero of an event where he played a major role, in fact Goa’s freedom struggle can be said to have begun from the Menezes residence at Assolna. When remembering the events of June 18, 1946 his role should not remain a footnote.
