Gokhale, Gopal Krishna (1866-1915), was a moderate Indian nationalist politician. He believed that India could achieve independence from British rule by peaceful means, such as through negotiation. He was also a social reformer who wanted to help poor people in India.
Gokhale was born on May 9, 1866, in the Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra, in western India. He was educated in Kolhapur and Bombay (now Mumbai). From 1884 to 1902, he taught at Fergusson College in Pune. From 1888 to 1897, he edited a Marathi-language newspaper, Sudharak (Reformer). In 1905, he was elected president of the Indian National Congress. In the same year, Gokhale founded the Servants of India Society. This organization aimed to train young men to help poor people. In 1911, Gokhale introduced a bill for free and compulsory primary education. Between 1900 and 1914, he traveled four times to the United Kingdom to represent India on various matters. Gokhale died on Feb. 19, 1915.
