Narsimha Chintaman Kelkar

Narasimha Chintaman Kelkar (N.C. Kelkar) was a freedom fighter and a lawyer from Miraj town in Sangli district of Maharashtra. He was popularly called as Sahityasamrat Tatyasaheb Kelkar who, apart from a lawyer and nationalist politician was a writer, editor, dramatist focused on philosophical and political themes.

Mr. Kelkar was closely associated with Bal Gangadhar Tilak for the national freedom movement. He joined Tilak both as his assistant for conducting law classes as well as for the English newspaper Mahratta. After Tilak’s imprisonment, Kelkar started editing Kesari newspaper too, alongside the Mahratta. He served as Vice-President (1912) and President (1918) of Poona City Municipality. In 1918, the latter became the secretary of the Indian delegation to England, which was sent by the Indian National Congress and the All India Home Rule League. After Tilak’s demise, Kelkar associated with the Swaraj Dal along with Motilal Nehru and C. R. Das, to carry on political struggle on constitutional lines. He was elected twice as a member of Central Legislative Assembly in 1923 and 1926 respectively.

Mr. Kelkar was a great political thinker and a greater man of words in both Marathi and English. He is considered to be among the noble line of thinkers and leaders consisting of M. G. Ranade, Gopal Krishna Gokhle and Tilak.