Srinagar, Jan. 29 -- Teacher, educationist, author, diehard socialist, politician, veteran parliamentarian, debater par excellence and India's Finance Minister, Professor Madhu Dandavate was a man of many parts.

A blue-blooded nationalist and an erudite personality, Dandavate was born in Ahmednagar, Maharashtra, on January 21, 1924 and plunged into politics at the age of 18 by participating in the Quit India Movement of 1942.Transitioning eventually into a socialist politician and a champion of the downtrodden and underprivileged in Indian society, he played a leading role in nationalist campaigns like the movement for the liberation of Goa from Portuguese rule in 1955; the "Bhoodan Movement" (a voluntary land reform movement from 1951 t...