Ramrao Wamanrao Adik | |
|---|---|
| 3rdDeputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra | |
| In office 2 February 1983 – 5 March 1985 | |
| Governor | |
| Chief Minister | Vasantdada Patil |
| Preceded by | Sundarrao Solanke (1978 -1980) |
| Succeeded by | Gopinath Munde (1995) |
| Cabinet Minister Government of Maharashtra | |
| Minister | portfolios, including Finance, Urban Development, Housing, Industry, Law and Revenue, |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1928-12-24)24 December 1928 |
| Died | 30 August 2007(2007-08-30) (aged 78) |
| Citizenship | Indian |
| Party | Indian National Congress |
| Occupation | Politician |
Ramrao Wamanrao Adik (24 December 1928 – 30 August 2007) was aMarathapolitician and a notablelawyer fromMaharashtra. He was a member of theIndian National Congress and thedeputy chief minister of Maharashtra from 1984 to 1987.[1] He died on 30 August 2007 inMumbai following a brief illness.[2] His younger brother,Govindrao Adik, was aMember of Parliament and a former Cabinet minister.
Born in "Khanapur" village, of Shrirampur Taluka, in Ahmednagar District ofMaharashtra on 24 December 1928, Ramrao spent most of his childhood on thesugarcane farm in "Khanapur" helping his father Wamanrao Adik. In a household of five siblings, Ramrao was the eldest and the most ambitious. He obtained his law degree atILS Law College Pune in 1955 after which he went on toEngland to become abarrister. After returning from England, he practicedcivil law in theBombay High Court, where he quickly rose through the ranks as alawyer and was elevated to the position of an advocate general. Since then his name became quite famous among political circles ofMaharashtra.
After being appreciated as a skilled lawyer by the thenprime ministerIndira Gandhi, he was asked to join theIndian National Congress. Ramrao Adik saw this as a good platform to serve the people of Maharashtra. In his pursuit for the welfare of the people of Maharashtra, he had also set up a small organization with a regional mandate forMarathi speaking people called Maharashtra Hitwardhini, which was later to be taken over byBal Thackeray and become the present dayShiv Sena.[3] Ramrao Adik also addressed several public rally's in support ofShiv Sena in its initial phases.[4] Ramrao Adik had served as an Advocate General ofMaharashtra, a Law Minister, and in a few years he would become thedeputy chief minister of Maharashtra in 1984. He held several key portfolios, includingFinance,Urban Development,Housing, Industry, andRevenue, in the state cabinet under various chief ministers in the following years. His most successful tenure was in 1991, when he served as afinance minister[5] and drafted a surplus budget of Rupees 272 Crore/approx US$60 million, for the state ofMaharashtra. His name emerges amongst the longest-servingCabinet ministers in the State of Maharashtra, due to his neutral standpoints and diligent administration.[6]
Adik had an interest in the field of education with a university in his name.[7] He preferred to keep himself busy as a lawyer until his last years of life. "Being a Lawyer is what I love when I am not a politician" he quoted when asked about his preference of politics over legal practice by ajudge of theBombay High Court. Thepresident of IndiaShrimatiPratibha Patil condoled his death and expressed grief over the loss of a notedstatesman on his death.[8] He was also honored with a full court reference by theBombay High Court for his contribution to the field of law.
| Preceded by | Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra 2 February 1983 – 5 March 1985 | Succeeded by |