<p>On December 19, 2025, after 451 years of Portuguese rule, Goa achieved independence. It was a culmination of decades of resistance, diplomacy and military action. Following India's Independence, Portugal retained control of Goa, claiming it as an overseas province. India tried to diplomatically negotiate, but in vain, as India initiated military operations, Portugal sought the help of the United Nations. In the United Nations Security Council, Britain, France, and the United States supported a resolution critical of India until the Soviet Union vetoed it, blocking any UN action against India. India, under Jawaharlal Nehru, launched Operation Vijay and swiftly liberated Goa within 36 hours. On December 19, 1961, Portuguese Governor-General Manuel António Vassalo e Silva surrendered unconditionally.</p><h2>Key figures and their role in Goa's liberation</h2><p><strong>Tristão de Bragança Cunha</strong></p><p>Also known as the “Father of Goan Nationalism”. He initiated the liberation struggle of Goa in 1926 with the launch of the Goa Congress Committee. At first Indian National Congress offered it recognition, but soon withdrew it, calling Goa an “alien territory”. As Goa, Daman and Diu were outside the jurisdiction of the Imperial British. Cunha, a committed nationalist and communist, sought to integrate Goa with India. He made a series of publications like Four Hundred Years of Foreign Rule and The Denationalisation of Goans, which led to his isolation, arrests, and exile. The rationale of INC and Gandhi was that they wanted non-interference in Portuguese territory, to avoid uniting the British and the Portuguese, but in 1947, the INC-led Indian Government declared Goa an important part of India and recognised the Goan Satyagrahis, and ultimately launched a military operation.</p><p><strong>Dr Julião Menezes</strong></p><p>He was a medical practitioner who invited Dr Ram Manohar Lohia to Goa at a time when the Indian National Congress was not involved in the Goan struggle. He founded Gomantak Praja Mandal to inculcate the spirit of nationalism among Goans. He kept the spirit of liberation alive within the Goans through publications and gatherings.</p><p><strong>Dr Ram Manohar Lohia</strong></p><p>Dr Ram Manohar Lohia was part of the Congress Socialist Party, which was often seen as a rogue fragment of the Indian National Congress. He visited Goa with Dr Julião Menezes in 1946, when Goa was not central to the mainstream nationalist agenda. He launched civil disobedience in Goa in 1946, with Dr Julião Menezes and was arrested by the Portuguese police.</p><p><strong>Purushottam Kakodkar, Libia Lobo Sardesai, Vaman Sardesai</strong></p><p>Purushottam Kakodkar was one of the ordinary Goans who, along with Libia Lobo Sardesai, Vaman Sardesai, kept the dream of the Goan liberation alive with resistance, publications, and radio after Indian Independence. The strengthen the anti-colonial consciousness of the ordinary Goan.&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p>

From T.B. Cunha and Ram Manohar Lohia to Operation Vijay, here’s how Goa was liberated from 451 years of Portuguese rule in 1961.

On December 19, 2025, after 451 years of Portuguese rule, Goa achieved independence. It was a culmination of decades of resistance, diplomacy and military action. Following India's Independence, Portugal retained control of Goa, claiming it as an overseas province. India tried to diplomatically negotiate, but in vain, as India initiated military operations, Portugal sought the help of the United Nations. In the United Nations Security Council, Britain, France, and the United States supported a resolution critical of India until the Soviet Union vetoed it, blocking any UN action against India. India, under Jawaharlal Nehru, launched Operation Vijay and swiftly liberated Goa within 36 hours. On December 19, 1961, Portuguese Governor-General Manuel António Vassalo e Silva surrendered unconditionally. Key figures and their role in Goa's liberation Tristão de Bragança Cunha Also known as the “Father of Goan Nationalism”. He initiated the liberation struggle of Goa in 1926 with the launch of the Goa Congress Committee. At first Indian National Congress offered it recognition, but soon withdrew it, calling Goa an “alien territory”. As Goa, Daman and Diu were outside the jurisdiction of the Imperial British. Cunha, a committed nationalist and communist, sought to integrate Goa with India. He made a series of publications like Four Hundred Years of Foreign Rule and The Denationalisation of Goans, which led to his isolation, arrests, and exile. The rationale of INC and Gandhi was that they wanted non-interference in Portuguese territory, to avoid uniting the British and the Portuguese, but in 1947, the INC-led Indian Government declared Goa an important part of India and recognised the Goan Satyagrahis, and ultimately launched a military operation. Dr Julião Menezes He was a medical practitioner who invited Dr Ram Manohar Lohia to Goa at a time when the Indian National Congress was not involved in the Goan struggle. He founded Gomantak Praja Mandal to inculcate the spirit of nationalism among Goans. He kept the spirit of liberation alive within the Goans through publications and gatherings. Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Dr Ram Manohar Lohia was part of the Congress Socialist Party, which was often seen as a rogue fragment of the Indian National Congress. He visited Goa with Dr Julião Menezes in 1946, when Goa was not central to the mainstream nationalist agenda. He launched civil disobedience in Goa in 1946, with Dr Julião Menezes and was arrested by the Portuguese police. Purushottam Kakodkar, Libia Lobo Sardesai, Vaman Sardesai Purushottam Kakodkar was one of the ordinary Goans who, along with Libia Lobo Sardesai, Vaman Sardesai, kept the dream of the Goan liberation alive with resistance, publications, and radio after Indian Independence. The strengthen the anti-colonial consciousness of the ordinary Goan.

<p>From T.B. Cunha and Ram Manohar Lohia to Operation Vijay, here’s how Goa was liberated from 451 years of Portuguese rule in 1961.</p>

Who freed Goa? The story behind Goa’s liberation from Portuguese rule

<p>Prime Minister Narendra Modi writes in a blog on Saturday that Dr Lohia would be "proud" of the NDA government led by the BJP for following his ideas.</p>

<p>"Today those parties that falsely claim to be Dr Lohia's followers are desperate to form an opportunistic 'maha-milawat' or adulteration alliances with the same Congress (which Lohia opposed). It is both ironical and reprehensible," wrote PM Modi in a blog to mark the 109th birth anniversary of Lohia.</p>

<p>The Samajwadi Party, Janata Dal-Secular, Rashtriya Janata Dal and Sharad Yadav's Loktantrik Janata Dal, which will merge with the RJD after the Lok Sabha polls, were some of the parties formed on socialist ideology.</p>

<p>"Dr Lohia's thoughts inspire us. He wrote about modernising agriculture and empowering farmers, which the NDA government is effectively doing through efforts such as PM Kisan Samman Nidhi, Krishi Sinchai Yojana, e-Nam, Soil Health Cards and more," he said in the blog shared on Twitter.</p>

<p>Referring to gender inequality, the prime minister said nothing pained Lohia more than the caste hierarchy and inequality between women and men.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Today they are betraying the principles of Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia, tomorrow they will also betray the people of India.<br />
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My thoughts on why those who claim to follow Dr. Lohia have let him down. Do read. <a href="https://t.co/gq1srcXwkx">https://t.co/gq1srcXwkx</a></p>
— Chowkidar Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) <a href="https://twitter.com/narendramodi/status/1109306402395377665?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 23, 2019</a></blockquote>
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<p>"But neck deep in vote bank politics, it was parties that dishonestly claim to be Dr Lohia's followers that opposed the NDA government's move to abolish the inhuman practice of triple talaq," he alleged.</p>

<p>Hitting out at the Congress, Modi said whenever Lohia spoke, the Congress "trembled with fear".</p>

<p>He said Lohia had once claimed that during the Congress regime neither agriculture and industry nor the Army improved.</p>

<p>"These words can accurately describe even subsequent Congress regimes, where farmers were harassed, the industry was discouraged (except if they belonged to friends and relatives of Congress leaders) and national security was ignored," the PM wrote.</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from PTI)</em></p>


Prime Minister Narendra Modi writes in a blog on Saturday that Dr Lohia would be "proud" of the NDA government led by the BJP for following his ideas. "Today those parties that falsely claim to be Dr Lohia's followers are desperate to form an opportunistic 'maha-milawat' or adulteration alliances with the same Congress (which Lohia opposed).

Prime Minister Narendra Modi writes in a blog on Saturday that Dr Lohia would be "proud" of the NDA government led by the BJP for following his ideas. "Today those parties that falsely claim to be Dr Lohia's followers are desperate to form an opportunistic 'maha-milawat' or adulteration alliances with the same Congress (which Lohia opposed). It is both ironical and reprehensible," wrote PM Modi in a blog to mark the 109th birth anniversary of Lohia. The Samajwadi Party, Janata Dal-Secular, Rashtriya Janata Dal and Sharad Yadav's Loktantrik Janata Dal, which will merge with the RJD after the Lok Sabha polls, were some of the parties formed on socialist ideology. "Dr Lohia's thoughts inspire us. He wrote about modernising agriculture and empowering farmers, which the NDA government is effectively doing through efforts such as PM Kisan Samman Nidhi, Krishi Sinchai Yojana, e-Nam, Soil Health Cards and more," he said in the blog shared on Twitter. Referring to gender inequality, the prime minister said nothing pained Lohia more than the caste hierarchy and inequality between women and men. Today they are betraying the principles of Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia, tomorrow they will also betray the people of India. My thoughts on why those who claim to follow Dr. Lohia have let him down. Do read. https://t.co/gq1srcXwkx — Chowkidar Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 23, 2019 × "But neck deep in vote bank politics, it was parties that dishonestly claim to be Dr Lohia's followers that opposed the NDA government's move to abolish the inhuman practice of triple talaq," he alleged. Hitting out at the Congress, Modi said whenever Lohia spoke, the Congress "trembled with fear". He said Lohia had once claimed that during the Congress regime neither agriculture and industry nor the Army improved. "These words can accurately describe even subsequent Congress regimes, where farmers were harassed, the industry was discouraged (except if they belonged to friends and relatives of Congress leaders) and national security was ignored," the PM wrote. (With inputs from PTI)

Ram Manohar Lohia would have been proud of NDA government: PM Modi

<p>Among those radicals associated with the Left Wing of the Congress Party during the decades prior to independence, there was probably no one who could rival Ram Manohar Lohia in genius and originality of thought.</p>

<p>Lohia was a truly novel thinker, a fierce polemist and a ruthless critic. His ideas on power, inequality, freedom and the role of the state drew upon and contended with those of contemporary figures like Jayaprakash Narayan, Jawaharlal Nehru and Ashoka Mehta, as well as upon the thought of Marx and Gandhi, but were always tinged by his own personal views and highly critical intelligence.</p>

<p>Following the transfer of power, Lohia arose as the most important and visible figure in the ranks of the new Socialist Party. Along with many socialists around the world during the 1950s and 60s, Lohia identified socialism with the possibility of a radical transformation of society and, through it, the coming of a new civilisation. He developed an open-ended conception of socialism based on an impetuous vernacular and anti-elitist stance regarding political power and the role and management of the state.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

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<h5>Lohia openly attacked the elitism of the Nehruvian statist project of modernisation, as well as the potentially violent programme of communists in India</h5>
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<p>In his view, socialism could not mean a mere revival of cottage industries and a return to the village. Indeed, he described the latter as spaces of arbitrary power, embodied in the trinity formed by &ldquo;vested interests, the police and village goondas.&rdquo; At the same time, however, he refused to adhere to a teleological version of Marxism, a doctrine he denounced as Eurocentric and unable to account for the link between capitalist accumulation and colonialism. Moreover, he openly attacked the elitism of the Nehruvian statist project of modernisation, as well as the potentially violent programme of communists in India.</p>

<p>During the 1950s and early 60s, Lohia emerged as the most vocal representative of anti-Congressism and a virulent critic of what he termed &ldquo;the Nehru myth.&rdquo; In his view, the revolutionary potential of the freedom movement was being arrested by the project of modernisation defended by the elites of independent India, in which &ldquo;criminal luxury and waste were concealed under the deceptive slogans of national dignity and needs of representation.&rdquo; He extended his sharp criticism of the prime minister to the &ldquo;leadership of sterile Marxists&rdquo; in other recently decolonised countries, a group in which he included Nehru&acute;s fellow champions of Non-Alignment during the late 1950s, Nkrumah and Sukarno.</p>

<p>Lohia denounced Nehru as the leader and main promoter of this harmful project, and consequently directed some of his most virulent attacks against the figure of the prime minister. This strategy, coupled with a similar dismissive and aggressive approach towards communists, would contribute to Lohia&acute;s gradual political marginalisation during the first two decades of independent life in India</p>

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<h5>More than any other socialist leader of his time, Lohia&nbsp;reflected upon issues of caste, gender, language diversity and vernacular knowledge</h5>
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<p>More than any other socialist leader of his time, Lohia&nbsp;reflected upon issues of caste, gender, language diversity and vernacular knowledge in the course of his intellectual development. His rise to prominence as a party leader coincided with a period of intense debate around the issue of caste-based reservations. Even before the appearance of the First Report of the Backward Classes Commission, written in 1953 and published in 1955, Lohia has advanced his interest in involving members of the lower castes in the ranks and leadership of the Socialist Party, and had begun his active campaign for the application of preferential opportunities for the backward sections of society.&nbsp;</p>

<p>During the second half of the 1950s, Lohia made significant efforts to contact the leaders of the most important anti-caste movements, as well as major leaders of the Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes. Between 1955 and 1956, he maintained a correspondence with B. R. Ambedkar, inviting him to attend the 1955 Conference of the Socialist Party, and, in 1957, the Lohia-led SP merged with the Indian National Backward Classes Federation. Moreover, Lohia extended Ambedkar&acute;s demands and advocated for extending the scope of the Backward Classes label to include other sections of the population, notably depressed Muslims, Adivasis and women.</p>

<p>His focus on the specificities and concrete needs of Indian society, however, did not prevent him from taking into consideration the contingencies of the international arena and devising a plan for a global parliament. His open-ended vision of socialism was shaped by an awareness of international events, as well as by the deeply felt need to go beyond Eurocentrism and promote indigenous and independent models of socio-political development.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

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<h5>Lohia was a fierce critic, a combative thinker, and a tireless organiser</h5>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Lohia was a fierce critic, a combative thinker, and a tireless organiser. The boldness and potency of his intellectual project, however, was contrasted by the dismal political failure of his politics in electoral terms. During the 1950s and early 60s, he presided over the SP, the Praja Socialist Party and the Samyukta Socialist Party, all of which remained unable to challenge the potency of the Congress or the communists in electoral terms until his death in 1967.</p>

<p>Despite the fact that it did not materialise in any significant institutional gains, Lohia&acute;s political project made a crucial contribution to the emergence of original conceptions of socialism that were wholly unrelated to anything known elsewhere by that name. It also opened up a space for political trajectories that are still being played out in the horizon of contemporary Indian politics.</p>

<p>But perhaps the greatest legacy of his politics can be found in his constant effort to question established dogmas and re-think the seemingly obvious. Despite the fact that it entailed his marginalisation from the mainstream of national politics, Lohia was never one to compromise. He spoke of the importance of fighting the entrenched injustices of Indian society in a time of nationalist triumphalism. He defended the role of the state in a time of growing Gandhian anti-statism.</p>

<p>Further, he dreamt of an alternative economic system based on the creation of &ldquo;small machines&rdquo; in an epoch infatuated with the prospect of big-scale industrialisation. In a time, such as ours, in which there seems to be an increasingly narrow window for dissent and rational thought in global politics, Lohia&acute;s fiery adherence to debate and critical thought is a legacy to be cherished and taken seriously once more.</p>


Lohia spoke of the importance of fighting entrenched injustices of Indian society in a time of nationalist triumphalism

Among those radicals associated with the Left Wing of the Congress Party during the decades prior to independence, there was probably no one who could rival Ram Manohar Lohia in genius and originality of thought. Lohia was a truly novel thinker, a fierce polemist and a ruthless critic. His ideas on power, inequality, freedom and the role of the state drew upon and contended with those of contemporary figures like Jayaprakash Narayan, Jawaharlal Nehru and Ashoka Mehta, as well as upon the thought of Marx and Gandhi, but were always tinged by his own personal views and highly critical intelligence. Following the transfer of power, Lohia arose as the most important and visible figure in the ranks of the new Socialist Party. Along with many socialists around the world during the 1950s and 60s, Lohia identified socialism with the possibility of a radical transformation of society and, through it, the coming of a new civilisation. He developed an open-ended conception of socialism based on an impetuous vernacular and anti-elitist stance regarding political power and the role and management of the state. Lohia openly attacked the elitism of the Nehruvian statist project of modernisation, as well as the potentially violent programme of communists in India × In his view, socialism could not mean a mere revival of cottage industries and a return to the village. Indeed, he described the latter as spaces of arbitrary power, embodied in the trinity formed by “vested interests, the police and village goondas.” At the same time, however, he refused to adhere to a teleological version of Marxism, a doctrine he denounced as Eurocentric and unable to account for the link between capitalist accumulation and colonialism. Moreover, he openly attacked the elitism of the Nehruvian statist project of modernisation, as well as the potentially violent programme of communists in India. During the 1950s and early 60s, Lohia emerged as the most vocal representative of anti-Congressism and a virulent critic of what he termed “the Nehru myth.” In his view, the revolutionary potential of the freedom movement was being arrested by the project of modernisation defended by the elites of independent India, in which “criminal luxury and waste were concealed under the deceptive slogans of national dignity and needs of representation.” He extended his sharp criticism of the prime minister to the “leadership of sterile Marxists” in other recently decolonised countries, a group in which he included Nehru´s fellow champions of Non-Alignment during the late 1950s, Nkrumah and Sukarno. Lohia denounced Nehru as the leader and main promoter of this harmful project, and consequently directed some of his most virulent attacks against the figure of the prime minister. This strategy, coupled with a similar dismissive and aggressive approach towards communists, would contribute to Lohia´s gradual political marginalisation during the first two decades of independent life in India More than any other socialist leader of his time, Lohia reflected upon issues of caste, gender, language diversity and vernacular knowledge × More than any other socialist leader of his time, Lohia reflected upon issues of caste, gender, language diversity and vernacular knowledge in the course of his intellectual development. His rise to prominence as a party leader coincided with a period of intense debate around the issue of caste-based reservations. Even before the appearance of the First Report of the Backward Classes Commission, written in 1953 and published in 1955, Lohia has advanced his interest in involving members of the lower castes in the ranks and leadership of the Socialist Party, and had begun his active campaign for the application of preferential opportunities for the backward sections of society. During the second half of the 1950s, Lohia made significant efforts to contact the leaders of the most important anti-caste movements, as well as major leaders of the Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes. Between 1955 and 1956, he maintained a correspondence with B. R. Ambedkar, inviting him to attend the 1955 Conference of the Socialist Party, and, in 1957, the Lohia-led SP merged with the Indian National Backward Classes Federation. Moreover, Lohia extended Ambedkar´s demands and advocated for extending the scope of the Backward Classes label to include other sections of the population, notably depressed Muslims, Adivasis and women. His focus on the specificities and concrete needs of Indian society, however, did not prevent him from taking into consideration the contingencies of the international arena and devising a plan for a global parliament. His open-ended vision of socialism was shaped by an awareness of international events, as well as by the deeply felt need to go beyond Eurocentrism and promote indigenous and independent models of socio-political development. Lohia was a fierce critic, a combative thinker, and a tireless organiser × Lohia was a fierce critic, a combative thinker, and a tireless organiser. The boldness and potency of his intellectual project, however, was contrasted by the dismal political failure of his politics in electoral terms. During the 1950s and early 60s, he presided over the SP, the Praja Socialist Party and the Samyukta Socialist Party, all of which remained unable to challenge the potency of the Congress or the communists in electoral terms until his death in 1967. Despite the fact that it did not materialise in any significant institutional gains, Lohia´s political project made a crucial contribution to the emergence of original conceptions of socialism that were wholly unrelated to anything known elsewhere by that name. It also opened up a space for political trajectories that are still being played out in the horizon of contemporary Indian politics. But perhaps the greatest legacy of his politics can be found in his constant effort to question established dogmas and re-think the seemingly obvious. Despite the fact that it entailed his marginalisation from the mainstream of national politics, Lohia was never one to compromise. He spoke of the importance of fighting the entrenched injustices of Indian society in a time of nationalist triumphalism. He defended the role of the state in a time of growing Gandhian anti-statism. Further, he dreamt of an alternative economic system based on the creation of “small machines” in an epoch infatuated with the prospect of big-scale industrialisation. In a time, such as ours, in which there seems to be an increasingly narrow window for dissent and rational thought in global politics, Lohia´s fiery adherence to debate and critical thought is a legacy to be cherished and taken seriously once more.

Ram Manohar Lohia: The fiery critic of Nehru

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Who freed Goa? The story behind Goa’s liberation from Portuguese rule

Ram Manohar Lohia would have been proud of NDA government: PM Modi

Ram Manohar Lohia: The fiery critic of Nehru