Rajni Patel’s statue to be unveiled

As he was about to appear for the examination several British officers denied him entry to the examination hall.But even as he was nursing his disappointment he met Jawaharlal Nehru who urged him to go in for law saying some educational qualification would be of a great help in a political career.

That was how Patel, born on January 9,1915 at Sarsa in Kheda district, and who came to be popularly known as Rajnibhai, qualified as a barrister from Middle Temple.

Another interesting facet of his life is his brush with Chinese Communism. He might well have gone on to be a colleague of the the revolutionary leader Mao Tse Tung except for fate. While he was on his way to Yennan, the headquarters of the Chinese Communist Party, he was arrested by the British and sent back to Mumbai.

Patel’s politial clout and the tremendous influence he wielded were demonstrated in the public response he evoked in his efforts to alleviate human suffering in various parts of the country. As General Secretary of the Citizen’s Flood and Famine Relief Committee (1972) and the Citizen’s Relief Committee for Jamshedpur (1977), he organsied massive relief operations for the Maharashtra drought victims and for flood victims in Bihar, Orissa, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as for the victims of communal fury in Jamshedpur. His last great effort in this direction was the relief operation he undertook for the victims of floods in Morvi, Vidarbha and parts of Gujarat in 1979.

A number of cultural, educational and social organisations too benefited from his munificence. He helped raise funds for several such organisations and institutions. Three distinct newspaper organisations were able to tide over periods of crisis through his support and help. He helped raise huge funds for the National Herald in 1976, Bal Gangadhar Tilak’s Kesari during its centenary year celebrations in 1980 and The Patriot in 1981.

His major contribution to the city was the national memorial he planned for his long-time hero, Jawaharlal Nehru. Originally planned as a modest Rs 10 lakh project, the Nehru Centre slowly grew into a magnificent monument to any single individual anywhere in the world, with an estimated outlay of Rs 10 crores. It grew and took shape as Rajni Patel discussed the project with his friends, intellectuals, scholars, politicians, industrialists, town planners, architects and museumologists.

Patel’s death on May 3, 1982 saw an the end to an era of personalised politics, spontaneous generosity and a wide vision. He was given a hero’s funeral by the grateful citizens of the city and his friends and admirers from all over the country.