Damodar Tatyaba Rupwate (28 February 1925 – 23 July 1999), commonly known as Dadasaheb Rupwate was an Indian politician, Ambedkarite social activist and newspaper editor from

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

. Initially he was a member of the

Scheduled Caste Federation The Republican Party of India (RPI, often called the Republican Party or simply Republican) was a political party in India. It had its roots in the All-India Scheduled Castes Federation led by N. Sivaraj and B. R. Ambedkar. The Party was est ...

and the

Republican Party of India The Republican Party of India (RPI, often called the Republican Party or simply Republican) was a political party in India. It had its roots in the All-India Scheduled Castes Federation led by N. Sivaraj and B. R. Ambedkar. The Party was e ...

, and later the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

. Dadasaheb Rupwate was a colleague and follower of

B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (Bhīmrāo Rāmjī Āmbēḍkar; 14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who chaired the committee that drafted the Constitution of India based on t ...

, human rights leader. He was a founder-member of the

(1957). He was a member of the

Maharashtra Legislative Council The Maharashtra Legislative Council or Maharashtra Vidhan Parishad is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of Maharashtra state in western India. Maharashtra Legislature Leaders Party Group Leader & Chief Whip and Whip Location Th ...

for the period 1968 to 1978. He served as twice

Cabinet Minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ' prime minister', ' p ...

State of Maharashtra for the period 1972 to 1975 and 1977 to 1978; and He had Departments: Social Welfare, Housing, Cultural, Fisheries, Slum Development. He was the general secretary of All India Congress Committee. He is a committee members of ''Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar: Writing and Speeches'', a 22-volume series. He was an editor of weekly "Prabuddha Bharat" and Marathi Encyclopedia, Vai (1962–1966). He was a sub-editor of "The Republican" (1960–1962). He was a trustee of weekly "Sadhana" Trust (1968 – 1978 and from 1997 onwards). Inspired by Ambedkar's

Dalit Buddhist movement The Dalit Buddhist movement is a religious as well as a socio-political movement among Dalits in India which was started by B. R. Ambedkar. He re-interpreted Buddhism and created a new school of Buddhism called Navayana. The movement has sou ...

, Rupwate and his family converted to

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

in 1956. His son Premanand Rupwate was a social activist and politician. Dadasaheb Rupwate Vidyalay And Junior College, in

Ahmednagar Ahmednagar, officially Ahilyanagar, is a city in, and the headquarters of, the Ahmednagar district, Maharashtra, India. Ahmednagar has several dozen buildings and sites from the Nizam Shahi period. Ahmednagar Fort, once considered almost impre ...

is named after him.Unknown
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rupwate, Dadasaheb Members of the Maharashtra Legislative Council 1925 births 1999 deaths Navayana Buddhists 20th-century Indian Buddhists 20th-century Indian politicians Republican Party of India politicians Indian National Congress politicians from Maharashtra People from Maharashtra State cabinet ministers of Maharashtra Scheduled Castes Federation politician