Subhash Bhaskar Velingkar was a member of the

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh ( ; , , ) is an Indian right-wing, Hindu nationalist, paramilitary volunteer organisation. The RSS is the progenitor and leader of a large body of organisations called the Sangh Parivar (Hindi for "Sangh family ...

(RSS), a Hindu nationalist organization in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, belonging to the Gomantak Maratha Samaj community. Goa Prant of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh was formed under the leadership of Velingkar. He launched Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch an organization which promotes Konkani and

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...

in schools and the withdrawal of grants to English medium schools in the state of the

Goa Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...

. Velingkar oppose the decision of the Digambar Kamat-led government to provide grants to primary level English schools which was opposed by

Manohar Parrikar Manohar Parrikar (born Manohar Gopalkrishna Prabhu Parrikar; 13 December 1955 – 17 March 2019) was an Indian politician and leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party who served as Chief Minister of Goa from 14 March 2017 until his death. Previous ...

and other opposition leaders. After Bharatiya Janata Party-Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party alliance emerged victorious in the 2012 Goa Legislative Assembly election, they continued the grants which Velingkar opposed and subsequently dropped from the

as the Goa chief due to his decision to float a political party. In protest 400 volunteers of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh resigned. On October 2, 2016, Velingkar officially

Goa Suraksha Manch Goa Suraksha Manch is a political party in Goa a political outfit of the ''Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch'' which was launched by Subhash Velingkar, a rebel Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh leader. The party was formed on 2 October 2016. The main ...

but Velingkar neither held any post and did not contest 2017 Goa Legislative Assembly election. He contested

Panaji Panaji (; also known as Panjim) is the capital of the Indian state of Goa and the headquarters of North Goa district. Previously, it was the territorial capital of the former Portuguese India. It lies on the banks of the Mandovi river estuary ...

in the by-election in 2019 as a member of the

and 516 votes only.

Subash Velingkar Culture War of “Goencho Saib” Controversy

The controversy was initiated by the Hindu Raksha Maha Aghadi chief Subash Velingkar. Subhash Velingkar stated that Saint Francis Xavier was instrumental in bringing in the

Goa Inquisition The Goa Inquisition ( pt, Inquisição de Goa) was an extension of the Portuguese Inquisition in Portuguese India. Its objective was to enforce Catholic Orthodoxy and allegiance to the Apostolic See of Rome (Pontifex). The inquisition primaril ...

during colonial rule. “Goencho Saib” can be translated into English from Konkani as, “Goencho” from Goa or Goan Origin whereas “Saib” means “partron”, thus means Goan Patron for catholic goans. Velingkar continued that, instead of Saint Francis Xavier being known as Goencho Saib, the Hindu sage Parushuram should be known as Goencho Saib. The reaction to this synthetic narrative was swift. Viresh Borkar, newly elected politician from Revolutionary Goan Party, accused the BJP of being involved with Velingkar in creating the controversy. Current Goa Chief Minister from the controversy over Saint Francis Xavier, and added, his government is focused on keeping harmony and equality, which is characteristic to Goa.

References

1949 births Living people People from Panaji Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh pracharaks Goa Suraksha Manch politicians {{Goa-politician-stub