Keshavrao Marutirao Jedhe (né Deshmukh 21 April 1896 – 12 November 1959) was an Indian independence activist and politician from Pune.
[2] After death of Shahu Maharaj in 1922, Jedhe assumed leadership of the non-Brahmin communities in Pune and surrounding areas under the banner of Non-brahman party (NBM) and satyashodhak samaj.
Disappointed with left leaning policies of other PWP leaders, Jedhe returned to the Congress fold in August 1952.
Its inauguration on 1 November 1956, caused a great political stir and, under the leadership of Keshavrao Jedhe, an all-party meeting was held in Pune and Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti was founded on 6 February 1956.
[citation needed] In the second general election of 1957, the Samiti defeated the stalwarts of Congress by securing 101 seats out of 133, including 12 from Mumbai.
Keshavrao’s elder brothers Dadasaheb and Baburao were close associates of Shahu Maharaj of Kolhapur who was then spearheading the Satyashodhak movement.
Leaders like Pandit Motilal Nehru, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Dr Rajendra Prasad, Jayaprakash Narayan, Senapati Bapat, Bhausaheb Hire and Shankarrao Deo also visited Jedhe Mansion.
Till 1934, Jedhe Mansion was the centre of social activities related to the Independence movement in Maharashtra.
During this period, Maharashtra witnessed several controversies like Shivaji’s memorial and installation of the statue of Mahatma Phule in Pune.
Jedhe Mansion also witnessed several meetings on the Goa Liberation Movement and the Samyukta Maharashtra agitation in 1956.