Dnyaneshwar Chandrashekhar Agashe (17 April 1942 – 2 January 2009) was an Indian businessman, cricketer, cricket administrator, and philanthropist. He founded the Suvarna Sahakari Bank in 1969, and served as its managing director from its inception until his death. From 1970 to 1978, he served as the joint managing director of the Brihan Maharashtra Sugar Syndicate Ltd. with his brother, and then as the company's sole managing director from 1978 until his death.
A first-class cricketer in his youth, he played as a batsman for the Maharashtra cricket team at the Cooch Behar Trophy, as a wicket-keeper-batter for the West Zone cricket team, and as a wicket-keeper for the Indian Universities cricket team between 1955 and 1968. He then shifted to cricket administration, and was twice elected vice president of Board of Control for Cricket in India, serving his second and final term from 1995 to 1999. He unsuccessfully contested for the presidency of the Board twice; first in 1996 after Inderjit Singh Bindra's term ended, losing to Raj Singh Dungarpur; and again in 1997, losing once again to then-incumbent Dungarpur.
His later years were marred by controversy and scandal, with factionalism disputes at the Maharashtra Cricket Association between 2003 and 2005, that saw him resign his record seventh term as executive chairman, having served in that role since 1989. This was followed by judicial proceedings against him and his family, when scam allegations were lobbied against the Suvarna Sahakari Bank in 2008, just before his death.
Remembered for his philanthropy towards education in Pune, he served on the board of the Deccan Education Society, provided funding for the foundation of the Panditrao Agashe School, and further served as vice chair of the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore. A patron of the arts and of Marathi literature, he donated to the collections of the Raja Dinkar Kelkar Museum, and served as the publisher for numerous writers, poets, and playwrights in the Marathi language.
Biography Early life, education, and family: 1942–1967 Agashe was born in Pune, Bombay Presidency on 17 April 1942, into a Chitpavan brahmin family of industrialist Chandrashekhar Agashe and wife Indirabai Agashe (née Dwarka Gokhale). His father was a member of the aristocratic Agashe gharana of the village of Mangdari in the Bhor State. He was the third youngest of nine siblings who survived to adulthood. He had an older brother, Panditrao Agashe, and an older sister, Shakuntala Karandikar. His fraternal twin, Mukta, died a few months after birth. His sisters nicknamed him Shirin, as a child.
Agashe's mother was the daughter of Narayan Gokhale VI from the aristocratic Gokhale gharana of Dharwad. She was a great niece of Bapu Gokhale, a Third Anglo-Maratha War general under Peshwa Baji Rao II of the Maratha Empire. Through her, Agashe was a distant relation of musician Ashutosh Phatak, historian Dinkar G. Kelkar, and scientist P. K. Kelkar.
Agashe grew up between Pune, Shreepur, and Mangdari. He and his siblings were in Mangdari during the anti-Brahmin riots that followed Gandhi's assassination in 1948. The family's wada, called Chausopi, along with the family's Ram temple was burned down. He began his schooling at the Nutan Marathi Vidyalaya in Pune. In the fifth grade, he transferred to the Deccan Education Society's Raman Baug High School in Pune. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Sir Parshurambhau College in 1964. After briefly considering law at ILS Law College, he further graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Brihan Maharashtra College of Commerce.
Agashe married Rekha Gogte in 1967, a niece of industrialist B. M. Gogte. A member of the Gogte gharana of Belgaum, she was also a descendant of the aristocratic Latey (Bhagwat) family. Through her, Agashe was a relation of Kokuyo Camlin head Dilip Dandekar, and academic Jyoti Gogte. The couple had three children, sons Mandar and Ashutosh, and daughter Sheetal.
Career in cricket: 1955–1968 While at Raman Baug High School, Agashe took an interest in cricket, field hockey, football, and badminton. Under the guidance of his school's sports coach Rambhau Lele, he began playing hockey as a center-forward. His batting style has been described as a right-hand bat.
Known for his unorthodox batting with lofted shots, Agashe was a part of his school's cricket team which won the Sethna Cup and the Pudumjee Shield against Shri Shivaji Preparatory Military School. Between 1955 and 1957, he was selected for the Pune district cricket team and then for the Maharashtra cricket team to play the Cooch Behar Trophy. He further sought training at the National Defense Academy before being selected as a wicket-keeper-batsman for the West Zone cricket team. While a West Zone player, his performance in the matches in Calcutta got him selected for the Indian Universities cricket team to tour Sri Lanka.
Between 1962 and 1968, Agashe played first-class cricket for the Maharashtra cricket team as a wicket-keeper-batsman, and scored two half-centuries in 13 matches. He played his best season in 1964–65 where he made his career-best 75, took ten catches and made two stumpings, and was credited for Maharashtra's victory against the Nari Contractor captained Gujarat cricket team in the 1964 season. His teammates at the time were Chandu Borde, Sadanand Mohol, and Hemant Kanitkar. During the same season, he was a wicket-keeper for the Indian universities team against the Sri Lankan cricket team.
Early career in business: 1966–1978 Agashe's father had founded the Brihan Maharashtra Sugar Syndicate in 1934. After his father's death in 1956, the syndicate was headed by S. L. Limaye as chairman of the board of directors of the company from 1959 till 1990, while K. V. Champhekar took over as managing director of the company from 1957 to 1962, followed by G. S. Valimbe from 1963 to 1969, with Agashe joining the board of directors for the company in 1966, and launching new branches of the factory near Akluj.
In 1967, he was one of many public figures who had their astrological charts published by the Phal Jyotish Abhyas Mandal. He also joined the Maharashtra Cricket Association in 1969. On 22 September 1969, Agashe founded the Suvarna Sahakari Bank in Pune for the banking purposes of mainly middle-class families, and further published D. G. Kulkarni's historical fiction novel that same year. He was further credited as the printer of research memoirs on hydraulics from the Central Water and Power Research Station in Pune, that same year.
Beginning in the 1970s, under Agashe and his brother, the syndicate manufactured liquor in Shreepur, Maharashtra, specialising in whisky production under its several flagship brands. In July 1970, Agashe and his brother became joint managing directors of the Brihan Maharashtra Sugar Syndicate. That same year, he was credited as the publisher and printer of V. H. Vadekar collection of short stories, and further established a newspaper called Rajas which had a monthly print circulation.
During the Maharashtra drought of 1972, Agashe and his brother lent their water stream on their Mangdari estate to the Bhor district for the construction of a tap water system for the village. In 1973, Agashe and his brother donated an exhibit named after their father to the Raja Dinkar Kelkar Museum.Multiple sources: In 1974, he published Chintamani Tryambak Khanolkar's character sketch writings. In 1977, Agashe and his brother aided Shivrampant Damle in founding the Chandrashekhar Agashe College of Physical Education in honour of their father, and was elected the vice president of the Deccan Sugar Factory Association that same year.
Expanding roles in business, cricket administration, and philanthropy: 1978–1990 In 1978, Agashe became the sole managing director of the Brihan Maharashtra Sugar Syndicate upon his brother's retirement from the office. In 1979, he was the credited printer for the book संस्कृतीच्या मळवाटा (), a critique of Hindu culture by C. P. Bhishikar. In 1983, he was the credited printer for M. A. Bhagwat's letters on the history of Marathi theatre at the Balmohan Vidyamandir, and by 1984, he was on the editorial board of the Solapur chapter of the Maharashtra Sahitya Parishad. By 1985, Agashe worked as a promoter for several cricket matches and tournaments within India, as well as in the United Kingdom and the Middle East. In January 1986, he interviewed S. L. Kirloskar for the Mahratta Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture.
Agashe donated to the Maharashtra Vidya Mandal after his brother Panditrao's death in November 1986, after whom the Panditrao Agashe School was named. He also founded the Chandrashekhar Agashe High School, Chandrashekhar Agashe Junior College and Indirabai Agashe High School on the family's estate in the town of Shreepur, Maharashtra. In 1987, Agashe was part of the inquiry made by Shankarrao Chavan about Sharad Pawar's foreign assets. That same year, during the 1987 Cricket World Cup, while serving as secretary for the Maharashtra Cricket Association, he predicted a low turn out for the match between Sri Lanka and England.
Agashe served as chairman to Kolhapur Steel, after the syndicate had begun work in metal printing under his brother in the early 1980s. He started a unit in Canada for Taj Rum by the late 1980s. He diversified the syndicate into pharmaceuticals, power generation, publication (with Mandar Printing Press), and real estate by the early 1990s. In November 1986, he was one of the shareholders named in the lawsuit against the Sakal Media Group filed by the heirs of Nanasaheb Parulekar. In 1987, he was one of the managers for the Indian cricket team's tour of the United Kingdom. In 1988, he also represented the interests of private sugar companies when the Government of Maharashtra promoted the nationalisation of sugar factories, and was serving as president of the Deccan Sugar Factory Association by that same year. In 1989, he was elected to the post of executive chairman for the Maharashtra Cricket Association. That same year, he was listed as a director for Sakal Papers.
Established businessman and cricket administrator: 1990–2003 In 1990, Agashe took over as chairman of the board of directors for the syndicate upon the death of S. L. Limaye. In 1991, he attended the International Cricket Council meeting as vice-president of the BCCI, putting forth India's proposal to not renew the veto rights which were enjoyed by Australia and England as founding members of the council, and further proposing India's opposition to South Africa's participation in the 1992 Cricket World Cup, along with India's request to host the 1996 Cricket World Cup.
In April 1992, Agashe chaired the meeting, in his role as chairman of the junior committee, which finalised the programme for the England under-19 cricket team visiting India, and for the India national under-19 cricket team visiting South Africa that year. In July of the same year, some sources reported that Agashe, along with board secretary C Nagaraj, voted against India's bid for hosting, or Pakistan’s bid for co-hosting, the 1996 Cricket World Cup at that year's ICC annual meeting. In August, it was announced that the BCCI had set up a panel, with Agashe as its chief, looking into hosting the 1995–1996 Cricket World Cup before submitting a formal bid in December 1992.