'Importantly, we stay away from corruption'

PANAJI: When Ines Cotta Carvalho arrived in Goa from Bombay to get married in 1967, little did she know she was going to be one of the 'nieces' of the 'Father of Goan nationalism' and organizer of the first independence movement to liberate Goa from Portuguese rule, Tristao Braganza Cunha
"I'd only heard about the independence movement and watched it on television, but I didn't know much beyond that, or about Cunha," says Ines, chairperson of the child welfare committee.
Ines was married to TB Cunha's sister Victoria de Braganza Cunha's son Ligorio who died in April 1970 and was named after TB Cunha's father Dr Ligorio de Cunha, editor of the newspaper, "Nacionalista". Even though she never met TB Cunha, the stories she's heard are endless. "He was very outspoken. That's how he managed to galvanize Goans to get their act together and fight against the Portuguese rule, and eventually get himself arrested," she says.
Her son Ranjit, grand nephew of Cunha, recalls his grand uncle being an avid reader. "I remember my grandmother taking my dad's eight-year-old sister Maria to the house where TB Cunha was born in Chandor. He gave her her first book which comprised proverbs and explained them to her. She was thrilled," says Ranjit. The mother-son duo also remembers another story where Cunha managed to escape prison in Portugal by accident. "He had many middle names that no one knew about. In the list of prisoners to be freed, one of those names was read out. Since they only knew him as Tristao, none of the officials realized he was going to be freed. TB Cunha seized the opportunity and fled to Bombay," says Ines, adding that this story's a favourite among the family.
Following in the footsteps of his uncle, Ligorio, who believed in a free Goa was the general secretary and one of the founding members of the Congress party in the state. Ines, too, was a part of the Mahila Congress, but later quit because of rampant corruption. Businessman Ranjit, on the other hand, chooses to stay away from politics, at least for now. "Most people from humble backgrounds join politics as a way to make money. I keep telling my mother that I need to be financially secure and competent enough to be a good, honest political leader," he says.
Stating that they "never use Cunha's name to get their way around", Ranjit says his family does their part to keep TB Cunha's name flying high. "We participate in functions to commemorate him, I accepted an award on behalf of my family given to TB Cunha when Wilfred de Sousa was the chief minister of Goa, and most importantly, we stay away from corruption," he says.