His Satyashodhak Mandal contained both an elite based conservative trend and a genuine mass-based radicalism
He was the first to raise his voice against Brahmans in Maharashtra in the 1870s
Phule through his book Ghulamagiri (1872) and his organization Satyashodhak Mandal, proclaimed the need to save the lower castes from the hypocritical Brahmans and their scriptures
The urban educated Marathas were his most ardent followers
An Italian Physician, Gemelli Careri visited India in 1695 AD during the reign of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb and accounted the military organization and administration of Mughal empire at that time.