The genius of Ranade lies in the fact that he used data to substantiate his economic arguments. He used ballpark estimates when data wasn’t easily available.
Mehta’s advocacy of local self-governance and moderation in politics though had to face challenges from the political extremism of Tilak which demanded “poorna swaraj”.
In his resort to rational argumentation, use of pamphlets to persuade public opinion and submission of a petition to the government, Vidyasagar emerges as a quintessential classical liberal.