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Zail Singh Biography

Gyani Zail Singh was the first Sikh to serve as the President of

the Republic of India. This biography of Gyani Zail Singh

provides detailed information about his childhood, life,

achievements, works & timeline.

Quick Facts

Also Known As Gyani Zai l Singh

Famous as President of India

Nationality Indian

Religion Sikh

Born on 05 May 1916 AD

Zodiac Sign Taurus

Born in Faridkot, Punjab, India

Died on 25 December 1994 AD

Place of death Chandigarh, India

Father Bhai Kishan Singh

Mother Mata Ind Kaur

Spouse: Pardhan Kaur

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Gyani Zail Singh, who served as the seventh President of the

Republic of India was the first Sikh to serve in this post. He was

a very religious person and had in depth knowledge about the

Guru Granth Sahib even though he lacked formal seculareducation. He was a freedom fighter and social reformer who

always emphathized with the downtrodden and did all that he

could possibly do for the upliftment of the society. He was

interested in politics from an early age and was deeply

influenced by the martyrdom of Bhagat Singh and his

companions who gave up their precious lives fighting for the

freedom of the country. Young Zail, who was just 16 at the timeof the incident resolved to follow in their footsteps and

contribute towards the welfare of his nation. He fervently

participated in nationalist activities and was frequently

imprisoned, even kept in solitary confinement. Yet nothing could

break the determined mans spirit. As fate would have it, this

aspiring politician soon joined the Indian National Congress and

held several prestigious posts in the cabinet before beingelected the president of India.

Childhood & Early Life

He was born in a mud house to a poor family in Faridkot

district in Punjab, India. His fathers name was Bhai

Kishan Singh while his mother was Mata Ind Kaur. His

father worked as the village carpenter.

He was the youngest among six siblings who included five

brothers and a sister. Tragedy struck the close-knit family

when his mother died when he was just a child. The

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children were later brought up by their mothers sister.

His family, though humble also had a small piece of land

to till. Zail Singh was brought up in a religious

environment by his family and became well versed in the

holy scriptures of the Sikhs by an early age.

As a teenager he was accepted into the Shahid SikhMissionary College at Amritsar in spite of the fact that he

did not have a matriculation certificate. However, he was a

very confident young man highly skilled in the art of public

speaking.

While in college he acquired the title Gyani because of

his knowledge of the Guru Granth Sahib and because of

his extensive training in religious studies. He was veryfluent in Punjabi and Urdu and could hold his audience in

a trance with his oratory skills.

In 1931, Bhagat Singh and his companions Sukhdev and

Rajguru were hanged to death by the British for their

extremist nationalist activities. Zail Singh who was just 15

at that time was deeply impacted by the incident.

Career

He was actively involved in politics from his teenage and

had joined the Shiromani Akali Dal when he was just 15.

By the time he reached his 20s in the late 1930s, his

political aspirations had begun to take on a new fervor.

In 1938 he established the Praja Mandal, which was a

political organization allied to the Congress party in

Faridkot. This did not go down well with the Maharaja of

Faridkot who saw the opening of a Congress branch in the

city as a threat to his power.

Zail Singh was captured and imprisoned. For five years he

was kept in solitary confinement and was also tortured for

his political activities. Yet the young man never lost heart

and held on strongly to his ideals.

After India became independent , he was appointed as the

Revenue Minister of the recently formed Patiala and East

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Punjab States Union (PEPSU). His contributions to the

farmers of PEPSU in removing inequalities and providing

them their rights was immense.

After his able leadership as the Revenue Minister of

PEPSU, he was made the Minister of Agriculture in 1951.

In 1956 PEPSU was integrated with the state of Punjaband Zail Singh became a member of the Rajya Sabha

where he served till 1962.

In the 1972 Punjab Assembly elections, Congress came to

the power and Giani Zail Singh became the Chief Minister

of Punjab. A freedom fighter himself, he arranged for

lifelong pension scheme for freedom fighters of Punjab.

He was also very religious and held huge religiousmeetings and named a highway after Guru Gobind Singh.

He joined Indira Gandhis cabinet as Minister of Home

Affairs in 1980 and was elected to be the President in

1982. However his detractors were of the opinion that he

was selected as a President for being an Indira loyalist

rather than for his capabilities.

He was accused of being a mute bystander when the

Operation Blue Star happened in June 1984. When the

government troops stormed the Harmandir Sahib, the

Sikhs holiest shrine in Amritsar and caused much

bloodshed, Zail Singh could do nothing.

He faced a very difficult time after the assassination of

Indira Gandhi in October 1984 after which her son RajivGandhi was appointed the Prime Minister. He never got

along with Rajiv Gandhi though he served as the

president till 1987.

Major Achievem ents

Gyani Zail Singh served as the seventh President of India

from 1982 to 1987. He was the first Sikh to hold this

position. His presidency was, however, marked by several

controversial issues like Operation Blue Star and anti-Sikh

riots following the assassination of Indira Gandhi.

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Personal Life & Legacy

He was married to Pardhan Kaur and was blessed with

one son and three daughters.

He was involved in a vehicle accident in November 1994

in which he was seriously hurt. He succumbed to his

injuries on 25 December 1994.