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Zail Singh
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Zail Singh

जैल सिंह

President of India from 1982 to 1987

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Giani Zail Singh (, born Jarnail Singh; 5 May 1916 – 25 December 1994) was an Indian politician who served as President of India from 1982 to 1987 and chief minister of Punjab in the 1970s. He was the first Sikh to become president.

Quick facts

Born
wd
Place of birth
Sandhwan wd
Died
wd
Place of death
Chandigarh wd
Citizenship
India, British Raj wd
Occupation
politician, badminton executive and administrator, freedom fighter wd
Political party
Indian National Congress wd

Positions held wd

  • Secretary General of the Non-Aligned Movement (12 March 1983 – 6 September 1986)
  • President of India (25 July 1982 – 25 July 1987)
  • Minister of Home Affairs (14 January 1980 – 22 June 1982)
  • Chief Minister of Punjab (17 March 1972 – 30 April 1977)
  • Member of the Lok Sabha
  • Member of the Punjab Legislative Assembly
  • Member of the 7th Lok Sabha

Awards wd

  • honorary doctor of Comenius University (1983)

About

Born in Sandhwan in the princely state of Faridkot, Singh trained to be a granthi and was given the title of giani, meaning a learned man, while training at the Sikh Missionary School in Amritsar. Singh was associated with peasant agitations and the movement seeking a representative government in Faridkot. His political activism in the Praja Mandal, an organisation allied with the Indian National Congress, saw him sentenced to solitary confinement between 1938 and 1943. He led a flag satyagraha and formed a parallel government in Faridkot State which were called off only after the intervention of Jawaharlal Nehru and Vallabhbhai Patel. The stints in jail inspired him to change his name to Zail Singh.

After independence, Faridkot was merged with the Patiala and East Punjab States Union and Singh served as its minister of revenue and agriculture during 1949–51 and oversaw the introduction of land reforms in Punjab. Singh was a member of the Rajya Sabha during 1956–62 and member of the Punjab Legislative Assembly during 1962–67 during which time he served briefly as a minister under Partap Singh Kairon. He had served as president of PEPSU Pradesh Congress Committee during 1955–56 and became president of Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee in 1966 serving in that post until his election as chief minister of Punjab in 1972.

As chief minister, Singh is credited with having established India’s first semiconductor manufacturing unit in Mohali, legislating the Punjab Land Reforms Act of 1972, ensuring reservation for Mazhabi Sikhs and Valmikis in education and public employment and repatriating the remains of Udham Singh which were then…

Questions

When was Zail Singh born?
Zail Singh was born on 5 May 1916 in Sandhwan.
What positions has Zail Singh held?
Positions held by Zail Singh include: Secretary General of the Non-Aligned Movement (1983–1986); President of India (1982–1987); Minister of Home Affairs (1980–1982); Chief Minister of Punjab (1972–1977); Member of the Lok Sabha.

Sources

  1. Wikipedia (English): Zail Singh · CC BY-SA 4.0
  2. Wikipedia (Nepali): जैल सिंह · CC BY-SA 4.0
  3. Wikidata item Q334851 · CC0 1.0
  4. Image: President Giani Zail Singh (cropped).jpg by President's Secretariat (GODL-India)

Last updated · facts checked 7 November 2026

Cite this page

"Zail Singh". DigiNepal. Last updated 3 November 2026. https://diginpl.com/people/zail-singh. Retrieved 7 November 2026.

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Text from the Wikipedia article Zail Singh, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page's text is shared under the same licence. Facts from Wikidata (CC0). Image: President Giani Zail Singh (cropped).jpg — President's Secretariat, GODL-India.

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