Mr.Charan Singh the 5th prime minister of India (1979-1980)

Chaudhary Charan Singh (23 December 1902 - 29 May 1987)-was the Prime Minister of the Republic of India, serving from 28 July 1979 until 14 January 1980 (170 days).Historians and people alike frequently refer to him as the 'champion of India's peasants.

Charan Singh was born in a Jat family in 1902 in village Bhadola of Ghaziabad District in Uttar Pradesh Charan Singh entered politics as part of the Independence Movement motivated by Mohandas Gandhi. He was active from 1931 in the Ghaziabad District Arya Samaj as well as the Meerut District Indian National Congress for which he was jailed twice by the British. Before independence, as a member of Legislative Assembly of the United Provinces elected in 1937, he took a deep interest in the laws that were detrimental to the village economy and he slowly built his ideological and practical stand against the exploitation of tillers of the land by landlords.

Between 1952 and 1967, he was one of "three principal leaders in Congress state politics."He became particularly notable in Uttar Pradesh from the 1950s for drafting and ensuring the passage of what were then the most revolutionary land reform laws in any state in India under the tutelage of the then Chief Minister Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant; first as Parliamentary Secretary and then as Revenue Minister responsible for Land Reforms.

PERSONAL BACKGROUND

Charan Singh was born in a Jat family in 1902 in village Bhadola of Ghaziabad District in Uttar Pradesh Charan Singh entered politics as part of the Independence Movement motivated by Mohandas Gandhi. Charan Singh's ancestor was a prominent leader of the Indian Rebellion of 1857, Raja Nahar Singh of Ballabhgarh, Greater Panjab (in present-day Haryana). Nahar Singh was sent to the gallows in Chandni Chowk, Delhi. In order to escape the oppression from the British Government following their defeat, the Maharaja's followers, including Charan Singh's grandfather moved eastward to district Bulandshaher in Uttar Pradesh.

Charan Singh followed Mahatma Gandhi in non-violent struggle for independence from the British Government, and was imprisoned several times. In 1930, he was sent to jail for 6 months by the British for contravention of the salt laws. He was jailed again for one year in November 1940 for individual Satyagraha movement. In August 1942 he was jailed again by the British under DIR and released in November 1943.

FAMILY BACKGROUND

His wife died in 2002.He had 1 son and 4 daughters his grand son is also a Indian Politician. (NAMES ARE MENTIONED BELOW)

Father-Netar Kaur

Mother-Mir Singh

Spouse-Gayatri Devi

Son-Ajit Singh

Daughter-Gyanvati Singh,Vedvati Singh,Sharda Singh,Satyavati Solanki

Grand Son-Jayant Chaudhary

PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND

He dint have any professional back ground because he joined politics at a very early age.

POLITICAL CAREER AFTER INDEPENDENCE

In 1952, he became the Revenue Minister of state of Uttar Pradesh, the most populous state in independent India. He was dedicated to enforcing and implementing the provisions of the Zamindari Abolition and Land Reform Act of which he was the major architect. It has been argued by leading political scientists that success of Indian Democracy lies in successful implementation of this reform.

Pakistan on the other hand did not have similar reforms, and the power is concentrated amongst the few powerful landlords or Zamindar who run their lands as their private fiefdom, and use their influence to further their wealth.

Charan Singh opposed Nehru on his Soviet Style Economic reform. Charan Singh was of the opinion that cooperative farms would not succeed in India. Being a son of a farmer, Charan Singh opined that the right of ownership was important to the farmer in remaining a cultivator. Charan Singh's political career suffered due to his open criticism of Nehru's economic policy.

Charan Singh left the Congress party in 1967, and formed his own political party. With the help and support of Raj Narain and Dr Ram Manohar Lohiya, he became Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh in 1967, and later in 1970. In 1975, he was jailed again, but this time by then Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, daughter of his former rival Nehru. She had declared the state of 'Indian Emergency (1975-1977)' and jailed all her political opponents. The Indian populace voted her out, and the opposition party, of which Chaudhary Charan Singh was a senior leader came into power. He served as Deputy prime minister and home minister in Janata government headed by Morarji Desai.

He became Prime Minister in 1979 after Morarji Desai. His speech to the nation on India's Independence Day (15 August 1979) was very prophetic in which he identified Pakistan's nuclear ambition as a major threat to India. He also mentioned that Indian labour laws had to be refined if India were to become competitive in world economy. He also opened high level diplomatic relations with Israel, which Indira Gandhi's government which took office following the 1980 elections curtailed.'

Charan Singh died on 29 May 1987. He was survived by his wife, Gayatri Devi and 6 children. His grandson Jayant Chaudhary is recently elected to 15th Lok Sabha from Mathura.

BOOKS WRITTEN

1). India's Economic Policy - The Gandhian Blueprint

2). Economic Nightmare of India - Its Cause and Cure

3). Cooperative Farming X-rayed

THE TRUE INDIAN RESIDES IN HIS VILLAGE