Sardar Hukam Singh
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Sardar Hukam Singh (30 August 1895 – 27 May 1983) was an Indian politician and the third
Speaker of the Lok Sabha The speaker of the Lok Sabha (IAST: ) is the presiding officer and the highest official of the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India. The speaker is elected generally in the first meeting of the Lok Sabha following general el ...
and second
Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha The Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha (IAST: ) is the second highest ranking legislative officer of the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India. They act as the presiding officer in case of leave or absence caused by death or illnes ...
from 1962 to 1967. He was also governor of
Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...
from 1967 to 1972.


Early life

Hukam Singh was born at Montgomery in
Sahiwal District Sahiwal District (Punjabi language, Punjabi and ur, ), formerly known as Montgomery district, is a Districts of Pakistan, district in the Punjab (Pakistan), Punjab Subdivisions of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. In 1998, it had a population of ...
(presently in
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
). His father Sham Singh was a businessman. He passed his matriculation examination from the Government High School, Montgomery in 1913 and graduated from the Khalsa College, Amritsar, in 1917. He passed his LL.B. examination in 1921 from the Law College, Lahore and subsequently set up a practice as lawyer in Montgomery. A devout
Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...
, Hukam Singh took part in the movement to free Sikh Gurdwaras from British political influence. When the
Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee ( SGPC; "Supreme Gurdwara Management Committee") is an organization in India responsible for the management of Gurdwaras, Sikh places of worship in states of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh and the union ...
(Supreme Gurdwara Management Committee) was declared unlawful and most of its leaders arrested in October 1923, the Sikhs formed another organisation of the same name. Sardar Hukam Singh was a member of this Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) and was one of those who were arrested on 7 January 1924 and sentenced to two years imprisonment. He was subsequently elected a member of the SGPC at the first elections held under the
Sikh Gurdwaras Act, 1925 The Sikh Gurdwaras Act, 1925 was a piece of legislation in British India which legally defined Sikh identity and brought Sikh gurdwaras (houses of worship) under the control of an elected body of orthodox Sikhs. Gurdwara reform movement Prior to ...
, and continued to be elected successively for many years. He also participated in the anti-Simon Commission demonstrations in 1928 and was injured and arrested during a police baton charge on a procession in the streets of Montgomery. Montgomery town, as well as the district of that name, fell in the predominantly Muslim majority region of Punjab, and Sikhs and Hindus faced a grave threat to their lives at the hands of Muslim fanatics, especially during the riots that broke out following the declaration of the
partition of India The Partition of British India in 1947 was the Partition (politics), change of political borders and the division of other assets that accompanied the dissolution of the British Raj in South Asia and the creation of two independent dominions: ...
and creation of Pakistan in August 1947. Most Hindus and Sikhs of the district, including Hukam Singh's family, took refuge in the walled compound of Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha of which he himself was the president. He went about the town evacuating people from their houses, burying the dead, and evacuating the dying to hospital at grave personal risk. He was at the top of the rioters' hit list, when, during the night of 19–20 August 1947, a British officer of the Punjab Boundary Force evacuated him, penniless and disguised in a khaki uniform, to the
Firozpur Firozpur, also known as Ferozepur, is a city on the banks of the Sutlej River in Firozpur District, Punjab, India. After the partition of India in 1947, it became a border town on the India–Pakistan border with memorials to soldiers who di ...
army base. After about ten days, Hukam Singh learned that his family had arrived safely in
Jalandhar Jalandhar is the third most-populous city in the Indian state of Punjab and the largest city in Doaba region. Jalandhar lies alongside the Grand Trunk Road and is a well-connected rail and road junction. Jalandhar is northwest of the state ...
. He then traced them to a refugee camp where he was able eventually to rejoin them. Giani Kartar Singh, a vastly influential Sikh leader of those days, introduced Sardar Hukam Singh to the Maharaja of
Kapurthala Kapurthala is a city in Punjab state of India. It is the administrative headquarters of Kapurthala District. It was the capital of the Kapurthala State, a princely state in British India. The aesthetic mix of the city with its prominent build ...
for a position as judge. The maharaja, who himself had taken to English ways of dress, was not at all pleased to see his prospective employee arriving in a traditional Punjabi tunic. As it happened, the prime minister made excuses for Sardar Hukam Singh, saying that as a refugee he had been unable to purchase proper attire. With that, he was hired as a Judge of the Kapurthala High Court.


Political career

Hukam Singh entered politics through the
Shiromani Akali Dal The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) (translation: ''Supreme Akali Party'') is a centre-right sikh-centric state political party in Punjab, India. The party is the second-oldest in India, after Congress, being founded in 1920. Although there are many ...
and was its President for three years. He was also a member of the Montgomery Singh Sabha and its President for three years. Consequent upon
Partition Partition may refer to: Computing Hardware * Disk partitioning, the division of a hard disk drive * Memory partition, a subdivision of a computer's memory, usually for use by a single job Software * Partition (database), the division of a ...
, some seats in the
Constituent Assembly of India The Constituent Assembly of India was elected to frame the Constitution of India. It was elected by the 'Provincial Assembly'. Following India's independence from the British rule in 1947, its members served as the nation's first Parliament as ...
had become vacant. On a motion from Gurmukh Singh Musafir, the Assembly, on 27 January 1948 approved a motion to include two Sikh and two Hindu members elected from
East Punjab East Punjab (known simply as Punjab from 1950) was a province and later a state of India from 1947 until 1966, consisting of the parts of the Punjab Province of British India that went to India following the partition of the province between ...
. Hukam Singh was elected to the Constituent Assembly of India on 30 April 1948 as a member of the Shiromani Akali Dal. He actively participated in the Constituent Assembly's debates, and only a year after his entry was nominated to the panel of its chairman. He continued to be on the panel till his unanimous election as Deputy Speaker on 20 March 1956, this even though he was a member of the Opposition. This was a testimony not only to his popularity, but also to the confidence of the members in his ability to run the House in an efficient and impartial manner. Although in March 1948 the Shiromani Akali Dal had directed all Akali legislators to join the Congress legislature en bloc, Hukam Singh continued to function in opposition. He stubbornly fought for the protection of the rights of the minorities and, failing to obtain protection for Sikhs as a religious minority, refused to put his signature to the new constitution. He was also a member of the Provisional Parliament (1950–52). In the
1st Lok Sabha The First Lok Sabha was constituted on 17 April 1952 after India's first general election. The 1st Lok Sabha lasted its full tenure of five years and was dissolved on 4 April 1957. The First Session of this Lok Sabha commenced on 13 May 1952. ...
, Hukam Singh was elected from Kapurthala Bhatinda constituency in PEPSU state as an Akali Party candidate. He became the secretary of the National Democratic Front led by
Shyama Prasad Mookerjee Syama Prasad Mukherjee (6 July 1901 – 23 June 1953) was an Indian politician, barrister and academician, who served as India's first Minister for Industry and Supply (currently known as Ministry of Commerce and Industry) in Jawaharlal Nehru' ...
, who was its president. Later he joined and remained in the
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
political party. On 20 March 1956, Hukam Singh was unanimously elected as the Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha. In 1957, he was elected to the
2nd Lok Sabha The Second Lok Sabha (5 April 1957 – 31 March 1962) was elected after the 1957 Indian general election. The 2nd Lok Sabha lasted its full tenure of five years till 1962. 15 sitting members from Rajya Sabha were elected to 2nd Lok Sabha after ...
from Bhatinda constituency as a
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
candidate. He was elected as Deputy Speaker of the 2nd Lok Sabha on 17 May 1957. In 1962, he was elected to the
3rd Lok Sabha List of Members of the 3rd Lok Sabha, (2 April 1962 – 3 March 1967) elected February–March 1962. The Lok Sabha (House of the People) is the lower house in the Parliament of India. The election was held for 494 seats out of which Indian nati ...
from Patiala constituency as a
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
candidate.


Speaker of the Lok Sabha

He became speaker of the 3rd Lok Sabha (India's Lower House of Parliament) on 17 April 1962. As speaker of the Lok Sabha, Sardar Hukam Singh firmly upheld the supremacy of the legislature over the executive branch of government. He also ensured that decorum and discipline were observed in the House. If a member rose and spoke without being identified by the Chair, he would not catch the Speaker's eye. If the member persisted in continuing, he would not be asked to speak in the future. In extreme cases, the Speaker would instruct reporters not to record such speeches. Hukam Singh presided impartially over debates on many subjects. The Defence of India Act was one of the major legislations passed by the House in the wake of the
Sino-Indian War The Sino-Indian War took place between China and India from October to November 1962, as a major flare-up of the Sino-Indian border dispute. There had been a series of violent border skirmishes between the two countries after the 1959 Tib ...
in 1962. He also maintained decorum during the stormy debates when, for the first time in the history of the Lok Sabha, no confidence motions against the Council of Ministers were admitted and discussed in the House. He was also the chairman of the Parliamentary Committee formed in October 1965 to find a solution to the issue of
Punjabi Suba The Punjabi Suba movement was a long-drawn political agitation, launched by Punjabi speaking people (mostly Sikhs) demanding the creation of a Punjabi Suba, or Punjabi-speaking state, in the post-independence Indian state of East Punjab. Led ...
. The longstanding deadlock over this issue was overcome when the committee gave its verdict in favour of a Punjabi State reorganised on a linguistic basis.


Activities in retirement

Sardar Hukam Singh was appointed governor of
Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...
after his retirement from elected duties in 1967. He served as governor until 1 July 1972, when he settled down in Delhi. Sardar Hukam Singh's retirement did not last long, however. In March 1973, the
Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee ( SGPC; "Supreme Gurdwara Management Committee") is an organization in India responsible for the management of Gurdwaras, Sikh places of worship in states of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh and the unio ...
formed the Sri Guru Singh Sabha Shatabdi (centenary) Committee to celebrate the centenary of the Singh Sabha movement launched in 1873 with Hukam Singh as president. In this role, he participated in a tour of North America and Europe, touring the newfound domain of Sikhism in the Western Hemisphere, with special attention to the mission established by Siri Singh Sahib Harbhajan Singh Khalsa Yogiji (
Yogi Bhajan Harbhajan Singh Khalsa (born Harbhajan Singh Puri) (August 26, 1929 – October 6, 2004), also known as Yogi Bhajan and Siri Singh Sahib to his followers, was an Indian-born American entrepreneur, yoga guru, and spiritual teacher. He introduce ...
). Sardar Hukam Singh was accompanied on this trip in the summer of 1974 by
Gurcharan Singh Tohra Panth Rattan Shiri Gurcharan Singh Tohra (24 September 1924 – 1 April 2004) was a president of Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), a Sikh body in charge of controlling Gurdwara (Sikh places of worship). He died of a heart attack ...
, SGPC President and
Surjit Singh Barnala Surjit Singh Barnala (21 October 1925 – 14 January 2017) was an Indian politician who served as the chief minister of Punjab state from 1985 to 1987. Following that he served as the governor of Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh , l ...
.Siri Guru Singh Sabha Shatabdi Committee official communique dated 18 July 1974.


Author and editor

As an eloquent lover of Sikhism, Sardar Hukam Singh launched the ''Spokesman'' English weekly in Delhi in 1951, and served as its editor for many years. He is also the author of two books in English, ''The Sikh Cause'' and ''The Problem of the Sikhs''.


References


Further reading

* Major Gurmukh Singh, "Sardar Hukam Singh", The Encyclopedia of Sikhism, Harbans Singh, Editor-in-Chief, Punjabi University, Patiala, 1996, pp. 292–94.


External links


A brief sketch - Lok sabha
{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Hukam Governors of Rajasthan People from Sahiwal District Speakers of the Lok Sabha Deputy Speakers of the Lok Sabha Members of the Constituent Assembly of India India MPs 1952–1957 India MPs 1957–1962 India MPs 1962–1967 1895 births 1983 deaths Indian Sikhs Lok Sabha members from Punjab, India Pro tem Speakers of the Lok Sabha Indian National Congress politicians Shiromani Akali Dal politicians