Sardar Ujjal Singh

Sardar Ujjal Singh Biography

Sardar Ujjal Singh was an Indian politician and administrator who lived in the 20^th century. He lived during the period 27 December 1895 – 15 February 1983. He also served as the governor of two Indian states in the 1960s in the post-independent era. He was first appointed as governor of Punjab on 1 September 1965, followed by governor of Tamil Nadu on 28 June 1966, a position he served for next one year. He was also known as a financial expert. He was the paternal uncle of great Indian writer and lawyer Khushwant Singh. His brother Sir Sobha Singh was one of the key witnesses of 1929 Assembly Bomb Case, which resulted in the infamous execution of famous revolutionary Bhagat Singh, Raj Guru and Sukhdev.

Sardar Ujjal Singh, also addressed as Ujjal Singh was born in British Punjab on 27 December 1895 into a rich family which owned vast farms and agricultural land. His birthplace now belongs to Pakistan. His father was a trader. He initially studied at Gurmukhi school followed by Makatab madarsa where he learnt Urdu and Persian. He later studied at Amritsar followed by Government College Lahore, where he received his Master’s degree in history. He was in born in Sindhi Sagar Doab of the Punjab (now in Pakistan). Following partition, Sardar was forced to move to India leaving behind his vast property. He reached India as a refugee.

He was quite active in politics in pre-independent era and served as a member of the Punjab Legislative Council for three long decades without a break since 1926. In 1956 he was appointed as a member of the Finance Commission. In the 1960s he served as governor of Punjab and Tamil Nadu, and has been a member of many committees. He passed away on 15 February 1983.

Published: March 23, 2019

Updated: March 23, 2019