Zail Singh Biography 
Zail Singh was an Indian politician who belonged to the Congress Party. He was the seventh President of India. He was in this position during the assassination of Indira Gandhi, Operation Blue Star and 1984 anti-Sikh riots. His full name was Sardar Zail Singh and he was a Sikh by religion. He learned about Guru Granth Sahib at Shaheed Sikh Missionary College in Amritsar and so he was given the title of Giani that he was called as Giani Zail Singh.
He was born on 5th May 1916 in the village of Sandhwan which is now named as Giani Zail Singh Sandhwan in his honor. His father was Bhai Kishan Singh. Zail Singh was democratic in his views and opposed the autocratic Raja Harindar Singh of Fareedkot. He was called to serve as the Revenue Minister of the newly formed states of Patiala, Jind, Nabha, Kapurthala, Faridkot, Kalsia, Nalagarh and Malerkotla. Later he became Agriculture Minister and served as the member of India’s upper house of parliament.
He was elected as the Chief Minister of Punjab in 1972. He followed Sikh traditions and named a highway after Guru Gobind Singh. He was elected as the member of the Lok Sabha in the 1980 election. He was made as the cabinet Minister for Home Affairs in the Indira Gandhi’s period.
He succeeded Neelam Sanjiva Reddy as the President of India. On 15th July 1982, he was unanimously elected for the post. He was always loyal to the former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. When Indira Gandhi died, he appointed Rajiv Gandhi as her successor. He served as the President of India till 1987. He earned applause from the civil society when he refused to sign the Postal Amendment Bill in 1986.
He suffered an auto crash near Kiratpur Sahib in Ropar district on 29th November 1994 and this led to his death on 25th December 1994 at the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences in Chandigarh.
Published: N/A
Updated: January 14, 2013
