Gurnam Singh

Gurnam Singh (Punjabi: ਗੁਰਨਾਮ ਸਿੰਘ; 25 February 1899 – 31 May 1973 in Delhi) was an Indian politician and the Chief Minister of Punjab from March 8, 1967 to November 25, 1967, and again between February 17, 1969 to March 27, 1970. He was the first Shiromani Akali Dal Chief minister of Punjab. His ministry fell due to defection of Lachhman Singh Gill, who became the next Chief Minister with the support of the Indian National Congress. He died in an air crash in Delhi on 31 May 1973.

Early life

Singh was born in Narangwal, Ludhiana on 25 February 1899 in a Grewal family. He graduated from the Forman Christian College, Lahore. He captained the hockey team of Punjab University.

Law career

Singh practiced Law in Lyallpur (Present day Faisalabad, Pakistan). Later he served as the president of the Bar Association, there. During the partition of Punjab, Singh moved to Punjab, India. He was made the judge of the PEPSU and Punjab High Courts in 1950. He retired from this post in 1959.

Political career

Gurnam Singh (athlete)

Gurnam Singh (born in Punjab, India on August 16, 1931) was the former Indonesian track and field athlete who won three gold medals in the fourth Asian Games in 1962 in Jakarta, winning the medals for marathon, 5000 and 10000 meters run. The government awarded him with 20 cows, two cars, as well as a house in the Sawo Alley, Medan for his feat. After that his life began to be uncertain; his wife left him and took his six children with her in 1969. And in 1972, his house was demolished by the regional government for not having permission to erect the building (IMB). Since that time he became a homeless person, staying in a relative's house to another. Finally, in 2003, he lives in the special school for Indian descendants in Medan.

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