Baba Jaswant Singh
A.P. Singh

The legendary Baba Jaswant Singh who passed away in Calcutta on February 17, 2008, after prolonged illness was born in West Punjab, now part of Pakistan. In 1947, at the age of 13, the family migrated to the Indian side of the border, and settled down at Daltongunj (Bihar), now in the state of Jharkhand. He completed his education at Ranchi and Patna, with M.A. in Political Science, LLB and a Diploma in Labour & Social Welfare.

During his younger days as a student, he worked actively with Jaya Prakash Narain, popularising democratic and social reform that became a Movement sweeping across the country. He was instrumental in organizing the Sikh Educational Conference, being close to the intelligentsia and the Akali leadership in Punjab. His secular views and a broad horizon of political reform in the country kept him fairly close to the Congress leadership, including Mrs Indira Gandhi, even as he liaisoned with the Akalis and Communist leadership, including Mr Jyoti Basu. He was well regarded for in-depth perception of current affairs based on historical perspectives and futurist trends. In Eastern Region, he served as an Hony. Liaison officer for Govt. of Punjab. On the social front, he held modern reformist views and served to guide various Sikh organizations as their mentor.

After having served for sometime in managerial capacities with the Thapar & Mohta Groups, Baba Jaswant Singh was amongst the first generation of small-scale industrialists and exporters from the country. He was appointed to serve on the Railway Consultative Committee, as Director of Allahabad Bank and the then Telephone Advisory Committee. Besides, his expertise and knowledge in dealing with the affairs of the minorities kept him close to political leaders in Bengal and Punjab, including Giani Zail Singh. He was also nominated to serve on the Managing board of Takht Sri Harimandirji, Patna Sahib, where he was elected Hony. Secretary for 9 years. In eastern India, he worked to streamline various Gurdwara Committees to revive Panthic traditions.

He was known as an eloquent speaker and as a principled public figure who preferred to stick to values rather than make marriages of convenience. As an avid reader and contributor of a number of articles in Sikh and Punjabi press, he was instrumental in conducting various workshops and seminars in collaboration with The Sikh Cultural Centre, Kolkata.

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