Giani Zail Singh (Punjabi: ਜ਼ੈਲ ਸਿੰਘ, May 5, 1916 - December 25, 1994) was an Indian politician and member of the Congress Party. He served as the seventh President of India between 1982 and 1987.
Sardar Zail Singh, a Sikh by religion, was given the title of Giani, as he was educated and learned about Guru Granth Sahib. He had a humble start in life and his father was a carpenter who was killed in an automobile accident.
Zail Singh's public life was long and varied - freedom fighter, state Congress leader, Chief Minister, Union Home Minister and the president of India. A fighter against princedom, feudalism and foreign domination in the pre-independence days, he is also remembered for his crusade against communalism, economic disparities and social injustice in the republic. He also served as Chief Minister of Punjab. He was the President of India when the 1984 anti-Sikh riots took place in New Delhi.
[edit] President of India
Giani Zail Singh was elected to the highest office of the President of India on July 15, 1982 and took the oath of office on July 25, 1982. He was critiqued for his subservient attitude to the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. He was President, when Indira Gandhi launched Operation Blue Star, an attack on Sikhs fighting for equal rights within India occupying the highest sacred shrine of Sikhism that resulted in thousands of deaths. Rajiv Gandhi became Prime Minister after the assassination of his mother by two of her Sikh bodyguards. Even though Zail Singh had strained relations with Rajiv Gandhi, he declined to embarrass his government by seeking re-election as President of India with the support of non-Congress parties. Following his accidental death, Zail Singh was cremated in the vicinity of the Raj Ghat.
Giani Zail Singh the President of India at Award giving Ceremony at Durbar Hall Rashtrapati Bhawan, New Delhi.
