New Delhi, 20 March 2014 :: Khushwant Singh, Indian novelist and journalist, died at the age of 99 at his residence in New Delhi on March 20, 2014
He was born in Hadali (now in Pakistan) on February 2, 1915 in a Sikh family. His father, Sir Sobha Singh (builder), was a prominent builder in Lutyens’ Delhi. His uncle Sardar Ujjal Singh (1895–1983) was Ex. Governor of Punjab & Tamil Nadu.
He was educated at Modern School, New Delhi, Government College, Lahore, St. Stephen’s College in Delhi and King’s College London.
He was a lawyer-turned-diplomat-turned-writer. His autobiography, “Truth, Love and a Little Malice”, was published by Penguin Books in 2002.
He was editor of several literary and news magazines, including the Illustrated Weekly of India as well as two newspapers, the Hindustan Times and the National Herald, through the 1970s and 1980s.
Khushwant Singh was nominated to the Rajya Sabha by the government under late Indira Gandhi. He was a Member of Parliament from 1980 to 1986.
He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1974 but returned the decoration in 1984 in protest against the storming of the Golden Temple in Amritsar by the army.
In 2007, he was awarded the Padma Vibhushan.
He was known for his classics such as ‘Train to Pakistan’ and ‘I Shall Not Hear the Nightingale’ among a host of other works.
