V. P. Singh

Vishwanath Pratap Singh (25 June 1931 – 27 Novem-ber 2008), Indian politician and government official, wasthe PrimeMinister of India (1989–90) and the 41st nom-inal Raja Bahadur (ruler) of the northern kingdom ofManda.Vishwanath Pratap Singh is known for trying to improvethe lot of India’s lower castes as a Prime Minister. Singhwas renowned for his obsession with honesty and his will-ingness to sacrifice office.[2]

1 Early career

Singh was born in the Rajput zamindar (traditionallandlord) family ruling the kingdom of Manda on 25June 1931.[3][4] He obtained his education from ColonelBrown Cambridge School, Dehra Dun and studied atAllahabad and Pune universities.[5]

Singh became a Member of the Legislative Assembly ofUttar Pradesh in 1969 as a member of the Indian NationalCongress (Congress Party). He won election to the LokSabha in 1971 and was appointed a Deputy Minister ofCommerce by PrimeMinister Indira Gandhi in 1974. Heserved as the Minister of Commerce in 1976–77.[6]

He was appointed by Indira Gandhi as the Chief Ministerof Uttar Pradesh in 1980, when Gandhi was re-elected af-ter the Janata interlude.[7] As Chief Minister (1980–82),he cracked down hard on dacoitry, a problem that wasparticularly severe in the rural districts of the south-westUttar Pradesh. He received much favorable national pub-licity when he offered to resign following a self-professedfailure to stamp out the problem, and again when he per-sonally oversaw the surrender of some of the most feareddacoits of the area in 1983.He resumed his post as Minister of Commerce in 1983.[8]A pivotal figure in the Indian politics, V.P. Singh was re-sponsible for bravely managing the coalition of the Leftand BJP against Rajiv Gandhi to dethrone him in the1989 elections. He is remembered for his magnificentact that he played in 1989 that changed the course of In-dian politics by becoming the PrimeMinister of India andmaking the backwards and Dalits eligible for electoralpolitics. But unlike other PrimeMinisters who came afterhim and made compromises, Singh acted boldly by issu-ing an arrest warrant against L.K. Advani midway throughhis rath yatra of Bharatiya Janata Party. By inducing con-fidence in his people through his actions and not just merewords, Singh had successfully established himself as a

person different from other politicians. He took a firmposition regarding issues of corruption and secular fabricof the Indian state.

2 Minister for Finance (1984-87)and Defence (1987)

Called to New Delhi following Rajiv Gandhi's mandatein the 1984 General Elections, Singh was appointed tothe post of Finance Minister, where he oversaw the grad-ual relaxation of the License Raj (governmental regula-tion) as Gandhi had in mind. During his term as FinanceMinister, he oversaw the reduction of gold smuggling byreducing gold taxes and giving the police a portion ofthe confiscated gold. He also gave extraordinary powersto the Enforcement Directorate of the Finance Ministry,the wing of the ministry charged with tracking down taxevaders, then headed by Bhure Lal. Singh’s efforts to re-duce governmental regulation of business and to prose-cute tax fraud attracted widespread praise.[9]

Following a number of high-profile raids on suspectedevaders – including Dhirubhai Ambani and AmitabhBachchan – Gandhi was forced to sack him as FinanceMinister, possibly because many of the raids were con-ducted on industrialists who had supported the Congressfinancially in the past.[10] However, Singh’s popularitywas at such a pitch that only a sideways move seemed tohave been possible, to the Defence Ministry (in January1987).[11]

Once ensconced in South Block, Singh began to inves-tigate the notoriously murky world of defence procure-ment. After a while, word began to spread that Singhpossessed information about the Bofors defence deal (theinfamous arms-procurement fraud) that could damageGandhi’s reputation.[12] Before he could act on it, he wasdismissed from the Cabinet and, in response, resigned hismemberships in the Congress Party (Indira) and the LokSabha.[13]

3 Formation of Janata Dal

Together with associates Arun Nehru and Arif Moham-mad Khan, Singh floated an opposition party named JanMorcha.[14] He was re-elected to Lok Sabha in a tightlycontested by-election from Allahabad, defeating SunilShastri.[15][16] On 11 October 1988, the birthday of the

1

2 4 PRIME MINISTER (1989-90)

original Janata coalition’s leader Jayaprakash Narayan,Singh founded the Janata Dal by the merger of Jan Mor-cha, Janata Party, Lok Dal and Congress (S), in order tobring together all the centrist parties opposed to the Ra-jiv Gandhi government, and VP Singh was elected thePresident of the Janata Dal. An opposition coalition ofthe Janata Dal with regional parties including the DravidaMunnetra Kazhagam, Telugu Desam Party, and AsomGana Parishad, came into being, called the NationalFront, with VP Singh as convener, NTRama Rao as Pres-ident, and P Upendra as a General Secretary.[17]

3.1 National Front coalition government

The National Front fought 1989 General Elections af-ter coming to an electoral understanding with BharatiyaJanata Party and the Left Front (the two main opposi-tions) that served to unify the anti-Congress vote. TheNational Front, with its allies, earned a simple majorityin the Lok Sabha and decided to form a government. TheBharatiya Janta Party under the leadeship of Atal BihariVajpayee and Lal Krishna Advani and the Left Front ledby EMS Namboodiripad of the Communist Party of In-dia (Marxist) and Indrajit Gupta of the Communist Partyof India declined to serve in the government, preferringto support the government from outside.In a meeting in the Central Hall of Parliament on 1 De-cember, VP Singh proposed the name of Devi Lal asPrime Minister, in spite of the fact that he himself hadbeen clearly projected by the anti-Congress forces as the'clean' alternative to Rajiv Gandhi and their Prime Min-isterial candidate. Devi Lal, a Jat leader from Haryanastood up and refused the nomination, and said that hewould prefer to be an 'elder uncle' to the Government,and that Singh should be Prime Minister.[18][19] This lastpart came as a clear surprise to Chandra Shekhar, the for-mer head of the erstwhile Janata Party, and Singh’s great-est rival within the Janata Dal. Shekhar, who had clearlyexpected that an agreement had been forged with Lal asthe consensus candidate, withdrew from the meeting andrefused to serve in the Cabinet.Singh was sworn in as India’s prime minister on 2 De-cember 1989.[20]

4 Prime Minister (1989-90)

Singh held office for slightly less than a year, from 2 De-cember 1989 to 10 November 1990. After state legisla-tive elections in March 1990, Singh’s governing coalitionachieved control of both houses of India’s parliament.[21]During this time, Janata Dal came to power in five In-dian states under Om Prakash Chautala (Banarsi DasGupta, Hukam Singh), Chimanbhai Patel, Biju Patnaik,Laloo Prasad Yadav, and Mulayam Singh Yadav, andthe National Front constituents in three more under M

Karunanidhi, NT Rama Rao, and Prafulla Kumar Ma-hanta. The Janata Dal also shared power in Kerala un-der EK Nayanar and in Rajasthan under Bhairon SinghShekhawat (supporting the Bharatiya Janata Party gov-ernment from outside). VP Singh decided to end the In-dian army’s unsuccessful operation in Sri Lanka whereRajiv Gandhi, his predecessor, had sent it to combat theTamil separatist movement.[22]

VP Singh faced his first crisis within few days of tak-ing office: terrorists kidnapped the daughter of his HomeMinister, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed (former Chief Min-ister of Jammu and Kashmir). His government agreed tothe demand for releasing militants in exchange; partly toend the storm of criticism that followed, he shortly there-after appointed JagmohanMalhotra, a former bureaucrat,as Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, on the insistence ofthe Bharatiya Janata Party.[23]

In Punjab, Singh replaced the hard-line SiddharthaShankar Ray as Governor with another former bureau-crat, Nirmal Kumar Mukarji, who moved forward ona timetable for fresh elections. Singh himself made amuch-publicised visit to the Golden Temple to ask for-giveness for Operation Blue Star and the combination ofevents caused the long rebellion in Punjab to die downmarkedly in a few months.[24]

VP Singh also thwarted the efforts of Pakistan underBenazir Bhutto to start a border war with India.[25][26][27]

4.1 Mandal Commission report

Singh himself wished to move forward nationally on so-cial justice-related issues, which would in addition con-solidate the caste coalition that supported the Janata Dalin northern India, and accordingly decided to implementthe recommendations of the Mandal Commission whichsuggested that a fixed quota of all jobs in the public sec-tor be reserved for members of the historically disadvan-taged so-called Other Backward Classes.[28] This deci-sion led to widespread protests among the upper casteyouth in urban areas in northern India. OBC reservation(less creamy layer) was upheld by the Supreme Court in2008.[29][30]

4.2 Tussle with Reliance group

In 1990, the government-owned financial institutions likethe Life Insurance Corporation of India and the GeneralInsurance Corporation stonewalled attempts by the Re-liance group to acquire managerial control over Larsen& Toubro. Sensing defeat, the Ambanis resigned fromthe board of the company. Dhirubhai, who had becomeLarsen & Toubro’s chairman in April 1989, had to quithis post to make way for D. N. Ghosh, former chairmanof the State Bank of India.

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4.3 Ram temple issue and the fall of thecoalition

Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party was moving itsown agenda forward. In particular, the Ram Janmab-hoomi agitation, which served as a rallying cry for sev-eral radical Hindu organisations, took on new life. Theparty president, LK Advani, with Pramod Mahajan asaide, toured the northern states on a rath – a bus con-verted to look like a mythical chariot – with the intentionof drumming up support.[31] Before he could completethe tour by reaching the disputed site in Ayodhya, he wasarrested on Singh’s orders at Samastipur on the chargesof disturbing the peace and fomenting communal tension.The kār-seva (demolition of the mosque and constructionof the temple) proposed by Advani on 30 October 1990was prevented by stationing troops at the site.[32][33][34]

This led to the Bharatiya Janata Party’s suspension of sup-port to theNational Front government.[35] VPSingh facedthe vote of no confidence in the Lok Sabha saying that heoccupied the high moral ground, as he stood for secu-larism, had saved the Babri Masjid at the cost of powerand had upheld the fundamental principles which werechallenged during the crises. “What kind of India do youwant?" he asked of his opponents in Parliament, beforelosing the vote 142–346;[36][37][38] only a portion of theNational Front remaining loyal to him (see below) and theLeft front supported him in the vote.Singh resigned on 7 November 1990.[39]

4.4 The Chandra Shekhar government

Chandra Shekhar immediately seized the moment andleft the Janata Dal with several of his own supporters (in-cluding Devi Lal, Janeshwar Mishra, HD Deve Gowda,Maneka Gandhi, Ashoke Kumar Sen, Subodh Kant Sa-hay, Om Prakash Chautala, Hukam Singh, ChimanbhaiPatel, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Yashwant Sinha, VCShukla, and Sanjay Singh) to form the SamajwadiJanata Party/Janata Dal (Socialist).[40] Although ChandraShekhar had a mere 64 MPs, Rajiv Gandhi the leader ofthe Opposition, agreed to support him on the floor of theHouse; so he won a confidence motion and was sworn inas Prime Minister.[41] Eight Janata Dal MPs who votedfor this motion were disqualified by the speaker Rabi Ray.He lasted only a fewmonths before Gandhi withdrew sup-port and fresh elections were called. He tried his best toget support till the last minute but failed.

5 United Front coalition and lateryears

VP Singh contested the new elections but his party wasrelegated to the opposition chiefly due to the assassination

of Rajiv Gandhi (May 1991) during the election cam-paign, and he later retired from active politics.[42][43] Hespent the next few years touring the country speakingabout matters related to issues of social justice and hisartistic pursuits, chiefly painting.In 1992, Singh was the first to propose the name of thefuture President KR Narayanan as a (eventually success-ful) candidate for Vice President. Later the same year inDecember, he led his followers to Ayodhya to oppose thekarseva proposed by LK Advani, and was arrested beforehe could reach the site; the Masjid was demolished by thekarsevaks a few days later.In 1996 the Congress party lost the general elections andVP Singh was the natural choice of the winning UnitedFront (Singh was one of the forces behind the broadUnited Front coalition) for the post of Prime Minister.But he declined the offer made to him by communist vet-eran Jyoti Basu, Bihar strongman Lalu Prasad Yadav andalmost all leaders of the Janata family.[44]

Singh was diagnosed with cancer in 1998 and ceased hispublic appearances. When his cancer went into remis-sion in 2003, he once again became a visible figure, espe-cially in the many groupings that had inherited the spaceonce occupied by his Janata Dal. He relaunched the JanMorcha in 2006 with politician-turned-actor Raj Bab-bar as President.[45] After Jan Morcha drew a blank inthe 2007 UP elections, Raj Babbar joined the Congress,and Singh’s elder son Ajeya Singh (Ajeya Pratap Singh)took over the reins of the party in anticipation of the2009 General elections.[46] Ajeya Singh then contested asJan Morcha candidate from Fatehpur, but lost to RakeshSachan of the Samajwadi Party. The Jan Morcha was re-named as the National Jan Morcha in June 2009.[47] Amonth later, the Jan Morcha merged with the Indian Na-tional Congress.[48]

Singh was placed under arrest in Ghaziabad as he andhis supporters were proceeding towards a hauling whereprohibitory orders under Section 144 had been imposedto join the farmers agitating against the acquisition of landat Dadri by the Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Industriesand demanding adequate compensation.[49] Later, Singhand CPI General Secretary AB Bardhan[50] were againarrested on the UP border when they were proceedingto Dadri. However, Singh and Babbar were later able toevade the police, reaching Dadri on 18 August 2006, andploughing the land in solidarity with the farmers.[51][52]

Although V.P. Singh was one of the shrewdest Indianpoliticians of his time, he failed to foresee that hisshabby deal with Devi Lal, the powerful chief ministerof Haryana, would be his undoing. The country couldsomehow accept Devi Lal’s appointment as deputy primeminister, as an unavoidable part of the political game.But the almost simultaneous swearing-in of his son, OmPrakash Chautala, as Haryana’s chief minister — not inthe state’s capital but in Delhi — as part of the secret un-derstanding between Singh and Lal was a tad too much.

4 9 REFERENCES

For, most Indians knew that both father and son were ex-tremely high-handed and not overburdened with scruples.Indeed, Chautala had got away often with fraud and vi-olence because of his father’s formidable clout. Thoughensconced in the chief minister’s chair, Chautala was nota member of the state assembly. One of his cohorts va-cated his seat for the chief minister to win. The riggingof the election there was so egregious and brazen thateven the prime minister’s most loyal supporters were ap-palled; people in general were furious. There was no al-ternative to forcing Chautala to resign. But Lal, who be-lieved that it was only because of his grace that Singh wasprime minister, was enraged. He tendered his own res-ignation. However, by assuring the father that Chautalawould be back as chief minister after a “suitable interval”,the prime minister managed to defuse the situation.As already underscored, all this crude manoeuvring forpersonal power was taking place against the backdrop ofa grave national crisis — a Pakistan-backed virulent in-surgency raging in Kashmir that lasted a long time. Iron-ically, it was touched off by the kidnapping of the daugh-ter of the Kashmiri leader, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed,whom Singh had appointed homeminister, the only Mus-lim to hold charge of this powerful portfolio so far (‘Riseof V.P. Singh’, IE, February 2). When Chautala’s sec-ond coronation took place some months later, the crisisescalated. Three cabinet ministers resigned. But the gov-ernment stumbled on.Grim and growing domestic challenges demanded all theattention Singh could devote. One of these was causedby his own failure to make good on his boast all throughthe election campaign that he would expose the benefi-ciaries of the Bofors bribes within 15 days of coming topower. He couldn’t do it even after 15 weeks, when thepublic began to taunt him. Indeed, he couldn’t do so evenby the end of his tenure, which ended in just 11 months.Incidentally, the Bofors bribes amounted to Rs 64 crore,a huge sum in those days.

6 Personal life

Singh married Princess Sita Kumari, the daughter of theRaja of Deogarh-Madaria, Rajasthan, on 25 June 1955.It was an arranged marriage. He was 24 (He turned 24on that day), and she was 18. Kumari was a Sisodia Ra-jput descended fromRana Pratap of Udaipur. The couplehad two sons. Ajay Singh (born 1957) is a chartered ac-countant in New York, and Abhai Singh (born 1958) isa doctor at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences inNew Delhi.[53]

7 Death

VP Singh died after a long struggle with multiplemyeloma (bone marrow cancer) and renal failure atApollo Hospital in Delhi on 27 November 2008.[54][55]He was cremated at Allahabad on the banks of the RiverGanges on 29 November 2008, his son Ajeya Singh light-ing the funeral pyre.[56]

8 Cultural legacy

8.1 Films

• Juliet Reynolds, an art critic and a close friend ofSingh, made a short documentary on him, titled TheArt of the Impossible (45 minutes long), and covershis political and artistic career.[57]

• Suma Josson made another film on Singh titled OneMore Day to Live.[58]

8.2 Books

• GS Bhargava: Peristroika in India: VP Singh’s PrimeMinistership, Gian Publishing House, New Delhi,1990.

• Madan Gaur: VP Singh: Portrait of a Leader, Pressand Publicity Syndicate of India, 1990.

• Seema Mustafa: The Lonely Prophet: VP Singh, aPolitical Biography, New Age international, 1995.

• Ram Bahadur Rai: Manjil se Jyada Safar (in Hindi),2005.

8.3 Other books connected to VP Singh

• “The State As Charade: V.P. Singh, ChandrShekhar and the Rest” by Arun Shourie, Publisher:South Asia Books

• IK Gujral: Matters of Discretion: An Autobiography,Hay House, India, 519 pages, Feb. 2011. ISBN978-93-8048-080-0. Distributors: Penguin books,India.

• R Venkataraman: My Presidential Years, Harper-Collins/Indus, 1995. ISBN 81-7223-202-0.

• P Upendra: Gatham Swagatham.

9 References[1] “VP Singh’s wife to get Rs 1 lakh for defamation”. The

Times of India. Retrieved 9 January 2016.

5

[2] Obituary VP Singh Mark Tully The Guardian, 3 Decem-ber 2008

[3] Community Warriors: State, Peasants and Caste Armies inBihar Ashwani Kumar Anthem Press, 2008

[4] Zee News

[5] “V.P. Singh”. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopæ-dia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc.,2014. Web. 8 May. 2014 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/545849/VP-Singh>.

[6] “V.P. Singh”. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopæ-dia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc.,2014. Web. 8 May. 2014 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/545849/VP-Singh>.

[7] “V.P. Singh”. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopæ-dia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc.,2014. Web. 8 May. 2014 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/545849/VP-Singh>.

[8] “V.P. Singh”. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopæ-dia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc.,2014. Web. 8 May. 2014 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/545849/VP-Singh>.

[9] “V.P. Singh”. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopæ-dia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc.,2014. Web. 8 May. 2014 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/545849/VP-Singh>.

[10] In May 1985, Singh suddenly removed the import ofPurified Terephthalic Acid (PTA) from the Open GeneralLicense category. As a raw material this was very impor-tant to manufacture polyester filament yarn. This madeit very difficult for Reliance Industries under DhirubhaiAmbani to carry on operations. Reliance was able to se-cure, from various financial institutions, letters of creditthat would allow it to import almost one full year’s require-ment of PTA on the eve of the issuance of the governmentnotification changing the category under which PTA couldbe imported.

[11] In India, economic gains and new perils. New York Times.(2 March 1987). Retrieved 14 September 2011.

[12] Indian Government Lodges First Charges In WeaponsScandal. New York Times. (23 January 1990). Retrieved14 September 2011.

[13] Turmoil and a Scandal Take a Toll on Gandhi. New YorkTimes. (24 August 1987). Retrieved 14 September 2011.

[14] Is the Raja Ready for War, or Losing His Steam?. NewYork Times. (8 October 1987). Retrieved 14 September2011.

[15] Gandhi foes face test of strength. New York Times. (13June 1988). Retrieved 14 September 2011.

[16] Gandhi Is Finding Out Fast How Much He Had to Lose.New York Times. (3 July 1988). Retrieved 14 September2011.

[17] New Opposition Front in India Stages Lively Rally. NewYork Times. (18 September 1988). Retrieved 14 Septem-ber 2011.

[18] Man in the News; V. P. Singh: Low-key Indian in high-anxiety job – New York Times report. New York Times(3 December 1989). Retrieved 14 September 2011.

[19] Indian opposition chooses a Premier. New York Times. (2December 1989). Retrieved 14 September 2011.

[20] “V.P. Singh”. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopæ-dia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc.,2014. Web. 8 May. 2014 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/545849/VP-Singh>.

[21] “V.P. Singh”. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopæ-dia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc.,2014. Web. 8 May. 2014 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/545849/VP-Singh>.

[22] Obituary VP Singh Mark Tully The Guardian, 3 Decem-ber 2008

[23] Kashmir Officials Under Attack For Yielding to MuslimAbductors. New York Times. (15 December 1989). Re-trieved 14 September 2011.

[24] India’s Premier Offers Concessions to Sikhs. New YorkTimes. (12 January 1990). Retrieved 14 September 2011.

[25] India Asserts That Pakistan Is Preparing for Border War.New York Times. (15 April 1990). Retrieved 14 Septem-ber 2011.

[26] India and Pakistan Make the Most of Hard Feelings. NewYork Times. (22 April 1990). Retrieved 14 September2011.

[27] India, Stymied, Pulls Last Troops From Sri Lanka. NewYork Times. (25 March 1990). Retrieved 14 September2011.

[28] “Mandal vs Mandir”.

[29] Affirmative Action Has India’s Students Astir. New YorkTimes. (22 August 1990). Retrieved 14 September 2011.

[30] Premier of India in appeal on riots. New York Times. (27September 1990). Retrieved 14 September 2011.

[31] Hindu fundamentalist threatens India’s government overtemple. New York Times. (18 October 1990). Retrieved14 September 2011.

[32] India Sends Troops to Stop Hindu March. New YorkTimes. (26 October 1990). Retrieved 14 September2011.

[33] India ready to bar Hindu move today – New York Timesreport. New York Times. (30 October 1990). Retrieved14 September 2011.

[34] Toll in India clash at Mosque rises. New York Times. (1November 1990). Retrieved 14 September 2011.

[35] India’s Prime Minister Loses His Parliamentary Majorityin Temple Dispute. New York Times. (24 October 1990).Retrieved 14 September 2011.

[36] India’s cabinet falls as Premier loses confidence vote, by142–346, and quits – New York Times report. NewYork Times (8 November 1990). Retrieved 14 September2011.

6 10 EXTERNAL LINKS

[37] A Test of Principles in India – New York Times Edito-rial. New York Times. (8 November 1990). Retrieved 14September 2011.

[38] A Question Unanswered: Where Is India Headed?. NewYork Times. (11 November 1990). Retrieved 14 Septem-ber 2011.

[39] “V.P. Singh”. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopæ-dia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc.,2014. Web. 8 May. 2014 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/545849/VP-Singh>.

[40] Dissidents Split Indian Prime Minister’s Party. New YorkTimes. (6 November 1990). Retrieved 14 September2011.

[41] Rival of Singh Becomes India Premier. New York Times.(10 November 1990). Retrieved 14 September 2011.

[42] For India, Will It Be Change, Secularism or a RightWing?. New York Times. (24 April 1991). Retrieved 14September 2011.

[43] Ex-Darling of India Press Finds Himself Ignored – NewYork Times report. NewYork Times (14May 1991). Re-trieved 14 September 2011.

[44] “V.P. Singh”. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopæ-dia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc.,2014. Web. 8 May. 2014 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/545849/VP-Singh>.

[45] V. P. Singh, Raj Babbar launch new Jan Morcha

[46] An irreparable loss: Mayawati

[47] National Jan Morcha plans farmers’ meet in Delhi

[48] Jan Morcha merges with Congress. The Hindu. (25 July2009). Retrieved 14 September 2011.

[49] V. P. Singh arrested on way to Reliance plant

[50] V. P. Singh, Bardhan held on U. P. border

[51] V. P. Singh, Raj Babbar spring a surprise at Dadri

[52] Jan Morcha plans `Nyaya Yatra'

[53] Singh, Khushwant (11 April 2013). “Plane to Pakistan”.Malicious Gossip. HarperCollins Publishers India. Re-trieved 26 August 2014.

[54] V. P. Singh passes away

[55] Pandya, Haresh. (29 November 2008) V. P. Singh, aleader of India who defended poor, dies at 77 – New YorkTimes report. New York Times.. Retrieved 14 September2011.

[56] V. P. Singh cremated

[57] The Raja, Up, Close and Personal. Indian Express. (21January 2001). Retrieved 14 September 2011.

[58] Suma Josson. Cinemaofmalayalam.net. Retrieved 14September 2011.

10 External links• Prime minister’s office

• Speech opposing the India-US nuclear deal Part I onYouTube Part II on YouTube, Oct. 2007.

7

11 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

11.1 Text• V. P. Singh Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V._P._Singh?oldid=703542401 Contributors: Docu, Vzbs34, Andrewman327, Hjr,

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