A man of integrity
A slice of history
By Prem Kumar

THE Akalis are often in the news for a variety of reasons. That they have always been fighting the oppressors — some real and some perceived — is their tradition. When they do not have external forces to fight against, they fight among themselves. This is the general belief. They fight others to save their faith from others’ attacks. They fight among themselves to save the faith from each other. The fight of the second type has been on for some time. It is not for me or you to judge who is right. Only time will judge them. The main leaders of the fight today, Parkash Singh Badal and Gurcharan Singh Tohra, are both honourable men. Both belong to Malwa and graduated from Lahore.

Badal was born rich while Tohra came from an average-income family. Both are from powerful Jat clans of Punjab and became resourceful later in life. Badal not only headed the state government more than once, he has been hailed as a popular leader by his followers and foes alike. Tohra remained the head of all powerful Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee for a quarter century, and in the matter of men and material, has been resourceful as a chief minister. His admirers, who are fond of comparing things with foreign stuff — they compared Mohali to Paris at the time of a cricket one-dayer there — have been describing him as the Pope of the Sikhs. Both of them like to be seen as commoners. Tohra prefers a neat rustic attire and Badal wears his coat and trousers the rustic way, loose and crumpled.

The idea is not to write about their love-hate relationship or their current fight. I only want to talk about the Akali leaders of different periods, everyone of whom can be called a legend deserving books on them, not just articles of medium length. I know about one such legend who is no more. Master Tara Singh was a leader to reckon with in Akali politics that is, before he was destroyed by the proverbial factionalism of the party. The time I saw him was that of his decline but he had ruled as a supreme, popular Akali leader before and after the Partition of Punjab. During those days, he looked a good old man of medium height, immaculately dressed, impressive turban, visible kirpan, glowing cheeks and a flowing beard. He spoke in Punjabi with a typical accent. He was no rustic and never tried to look it. He was city-bred and had all the sophistication of an urbanite, yet he was very simple.

Master Tara Singh was a fighter all the way, crusader for the Sikh cause as well as for the nation’s freedom. I was in Lahore when he had brandished his sword before a large gathering and said that Pakistan would not be allowed to come into being. He continued his fight for the causes dear to him till he was eased out of the active politics by sections of those whose cause he had fought all his life. He was good at launching morchas and sustaining agitations for Punjabi language or Punjabi Suba or for a similar other cause. He could get on the rulers’ nerves. I remember Sardar Patel, then Home Minister, saying at one of the meetings at Ambala: "They (Akalis) are scratching our wounds." Master Tara Singh led several morchas in Punjab and in Delhi. He would camp at gurdwaras and lived a simple life wherever he was. He hated to waste public funds, that is gurdwara funds, and was almost a miser in such respects. The late Giani Hari Singh, who was once his secretary and was later a working journalist, used to say that Master Tara Singh did not want even the ink in his pen to come from the gurdwara funds. That he was honest can be seen from the fact the Masterji never became rich or resourceful in today’s sense of the word.

He spoke well and could carry his audience with him. He could be bitter and harsh but not so crude in his language. In addition to gurdwaras, Imperial Hotel in Delhi was one of the places where he used to address gatherings. I heard him abuse the Congress leadership at the Centre in chaste — but not vulgar — Punjabi. The abusive expressions were simple and familiar like Eh Bari Kutti Sarkar Hai. But there was a lot of punch in what he said. It became stronger and more meaningful when one knew that he was not seeking political or any other power for himself. He wanted it all for his people and he felt that his was a just demand and that he had a right to agitate and fight for it.

Like an ordinary human being, he had his phases of anger and softness. Like most old persons, he could flare up quickly and could be appeased and pleased by simple gestures of his opponents. I had heard one of his harsh lectures against the Congress leaders and its government at the Centre. Nehru was the Prime Minister at that time. As a young reporter, I thought that he was full of venom and bitterness against Nehru and his position as Prime Minister. I happened to hear Masterji a few days later talking about his meeting with Nehru. "Panditji is a good man," he told the group of reporters sitting before him. And he went on describing the meeting with all affection and respect — how Panditji came out to receive him at the entrance and opened the door of his car and took him into his room. He narrated with the sweet tone of a pleased old man how Indira herself brought tea for him and stirred it to mix sugar in the cup and offered it to him. And how much they respected him, what they said to him and how they treated him as an elder. It sounded as if he was talking about his visit to a dear old cousin and was all praise for them. Coming from a man whom I had heard abusing them publicly only a few days ago was rather unusual. Not so with Masterji. He could shift from "that Bahman" to "Panditji" with ease and in a very natural way.

This simplicity did cause him embarrassment in his political life. Like the one he faced when he broke his fast at Rakabganj Gurdwara in Delhi under the impression that the Central Government had accepted his demand. His fast was resulting in much anxiety in the political circles even though doctors found him in the best of health after days of fasting. One day, an agency reporter took out a copy of Nehru’s speech at the Congress meeting where he talked in a sympathetic way about the Akali demand and wanted Masterji’s reaction to this speech. "They are agreeing to what you say," the reporter told Masterji, and he reads out the speech. "Was it really so?" Masterji asked, and inquired further if it called for breaking the fast. The reporter said it could be done and Masterji asked him to take down his statement announcing breaking of the fast. It was a scoop for the reporter and "great betrayal" by the Akali leader who had to atone for his mistake and undergo punishment for it in the same gurdwara.

There were occasions when he launched massive agitations but somehow he also knew when enough was enough and when there was time to withdraw. There were periods of imprisonment and times of release and victory processions. There were even political ups and downs within his own party, but Masterji took it all in his stride. Mistakes he might have committed in politics but he did not give up political commitment as it was a matter of personal integrity for him.