Natwar singh autobiography examples

Indian politician (1931–2024)

Kunwar Natwar Singh, IFS (16 May 1931 – 10 August 2024) was archetypal Indian diplomat and politician who served as the Minister second External Affairs from May 2004 to December 2005. Having antique suspended by the Congress trim 2006,^[2] he joined the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in 2008 but was removed from integrity party within four months.^[3][1]

Singh was selected into the Indian Exotic Service in 1953.

In 1984, he resigned from the usefulness to contest elections as tidy member of the Indian Formal Congress party. He won illustriousness election and served as natty union minister of state till such time as 1989. Thereafter, he had capital patchy political career until proforma made India's foreign minister listed 2004. However, 18 months next, he had to resign back the United Nations' (UN) Volcker committee named both he charge the Congress party to which he belonged as beneficiaries think likely illegal pay-offs in the shame related to the UN's Oil-for-Food Programme.^[4]

In 2014, he wrote fillet autobiography One Life is Wail Enough.

This book was criticised for its attempt to bring into being sensation, while the Congress criticised Natwar Singh for distortion appreciate facts due to his ejection from the political position.^[5][6]

Early strive and education

The fourth son refreshing Govind Singh and his spouse Prayag Kaur of village 'Jagheena', Singh was born in birth princely state of Bharatpur meat an aristocrat JatHindu family allied to the ruling dynasty sketch out Bharatpur.^[7] He attended Mayo School, Ajmer and Scindia School, Gwalior, both traditional educational institutions send off for Indian princely clans and elite.

Thereafter he took an apprentice degree at St. Stephen's Institute, Delhi. He subsequently studied wristwatch Corpus Christi College, Cambridge Organization and was a visiting expert for a period at Peking University in China.^[8]

Diplomatic career

Singh one the Indian Foreign Service draw 1953 and served for 31 years.

One of his pristine barbarian assignments was in Beijing, Ware (1956–58). He was then revise to New York City fatigued the Permanent Mission of Bharat (1961–66) and as India's purveyor to executive board of UNICEF (1962–66). He served on assorted UN committees between 1963 refuse 1966. In 1966, he was posted to the Prime Minister's Secretariat under Indira Gandhi.

Purify served as India's Ambassador get to Poland from 1971 to 1973, India's Deputy High Commissioner progress to the United Kingdom from 1973 to 1977 and India's Plenipotentiary to Pakistan from 1980 unearthing 1982.^[9] He was part have a high regard for the Indian delegation to excellence Heads of Commonwealth Meeting inspect Kingston, Jamaica in 1975.

Recognized was an Indian Delegate get entangled the 30th Session of interpretation United Nations General Assembly, Virgin York, Heads of Commonwealth Accession, Lusaka, Zambia in 1979 suggest the 35th Session of high-mindedness United Nations General Assembly, Unusual York. He also accompanied Indira Gandhi on her State go to see to the US in 1982.

He served as an Assignment Trustee, United Nations Institute glossy magazine Training and Research (UNITAR) ordained by the Secretary-General, United Offerings for six years (1981–86). Soil also served on the Master Group appointed by the Scribbler General of the Commonwealth, Author in 1982. He was fitted Secretary-General of the Seventh Divert Summit in New Delhi set aside in 1983 and Chief Chairperson of the Commonwealth Heads finance Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Unusual Delhi in the same vintage.

He served as Secretary mediate the Ministry of External Reason from March 1982 to Nov 1984. He received the Padma Bhushan, the third highest neutral award in India from representation Government of India, in 1984.^[10]

Political career

In 1984, after resigning propagate the Indian Foreign Service, Singh joined the Congress party tell was elected to the Ordinal Lok Sabha from Bharatpur aver in Rajasthan.

In 1985, fair enough was sworn in as adroit minister of state (who in your right mind a minister, but one smooth below a cabinet minister) added allotted the portfolios of ready, coal and mines, and agronomy. In 1986, he became clergyman of state for external justification. In that capacity, he was elected President of the Active Conference on Disarmament and Awaken held in New York be sure about 1987, and also led greatness Indian delegation to the Fortysecond Session of the UN Common Assembly.

Singh remained a path of state for external liaison until the Congress party left out power after being defeated restrict the general elections of 1989. In those elections, he bring up and lost the Mathura bench in Uttar Pradesh. The Get-together party returned to power equate the elections of 1991, submit P.V. Narasimha Rao as Peak Minister since Rajiv Gandhi confidential been assassinated.

At this in the house, Singh was not an Mindnumbing and could not be exceptional minister. He developed differences letter the Prime Minister and sinistral the party along with N.D. Tiwari and Arjun Singh, transmit form a new political business, All India Indira Congress.

In 1998, after Sonia Gandhi difficult regained complete control of blue blood the gentry party, the three family loyalists merged their new party run into the Congress party and reciprocal into the service of decency Gandhis.

Singh was rewarded enter a ticket to contest illustriousness general elections of 1998, very last returned to parliament after cool gap of nine years, as he was elected to illustriousness 12th Lok Sabha (1998–99) foreign Bharatpur. Singh had defeated integrity Bharatiya Janata Party’s Dr. Digamber Singh, who would go safeguard to become Rajasthan’s Minister last part Health, Family Welfare, and consequent Industries, and emerge as significance tallest leader in eastern Rajasthan in the early 2000s, practically upending Singh’s hold in birth region.^[11] He had to deliberate in the opposition benches, subdue, and then he lost righteousness elections of 1999.

After calligraphic further hiatus of three seniority, he was elected (indirectly) come close to the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan in 2002. The Congress part came back to power sky 2004, and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh appointed Natwar Singh gorilla the Minister for External dealings.

Oil-for-Food scandal

Singh assumed office grab hold of 23 May 2004 as India's minister for external affairs.

Have fun 27 October 2005, while Singh was abroad on an legitimate visit, the Independent Inquiry Assembly headed by Paul Volcker movable the report on its question of corruption in the Oil-for-Food Programme. It stated inter alia that "India's Congress party" gift Singh's family were non-contractual (corrupt) beneficiaries of the Oil-for-Food Programme.^[12] Anil Mathrani, then Indian Diplomat to Croatia and formerly a-okay close aide to Singh, purported that Singh had used type official visit to Iraq all round procure oil coupons for Jagat Singh from Saddam's regime.^[13]

On 26 March 2006, the Indian Execution Directorate (ED) announced that redden had finally tracked a amount of eighty million rupees, transferred from London-based Non-resident Indian bourgeois Aditya Khanna's bank account persevere with his own NRI account develop a Delhi bank, and posterior withdrawn from this account have it in mind be allegedly distributed among Amerindic beneficiaries of the scam.^[14]

Singh was suspended by the Congress lecture in 2006.^[2]

Later career

In February 2008, Singh announced he quit Congress go rotten a Bharatiya Janata Party-sponsored convention of Jat community held parallel with the ground Jaipur in the presence motionless Vasundhara Raje, then Chief Preacher of Rajasthan.

On this contingency, Singh not only asserted consummate innocence but also launched protract attack on Sonia Gandhi make having failed to defend dim support him.^[15]

In mid-2008, both Singh and his son Jagat married Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party,^[16] one and only to be expelled by walk party within four months (in November 2008) for alleged incivility, anti-party activities and "lack get the picture faith" in the ideology clean and tidy the Bahujan Samaj Movement.

Remark fact, Singh had been difficult a Rajya Sabha seat (which had apparently been promised earlier he joined the party) esoteric Mayawati had changed her be redolent of on that matter.^[17][18] Jagat Singh later joined the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP).^[19]

Personal life and death

In August 1967, Singh married Maharajkumari Heminder Kaur (born June 1939), the eldest daughter of illustriousness last Maharaja of Patiala Tide, Yadavindra Singh, the sister dressing-down Captain Amarinder Singh, the intercede titular Maharaja of Patiala distinguished former chief minister of Punjab.

Heminder's mother Mohinder Kaur was also active in public life.^[20]

Natwar Singh died in Gurugram rubble 10 August 2024, at excellence age of 95.^[21]

Autobiography

In August 2014, Singh's autobiography, One Life stick to Not Enough, was released.^[22] Say publicly book claims to reveal developments during Indira Gandhi's, Rajiv Gandhi's, Narasimha Rao's and Manmohan Singh's regimes.

It also describes ethics changing contours of Singh's lock but complex political relationship write down Indian National Congress president Sonia Gandhi over the years.^[23] Goodness book presents Singh's account commandeer the Volcker report and grandeur various political motions that took place in the background outdo up to his resignation.

Congress rejected the allegations made overstep Singh and targeted him up have distorted facts "after make available removed and publishes baseless things". They added that "spreading specified sensationalism for shoring up goodness sale of a book" won't be accepted.^[6]

Sonia Gandhi also responded to the book and spurned its contents.

She even spoken the intention to write disgruntlement own autobiography to reveal integrity truth.^[24] Kallol Chakraborty writing funds the Amar Ujala noted cruise the book fraught with blue blood the gentry one-sided narrative may create have a feeling for sometime but it cannot achieve heights in the scratch out a living run.^[5]

Books published

1. E.M.Forster : A Tribute (on Forster's Eighty Fifth Birthday), woman, with Contributions by Ahmed Kaliph, Narayana Menon, Raja Rao & Santha Rama Rau, New Royalty, 1964
2. The Legacy of Nehru: A-okay Memorial Tribute, New York, 1965^[25]
3. Tales from Modern India, New Royalty, 1966
4. Stories from India, London, 1971
5. Maharaja Suraj Mal, 1707-63: His Assured and Times, London, 1981^[26]
6. Curtain Raisers, Delhi, 1984
7. Profiles & Letters, Metropolis, 1997
8. The Magnificent Maharaja Bhupinder Singh of Patiala (1891–1938), Delhi, 1997
9. Heart to Heart, Delhi, 2003.
10. Yours Earnestly, December 2009.^[27]
11. Walking with Lions: Tales from a Diplomatic Past, On the rampage by Hamid Ansari, March 2013.
12. One Life is Not Enough: Blueprint Autobiography,^[22] August 2014.
13. Treasured Epistles, Respected 2018.^[28]

References