:Rana Chandra Singh
{{short description|Pakistani politician}}
{{EngvarB|date=September 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2014}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Rana Chandra Singh
| smallimage =
| office = Member National Assembly of Pakistan from Umerkot
| term_start = 1977
| term_end = 1999
| birth_date = {{Birth year|1931}}
| birth_place = Rana Jagir, Umerkot, British India
| death_date = {{Death date and given age|2009|08|01|78|df=yes}}
| death_place = Karachi, Pakistan
| children = 4 sons and 1 daughter, including Rana Hamir Singh
| known_for = Founder of Pakistan Hindu Party
| occupation = Politician, agriculturalist
| nationality = Pakistani
}}
Rana Chandra Singh ({{Langx|sd|{{Naskh|رانا چندر سنگه}}}}; 1931 – 1 August 2009), also known as Rana Chandar Singh, was a Pakistani politician and a federal minister. He was one of the founding members of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and was elected to the National Assembly of Pakistan from Umerkot seven times with PPP between 1977 and 1999. He founded the Pakistan Hindu Party (PHP) in 1990.{{Cite web |date=2011-06-08 |title=Hindu Leader, Ex-minister Chardar Singh is Dead |url=http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/international/2009/August/international_August122.xml§ion=international&col= |access-date=2022-04-18 |website= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608211713/http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/international/2009/August/international_August122.xml§ion=international&col= |archive-date=8 June 2011 |url-status=dead}}
Early life
Rana Chandra Singh was born in 1931 in Rana Jagir, 16 km from Umarkot, present day Umerkot District.{{Cite web |date=2009-08-02 |title=Rana Chandar Singh dies |url=http://beta.dawn.com/news/893223/rana-chandar-singh-dies |access-date=2022-04-18 |website=DAWN.COM |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Chandra |first=P. B. |last2= |first2= |last3= |last4= |first4= |date=10 August 2009 |title=Rana kin in Pakistan for mourning |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/jaipur/rana-kin-in-pakistan-for-mourning/articleshow/4875267.cms |access-date=2022-04-18 |website=The Times of India |language=en}} He belonged to the Hindu Sodha clan of Rajputs, and was the Rana (chieftain) of the Amarkot (Umerkot) jagir, a Rajput estate in Pakistan.{{Cite web |title=Pakistan Hindu Party founder passes away {{!}} TopNews |url=https://topnews.in/pakistan-hindu-party-founder-passes-away-2197175 |access-date=2022-04-18 |website=topnews.in}}
Career
He was a close friend of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto, and was a founding member of Pakistan Peoples Party. He was also elected as MPA a number of seven times, serving as Minister of Science and Technology, Revenue and Narcotics Affairs. In 1990, he left PPP and formed his own political party, the Pakistan Hindu Party (PHP).{{cite news|url=http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2009\08\02\story_2-8-2009_pg12_6|title=Chieftain of Pakistani Hindu Thakurs dies |last=Guriro |first=Amar|date=2 August 2009|work=Daily Times|accessdate=2 August 2009}} He himself designed for his party a saffron flag bearing two ancient logos – Om and Trishool.{{cite news|last=Vardhan |first=Harsh|url=http://www.rajplus.com/fullStory.asp?articleID=RAJP2ART1262006|title=Rendezvous with Rana|work=Rajasthan Plus|accessdate=10 August 2009}} He served as Minister for Agriculture and Revenue, and was the Chairman of National Commission of Minorities. He won elections as an Independent candidate for a continuous 53 years – a considerable achievement for a minority Hindu. He had joined PPP after parting way with PML-Q.{{cite news|url=http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008\11\20\story_20-11-2008_pg12_4|title=Rana Hameer rejoins PPP |date=20 November 2008|work=Daily Times|accessdate= 2 August 2009}}
He died on 1 August 2009 at the age of 78, after a prolonged illness, as he suffered paralysis in 2004. Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani, in a message to his family, expressed grief over the death of former federal minister,{{cite news|url=http://www.app.com.pk/en_/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=82810&Itemid=2|title=PM condoles ex minister's death|date=2 August 2009|publisher=Associated Press of Pakistan (APP)|accessdate=2 August 2009|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120219232158/http://www.app.com.pk/en_/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=82810&Itemid=2|archivedate=19 February 2012|df=dmy-all}} while President Asif Ali Zardari described him as "one of the fearless political activists who joined the party in the early days of its formation by Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and who stood by him through thick and thin".{{cite web|title=President condoles death of Rana Chandar Singh|url=http://www.app.com.pk/en_/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=82821&Itemid=1|publisher=Associated Press of Pakistan|accessdate=3 August 2009|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111228225513/http://www.app.com.pk/en_/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=82821&Itemid=1|archivedate=28 December 2011|df=dmy-all}} His body was taken to his native village Rana Jagir, 16 km from Umarkot for cremation, where earlier, his elder son Rana Hamir Singh was installed as his successor, the 26th Rana of Tharparkar's Thakurs.{{Cite web |last=Arisar |first=A. B. |date=2009-08-03 |title=Final journey of the Last Rajput |url=https://www.dawn.com/2009/08/03/final-journey-of-the-last-rajput/ |access-date=2022-04-18 |website=DAWN.COM |language=en}}
According to Waseem Altaf, a retired Pakistani bureaucrat, "whenever the Cabinet was given a defense-related briefing, Rana Chandra Singh was asked to leave the Cabinet Room."At time-stamp 47:24 {{Citation |title=My response to Ambassador Abdul Basit's allegations |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSROVG1kIJc |access-date=2023-12-29 |language=en}}
Personal life
He was married to Rani Sahiba Subhadra Kumari, daughter of Rawat Tej Singh of Rawatsar in Hanumangarh district of Rajasthan. They have four sons and one daughter.{{Cite web |last=Rathore |first=Abhinay |title=Amarkot (Jagir) |url=https://www.indianrajputs.com/view/amarkot |access-date=2022-04-18 |website=Rajput Provinces of India |language=en}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.rajplus.com/fullStory.asp?articleID=RAJP2ART1262006 Rendezvous with Rana]
- [https://infolog.in/umerkot-fort-the-birthplace-of-emperor-akbar/ Umerkot Fort]
- [https://infolog.in/amarkot-jagir/ History & GENEALOGY of Umerkot Jagir]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Rana Chandra}}
Category:Federal ministers of Pakistan
Category:Pakistani MNAs 1985–1988
Category:Pakistani MNAs 1988–1990
Category:Pakistani MNAs 1990–1993
Category:Pakistani MNAs 1993–1996