Satyendra Narayan Sinha

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Not to be confused with Satya Narayan Sinha.

Satyendra Narayan Sinha
Gopalganj
In office
1961–1962
Preceded byKamala Rai
Succeeded byAbdul Ghafoor
Personal details
Born(1917-07-12)12 July 1917
Allahabad University
Nickname(s)Chhote Saheb, Satyendra Babu, SN Sinha

Satyendra Narayan Sinha (12 July 1917 – 4 September 2006) was an Indian politician and statesman, participant in the

Aurangabad constituency, a three-term Member of the Bihar Legislative Assembly, and a Member of the Bihar Legislative Council once. Regarded to be one of India's most influential regional people of the time, his reputation was synonymous with being a strict disciplinarian and tough taskmaster.[7]

Background

Sinha was born in an aristocratic political family in

Finance Minister of the Indian state of Bihar.[12]

He spent his student years under the

Indian Independence movement and participated in the Quit India Movement
in 1942. He organised Legal Aid Programmes for political prisoners during pre-Independence days.

Political career

Provisional Parliament

After Independence he was elected to the provisional Parliament from Bihar in 1950. He was part of the young Turk brigade of the Indian National Congress party during the time of the first Prime Minister of India[13] Jawaharlal Nehru.

Bihar state politics

Satyendra Narayan Sinha was a prominent educationist, and served as the

K. B. Sahay and Pandit Binodanand Jha. He had[13]
a unique political acumen to determine the electoral prospects of candidates in assembly election by just sitting at home in Patna.

The Kingmaker

S. N. Sinha also played a key role in the installations of Governments headed by chief ministers Krishana Ballabh Sahay,

B.P. Mandal, Sardar Harihar Singh, Bhola Paswan Shastri and Ram Sundar Das. He never[13] hankered after power even when it was well within his reach. When Indira Gandhi became Prime Minister of India in 1966, she[14] wanted him to become the next Chief Minister of Bihar and sent then External Affairs Minister Dinesh Singh to convey the proposal but he refused, since he did[15]
not wished to unseat incumbent CM K B Sahay but wanted to be elected by the people of state.

Emergency era

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar
inaugurates S. N. Sinha's statue at Satyendra Narayan Sinha Park, Patna

He decided to side with the syndicate after the expulsion of

Indian Constitution were suspended. Political dissidents, newspaper reporters, opposition leaders who opposed emergency were jailed. Chhote Saheb, along with other prominent leaders, opposed this blatant misuse of state machinery. In 1977, during the emergency in India, he was made president of Bihar Janata Party
and Chairman of State Election Committee.

"Chhote Saheb, as he was popularly called, was an important political leader of Bihar, a distinguished Parliamentarian, and someone who had the interests of his state and people uppermost in his mind. During his long public life of over six decades, Sinha Ji made significant contributions in streamlining the education system of Bihar."

—

Hamid Ansari[16]

He

Karpuri Thakur and the movement was a grand success in Bihar. He motivated the[18] youth and students to take an active role in politics, and ensured their representation in political affairs. During, the Bihar legislative assembly election 1977, a massive[19]
crowd of youth leaders and activists used to converge at his residence.

Satyendra Narayan Sinha's political[17] encouragement to the youths led to the emergence of then youth leaders of Janata Party like Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, Nitish Kumar, Ram Vilas Paswan, Subodh Kant Sahay, Kripanath Pathak, Ram Jatan Sinha, Jagdish Sharma, Thakur Muneshwar Nath Singh, Raghupati Singh and Narendra Singh. After the emergency was lifted on 21 March 1977, fresh general elections were held in India.

The Congress Party, led by Indira Gandhi suffered a defeat at the hands of the Janata Party coalition of several small parties created in 1977[20][21] and the alliance came to power, headed by Morarji Desai, who became the first non-Congress Prime Minister of India.[22] In Bihar, the Janata Party won all[17] the fifty-four Lok Sabha seats in 1977 general elections under the mentorship of Jayaprakash Narayan and rose to power in Bihar assembly too. He[13] struck by the Janata Party and preferred to be in opposition although he would have been considered a prize catch by the Congress party.

Return to Congress

He quit the party following differences with the then party president

Chandra Shekhar Singh and returned to the Congress fold in 1984. The[24] then Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi came down to Patna
to formally admit him back to the Congress party.

Chief Ministership

As the

Chief Minister of Bihar, Chhote Saheb also held the portfolio of Education for the fourth term in his later years 1989–1990. In the same year, he conceived,[25] the proposal to set up a NTPC's super thermal power project at Nabinagar in Bihar's Aurangabad district to then Prime Minister of India and Congress leader Rajiv Gandhi; but the project went into limbo as the following state governments failed to follow it. In 2007, Manmohan Singh's[26]
government finally put a stamp of approval on it.

"I believe in participative democracy and not dictatorial attitudes"

— Satyendra Narayan Sinha[27]

" He was a great humanitarian and an educationist who changed the face of education in Bihar by his radical and innovative ideas that were far ahead of their time. The state owes a lot to him.."

—

Chief Minister of Bihar[28]

He is also credited for the[29] establishment of the Indira Gandhi Planetarium cum Science Centre in Patna. Under his regime, Panchayati Raj system of governance was introduced in Bihar.

In his autobiography Meri Yaadein, Meri Bhoolein, released by the then Bihar Governor Buta Singh in the presence of Defence Minister

Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi later on, he informed him about the "role of some Congress leaders" in the riots. The Prime Minister expressed surprise and said "so, the riots were motivated!"[30]

Parliament of India

S. N. Sinha was elected as a Member of the

Eighth Lok Sabhas from 1950 to 1961 and 1971—1989 representing Aurangabad parliamentary constituency of Bihar.[2] He retains the[31] record of maximum parliamentary election victories in Bihar, next only to the late Jagjivan Ram
.

He served as the Chairman of Committee on Estimates from 1977 to 1979. He was also a Member of the Committee on Finance from 1950 to 1952; Committee on Estimates from 1956 to 1958 and thereafter during 1985–1986 and the Committee on Public Undertakings during 1982–83. He was a well-known social activist, and served as the Assistant Secretary to the Bihar Provincial Committee of the Kasturba Gandhi National Memorial Fund and Secretary to the Bihar Provincial Committee of the Gandhi National Memorial Fund. He was also associated with a number of educational and social institutions in different capacities. He was member, Senate and Syndicate of Patna University from 1946 to 1960 and Bihar University from 1958 to 1960.[2]

International activities

A widely travelled person, S. N. Sinha attended Inter-Parliamentary Union Conference, Helsinki,

Cabinet Minister) and served as its Chief from 1977 to 1988.[2]

Posts held

S.N. Sinha held the following posts in his political career:[2]

  • 1946–1960: Member, Senate and Syndicate, Patna University
  • 1948: Secretary, Bihar Provincial Committee of the Gandhi National Memorial Fund
  • 1950 : Member, Provisional Parliament
  • 1950–1952: Member, Committee on Finance
  • 1952 : Elected to 1st Lok Sabha
  • 1956–1958: Member, Committee on Estimates
  • 1957: Re-elected to 2nd Lok Sabha (2nd term)
  • 1958–1960: Member, Senate and Syndicate, Bihar University
  • 1961–1963: Member, Bihar legislative assembly
  • 1961–1962: State Cabinet Minister, Education, Bihar
  • 1961–1962: State Cabinet Minister, Local Self Government (additional charge), Bihar
  • 1963: Leader of the cultural delegation to Kabul
  • 1962–1963: State Cabinet Minister, Education, Bihar
  • 1962–1963: State Cabinet Minister, Local Self Government (additional charge), Bihar
  • 1963–1967: Member, Bihar legislative assembly
  • 1963–1967: State Cabinet Minister, Education, Bihar
  • 1963–1967: State Cabinet Minister, Local Self Government (additional charge), Bihar
  • 1963–1967: State Cabinet Minister, Agriculture (additional charge), Bihar
  • 1967–1969: Member, Bihar legislative assembly
  • 1969–1977: President, Congress(O), Bihar
  • 1971: Re-elected to 5th Lok Sabha (3rd term)
  • 1976: Member, Indian Parliamentary Delegation to erstwhile USSR
  • 1977–1980: President, Janata Party, Bihar
  • 1977: Re-elected to 6th Lok Sabha (4th term)
  • 1977: Member, Special Committee on Violations of Human Rights for Parliamentarians
  • 1977–1988: President (Status of Union
    Cabinet Minister
    ), Special Committee on Violations of Human Rights for Parliamentarians
  • 1977: Leader, Indian Parliamentary Delegation to the Spring Meetings of Inter-Parliamentary Council, Canberra
  • 1978: Leader, Indian Parliamentary Delegation to the Spring Meetings of Inter-Parliamentary Council, Lisbon
  • 1977–1979: Chairman, Committee on Estimates
  • 1980: Re-elected to 7th Lok Sabha (5th term)
  • 1982–1983: Member, Committee on Public Undertakings
  • 1984: Re-elected to 8th Lok Sabha (6th term)
  • 1985–1986: Member, Committee on Estimates
  • 1989–1990: Member, Bihar legislative council
  • 1989–1990: Chief Minister, Bihar

Personal life

S. N. Sinha's wife

Vaishali, and his daughter-in-law Shyama Singh is a former Member of Parliament from Aurangabad. His son, Nikhil Kumar, a former IPS official, has served as the[32] Governor of the Indian state of Nagaland and also as the Governor of Kerala.[33]

S. N. Sinha wrote his autobiography Meri Yadein: Meri Bhoolein, which incorporates the experiences and perceptions of a leader of his eminence and stature.[34]

His official residence in Delhi,[35] 28 Akbar Road, had consistently won awards for being one of the best kept bungalows in the national capital. Its grand[35] garden continually won awards at all Delhi's flower shows and was one of capital's landmark gardens.

Criticism

The Congress government led by Sinha is criticized for the lackadaisical approach towards the handling of [36] the 1989 Bhagalpur violence. The N.N Singh Committee report tabled in the Bihar legislative assembly held the government responsible for taking no action and the police showing complete inactivity during one of the biggest instances of human rights violations in Bihar, which led to the displacement of over 50,000 Muslims. The riots are said to have claimed the lives of thousands of Muslims, mostly poor weavers, while the police and Congress administration under Sinha took no action.[37]

Commemoration

The inaugural

Chief Minister Shri Nitish Kumar
at a state function in 2015.

References

  1. ^ a b "Ministers of Education". Central Advisory Board of Education. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "Lok Sabha Debates". Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  3. ^ "Some Facts of Constituent Assembly". Parliamentofindia.nic.in. Retrieved 22 December 2013.
  4. ^ "Members Bioprofile". 164.100.47.132. Archived from the original on 3 July 2011. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
  5. ^ Iyer, Lakshmi (8 December 2007). "A couple of mps". Mumbai Mirror.
  6. ^ A.J. Philip. "A gentleman among politicians". The Tribune. India. Retrieved 5 September 2006.
  7. ^ Prabhu Chawla (31 March 1989). "I believe in participative democracy and not dictatorial attitudes: Satyendra Narain Sinha". India Today.
  8. ISBN 9781843317098
    . Retrieved 6 January 2019.
  9. ^ "When Gandhi became Mahatma". www.dailypioneer.com. Archived from the original on 21 April 2017. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
  10. ^ "Remembering the first Satyagraha: 100 years of Champaran". Hindustan Times. 14 April 2017.
  11. ^ "First Bihar Deputy CM cum Finance Minister;Dr. A N Sinha". Indian Post. official Website. Retrieved 20 May 2008.
  12. ^ Kamat. "Biography: Anugrah Narayan Sinha". Kamat's archive. Retrieved 25 June 2006.
  13. ^ a b c d e f "SN Sinha -spent his student years under Lal Bahadur Shastri's (future PM) tutelage". Patna Daily Official Website. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 11 March 2011.
  14. ^ Sir, is it true that when Mrs Indira Gandhi became PM in 1966, she wanted to make the then influential Bihar Education Minister Satyendra Narain Singh the chief minister of Bihar & sent Dinesh Singh to convey her desire but Late S N Singh denied because he wanted to be elected and not 'selected'. Will we ever see such principled stand from today's Bihar leaders like Nitish, Ramvilas & Lalu?. India Today.intoday.in (19 October 2010). Retrieved 21 May 2014.
  15. ^ "S. N. Sinha - a Tribute - PatnaDaily". patnadaily.com.
  16. ^ PIB (12 July 2011). "Vice President Delivers Satyendra Narayan Sinha Memorial Lecture". Vice President's Secretariat. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
  17. ^ a b c "Chhote Saheb: Emergency era". Patna Daily. Archived from the original on 30 December 2010. Retrieved 10 September 2006.
  18. ^ "Chhote Saheb". Press Information Bureau. Retrieved 15 July 2011.
  19. ISBN 9789385436420
    – via Google Books.
  20. ISBN 978-90-420-1460-2
    .
  21. ISBN 978-0-547-21629-4
    .
  22. ^ Namboodiripad, E.M.S. (9–22 August 1997). "The Opposition and the Left". Frontline. 14 (16). India. Archived from the original on 21 November 2002. Retrieved 9 August 2010.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  23. ^ "Chhote Saheb dies (He quit Janata party following differences with ex PM Chandrashekhar)". The Times of India. 5 September 2006. Retrieved 4 September 2006.
  24. ^ "A gentleman among politicians:The Tribune (Return of SN SINHA in Congress fold)". The Tribune. India. Retrieved 4 September 2006.
  25. ^ "S N Sinha's brainchild NTPC project gets approval". Hindustan Times. India. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 23 February 2007.
  26. ^ "PM Dr Manmohan Singh Approves NTPC Project in Bihar Promised By Then CM SN Sinha". Hindustan Times. India. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 23 February 2007.
  27. ^ "India Today Official Website Archives". India Today Archives. 31 March 1989. Archived from the original on 24 December 2013. Retrieved 16 November 2013.
  28. ^ Patnadaily (12 July 2016). "Bihar Governor, Chief Minister Unveils SN Sinha Statue". Official Website Online patnadaily.com News. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
  29. ^ "Patna Planetarium Bihar, Indira Gandhi Planetarium, Patna, Bihar, India". Brandbihar.com. Retrieved 22 December 2013.
  30. ^ a b "Cong fanned fire, frenzy: Ex-CM". The Indian Express. 25 July 2005. Retrieved 8 February 2013.
  31. ^ Chittorgarh tag sticks to Aurangabad LS constituency. The Times of India. (16 March 2014). Retrieved 21 May 2014.
  32. ^ Official Website. "Nagaland Governor". Raj Bhavan. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  33. ^ "Nikhil Kumar sworn in as Governor of Kerala". The Hindu. 23 March 2013.
  34. ^ "Meri Yaadein, Meri bhoolein (My Memories, My Mistakes) released by Bihar Governor Buta Singh in the presence of Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee". The Indian Express. Express India. Retrieved 10 December 2005.
  35. ^ a b "Diary". The Telegraph. Calcutta, India. 8 August 2004. Archived from the original on 3 February 2013.
  36. ^ "1989 Bhagalpur riots: Inquiry report blames Congress, police".
  37. ^ "bhagalpur-riots-inquiry-report-blames-congress-police". India Today. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  38. ^ "VP to chair Sinha Memorial Lecture tomorrow - Patna News - Times of India". The Times of India. 11 July 2011.
  39. ^ "VP delivers inaugural SN Sinha memorial lecture". Press Information Bureau, Govt. of India. Retrieved 12 July 2011.
  40. ^ "Magadh University Bodh Gaya - Courses, Admissions, Exams & Results". highereducationinindia.com.
  41. ^ "Fresh in memory card, lost in report - Govt silent on ambitious Ganga driveway, private university progress". The Telegraph. Kolkota.
  42. ^ Kumar, Madhuri (7 August 2015). "Unlike BJP leaders, my DNA carries values, says Nitish". The Times of India.

Sources

  • Mere Sansmaran, an autobiography by Dr. Anugrah Narayan Sinha
  • Anugrah Abhinandan Granth samiti. 1947 Anugrah Abhinandan Granth. Bihar.
  • Anugrah Narayan centenary year celebration Committee. 1987. Bihar Bibhuti : Vayakti Aur Kriti , Bihar.
  • Bimal Prasad (editor). 1980. A Revolutionary's Quest: Selected Writings of Jayaprakash Narayan. Oxford University Press, Delhi.


Preceded by
Chief Minister of Bihar

1989–1990 		Succeeded by
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