Gurdial Singh Dhillon

Dr. Gurdial Singh Dhillon (6 August 1915 – 23 March 1992) was a Punjabi politician in the Indian National Congress party. He was the Speaker of the Lok Sabha twice, President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (1973–76)[3] and Indian High Commissioner to Canada (1980–82).[1]

Not to be confused with Gurbaksh Singh Dhillon.

Gurdial Singh Dhillon
Minister for Agriculture
In office
12 May 1986 – 14 February 1988[1]
Prime MinisterRajiv Gandhi
5th Speaker of Lok Sabha
In office
8 August 1969 – 19 March 1971[2]
DeputyG.G. Swell
Preceded byNeelam Sanjiva Reddy
Succeeded byhimself
In office
22 March 1971 – 1 December 1975[2]
DeputyG.G. Swell
Preceded byhimself
Succeeded byBali Ram Bhagat
Personal details
Born(1915-08-06)6 August 1915
Amritsar, Punjab, British India
Died23 March 1992(1992-03-23) (aged 76)
New Delhi, India
Political partyIndian National Congress
Alma materPunjab University Law College
OccupationPolitician
Diplomat

Early life

On 6 August 1915, Gurdial Singh Dhillon was born in the Panjwar area, some 20 kilometres west of Amritsar city in Punjab into a Dhillon Jat family. He studied at Khalsa College, Amritsar and Government College, Lahore before graduating in Law from Punjab University Law College in Lahore.[4] He played an active role in the Harse Chhina Mogha Morcha rebellion in 1947.[5]

Political career

Dhillon was a member of the Punjab Legislative Assembly (1952–1967), where he was its Deputy Speaker (1952–54) and its Speaker (1954–62).[6] In 1967 he was first elected to the Lok Sabha, the lower House of the Indian Parliament representing Tarn Taran parliamentary constituency.[7] He was elected from Firozpur in 1985.[4]


Dhillon served two terms as Speaker of Lok Sabha (1969–71 and 1971–75) and was Minister of Agriculture in the Indian Government (1986–1988).[8] Regarding his time in Parliament, his biography on the Lok Sabha website expresses the following:

A man of uncompromising principles, he considered the institution of Parliament to be the temple of democracy and as such had great respect for the House and its traditions and conventions. The rare ability to quickly assess the mood of the House and a pragmatic approach helped him discharge the onerous responsibility of the office of the Speaker of the Lok Sabha in a dignified way. Dhillon's election as the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Council of the IPU was at once a great honour for himself and also for the people and the Parliament of India.[1]

With Kartar Singh, he co-authored a series of eight children's books in the early 1970s entitled 'Stories from Sikh History'.[9]

Having undergone heart bypass surgery, Dr. Dhillon died at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi on 23 March 1992 following a heart attack.[10]

See also

References
  1. The Office of Speaker Lok Sabha
  2. The Office of Speaker Lok Sabha
  3. International Organizations A-L
  4. "Biography of G.S Dhillon". Winentrance. 19 March 2011. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  5. Mukherjee, Mridula; Peasants in India's Non-violent Revolution: Practice and Theory p. 233; Sage 2004 ISBN 0-7619-9686-9
  6. http://punjabgovt.nic.in/government/PunjabLegistature.htm#Speakers%20of%20Punjab%20Legislative%20Assembly
  7. http://www.eci.gov.in/SR_KeyHighLights/LS_1967/Vol_I_LS_67.pdf
  8. Mercury News: Search Results
  9. Stories from Sikh History - Kartar Singh, Gurdial S. Dhillon - Google Boeken
  10. http://parliamentofindia.nic.in/lsdeb/ls10/ses3/0124039201.htm
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