Giani A gyani or giani (Punjabi: ਗਿਆਨੀ ) is an honorific Sikh title used by someone learned in the Sikh religion and who often leads the congregation in prayers, such as Ardas, or in singing ( kirtan). The word means "knowledge" in Punja ...

Gurmukh Singh Musafir (15 January 1899 – 18 January 1976) was an

Indian politician Politics of India works within the framework of the country's Constitution. India is a parliamentary democratic secular republic in which the president of India is the head of state & first citizen of India and the prime minister of India i ...

and

Punjabi language Punjabi (; ; , ), sometimes spelled Panjabi, is an Indo-Aryan language of the Punjab region of Pakistan and India. It has approximately 113 million native speakers. Punjabi is the most widely-spoken first language in Pakistan, with 80.5 ...

writer. He was the Chief Minister of

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi Language, Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also Romanization, romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the I ...

from 1 November 1966 to 8 March 1967. He was awarded the

Sahitya Akademi Award The Sahitya Akademi Award is a literary honour in India, which the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, annually confers on writers of the most outstanding books of literary merit published in any of the 22 languages of the ...

in Punjabi, given by

Sahitya Akademi The Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Founded on 12 March 1954, it is supported by, though independent of, the Indian government. Its of ...

, India's National Academy of Letters in 1978 for his short story collection, ''Urvar Par'' and was posthumously decorated with

Padma Vibhushan The Padma Vibhushan ("Lotus Decoration") is the second-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "exceptional and distinguished service". All persons without ...

, the second highest Indian civilian award given by

Government of India The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

Early life

Musafir was born on 15 January 1899 at Adhwal, in

Campbellpore Attock (Punjabi and Urdu: ), formerly known as Campbellpur (), is a historical city located in the north of Pakistan's Punjab Province, not far from the country's capital Islamabad. It is the headquarters of the Attock District and is 61st large ...

(now called

Attock Attock (Punjabi and Urdu: ), formerly known as Campbellpur (), is a historical city located in the north of Pakistan's Punjab Province, not far from the country's capital Islamabad. It is the headquarters of the Attock District and is 61st lar ...

district of Punjab province in British India (presently Rawalpindi District of Punjab Province in Pakistan) - in a small land-holding farming family of

Khatri Khatri is a caste of the Indian subcontinent that is predominantly found in India, but also in Pakistan and Afghanistan. In the subcontinent, they were mostly engaged in mercantilistic professions such as banking and trade, they were the d ...

of Chadha clan. He completed primary education from the village primary school and then went to

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan ...

to pass the middle school examination. In 1918, he became a teacher at Khalsa High School, Kallar. His four years there as a teacher earned him the epithet

, Musafir being the pseudonym he had adopted. In 1922, he gave up teaching and joined the Akali agitation for Gurudwara reform. For taking part in the Guru ka Bagh agitation in 1922, he underwent imprisonment. He was appointed to the highest religious office of Sikhism

Jathedar A jathedar ( pa, ਜੱਥੇਦਾਰ) is a leader of high regard chosen to head and ensure discipline within a jatha, a body of Sikhs. The Jathedar of the Akal Takht is the central head of the Sikhs worldwide, who makes all important decisions ...

of the

Akal Takht The Akal Takht ("Throne of the Timeless One") is one of five takhts (seats of power) of the Sikhs. It is located in the Darbar Sahib (Golden Temple) complex in Amritsar, Punjab, India. The Akal Takht (originally called Akal Bunga) was built by ...

from 12 March 1930 to 5 March 1931.

Political career

Musafir joined the freedom movement in the early 1920s and courted arrest several times till 1947. He courted arrest in the

Civil disobedience Civil disobedience is the active, professed refusal of a citizen to obey certain laws, demands, orders or commands of a government (or any other authority). By some definitions, civil disobedience has to be nonviolent to be called "civil". H ...

movement in 1930. He became the head of

, central seat of religious authority for the

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

s. He held this office from 12 March 1930 to 5 March 1931. He also served for a time as secretary of the

Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee ( SGPC; "Supreme Gurdwara Management Committee") is an organization in India responsible for the management of Gurdwaras, Sikh places of worship in states of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh and the unio ...

as well as general secretary of the Shiromani Akali Dal. He also courted arrest as part of

Satyagraha Satyagraha ( sa, सत्याग्रह; ''satya'': "truth", ''āgraha'': "insistence" or "holding firmly to"), or "holding firmly to truth",' or "truth force", is a particular form of nonviolent resistance or civil resistance. Someone wh ...

and

Quit India The Quit India Movement, also known as the August Kranti Movement, was a movement launched at the Bombay session of the All India Congress Committee by Mahatma Gandhi on 8th August 1942, during World War II, demanding an end to British rule ...

movements. In 1949, he became the President of the

Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (or Punjab PCC), formerly known as the Punjab Provincial Congress Committee in colonial India, is the affiliate of the Indian National Congress in the state of Punjab. On 9 April 2022, Amrinder Singh Raja War ...

. He held the office of the President for 12 years and was also an elected member of the

Congress Working Committee The Congress Working Committee (CWC) is the executive committee of the Indian National Congress. It was formed in December 1920 at Nagpur session of INC which was headed by C. Vijayaraghavachariar. It typically consists of fifteen members elect ...

. He was elected to the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-p ...

in 1952, 1957 and 1962, representing Amritsar constituency. In 1966, he resigned from the Lok Sabha and became the Chief Minister of Punjab state after its re-organization. In 1967, he contested the

Vidhan Sabha The State Legislative Assembly, or Vidhan Sabha, or also Saasana Sabha, is a legislative body in the states and union territories of India. In the 28 states and 3 union territories with a unicameral state legislature, it is the sole legislati ...

election from Amritsar constituency, but he was defeated by Satyapal Dang of the

Communist Party of India Communist Party of India (CPI) is the oldest Marxist–Leninist communist party in India and one of the nine national parties in the country. The CPI was founded in modern-day Kanpur (formerly known as Cawnpore) on 26 December 1925. H ...

. He was the member of the

Rajya Sabha The Rajya Sabha, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. , it has a maximum membership of 245, of which 233 are elected by the legislatures of the states and union territories using si ...

from 1968 to 1974. Musafir died in Delhi on 18 January 1976. He was posthumously awarded

in 1976. Musafir was a member of the Indian delegations to the

International Peace Conference The International Peace Conference was an anti-war conference held on December 10, 2005. It was organised by the Stop the War Coalition (StWC), and included speakers from Iraq, the United States, and Italy. The conference sold out a week befo ...

in Stockholm in 1954, World Peace Conference in Helsinki in 1965, and the World Peace Conference in Berlin in 1969. He also led the Indian delegations to the World Progressive Writers Conference in Japan in 1961 and the Indian Writers Afro-Asian Conference in

Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world an ...

in 1965.

Role in Constituent Assembly of India

Musafir was elected to the Constituent Assembly from Congress Party. In the Constituent Assembly he spoke on the issues of citizenship and separate electorates.

Offices held

*Member of A.I.C.C, since 1930 *Member of Constituent Assembly – 1946–52 *Member of Lok Sabha – 1952–57, 1957–62, 1962–66 *President, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee- 1947–59 *Member, Working Committee A.I.C.C – 1952–57 *Member, Executive Committee of the Congress Party in Parliament – 1952–1966 *Member

Jallianwala Bagh Jallianwala Bagh is a historic Bāgh (garden), garden and ‘memorial of national importance’ close to the Harmandir Sahib, Golden Temple complex in Amritsar, Punjab, India, Punjab, India, preserved in the memory of those wounded and killed in ...

Memorial Committee since its inception *Chairman Reception Committee, Sixty- first session of the Indian National Congress held at Amritsar in 1956 *Member, Legislative Council Punjab – 1966–68 *Chief Minister, Punjab – 1966–67 *

member in April 1968 and April 1974

Writer and poet

Musafir was also a poet and writer. His writings became profile following the massacre of

when he wrote about the Indian National struggle. While he is more famous for being a politician, noted Punjabi critics like Kartar Singh Duggal, Raghbir Singh Sirjana and Gurbhajan Gill have all spoken about Musafir's contribution to Punjabi literature, particularly his work during the freedom struggle. His published works include nine collections of poems (Sabar De Bann, Prem Ban, Jivan Pandh, Musdfaridn, Tutte Khambh, Kadve Sunehe, Sahaj Sumel, Vakkhrd Vakkhrd Katrd Katrd and Duur Nerhe); eight of short stories (Vakkhn Duma, Ahlane de Bot, Kandhdn Bol Paidn; Satdl Janvari; Allah Vale, Gutdr, Sabh Achchhd, and Sastd Tamdshd); and four biographical works (Vekhya Sunya Gandhi, Vekhya Sunya Nehru, BaghlJamail and Vehvin Sadi de Shahid). He represented Indian writers at international conferences at Stockholm in 1954, and at Tokyo in 1961. He recorded the reminiscences of his association with

Mohandas Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

and

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian Anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India du ...

in two separate volumes – ''Vekhya Sunya Gandhi'' (Gandhi as I knew him), "Vekhya Sunya Nehru" (Nehru as I knew him). His book ''Martyrs of 20th Century'' is the result of 30 years of research. Most of his poetry and short stories were written while in jail. He also translated ''Gandhi Gita'' and James Allen's ''Byways of Blessedness'' titled ''Anand Marg''.

References

External links

Website about Giani Gurmukh Singh Musafir

Giani Gurmukh Singh Musafir
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mussafir, Giani Gurmukh Singh Mussafir Chief Ministers of Punjab, India Recipients of the Padma Vibhushan in literature & education 1899 births 1976 deaths India MPs 1952–1957 India MPs 1957–1962 India MPs 1962–1967 Shiromani Akali Dal politicians Punjabi people Punjab, India MLAs 1962–1967 Punjabi-language writers Indian male short story writers Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Punjabi Members of the Constituent Assembly of India Rajya Sabha members from Punjab, India Lok Sabha members from Punjab, India Chief ministers from Indian National Congress 20th-century Indian short story writers Writers from Punjab, India Indian Sikhs Jathedars of Akal Takht People from Attock District Politicians from Amritsar district