Major General Rajinder Singh, MVC & bar (3 October 1911 – May 1994) was an

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

officer and a two time member of the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...

, the lower house of the Indian parliament. He was nicknamed 'Sparrow'.He was born in a Punjabi Jat Sikh Shergill Family.

Career

Singh served in the ranks of the

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

from 3 October 1932 to 31 January 1938. He attended the

Indian Military Academy The Indian Military Academy (IMA) is one of the oldest military academies in India, and trains officers for the Indian Army. Located in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, it was established in 1932 following a recommendation by a military committee set up ...

Dehra Dun Dehradun (), also known as Dehra Doon, is the winter capital and the most populous city of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and is governed by the Dehradun Municipal Corporation, ...

, and was commissioned onto the Unattached List, Indian Army on 1 February 1938. He spent the next year attached to The King's Regiment (Liverpool), a British Army regiment, stationed on the North West Frontier. He was then admitted to the Indian Army and joined the 7th Light Cavalry on 24 February 1939. He was promoted to lieutenant on 30 April 1939, and served during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He was promoted temporary captain and acting major on 16 April 1942, to war-substantive captain and temporary major on 9 January 1943 and to substantive captain on 31 January 1945. Singh opted to join the

upon the partition of India in 1947, and commanded the 7th Light Cavalry from September 1947 to May 1949. He was twice awarded the Maha Vir Chakra, the second highest military decoration in India, the first for his role during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947, for outstanding leadership during the advance and capture of Jhangar ( Operation Bison), and the second for displaying gallantry in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, during which he was GOC of the 1st Armoured Division. Promoted to colonel on 30 January 1957, Singh held the appointment of regimental colonel of the 7th Light Cavalry from July 1959 to July 1969. He was appointed D. A.C., Army HQ. On 3 July 1961, he was appointed a G.O.C. commanding a division, with the acting rank of major-general. Singh retired from the Army on 26 September 1966. After retirement he entered politics and became a minister in the short lived Gurnam Singh ministry in 1967. Later he was elected to the Lok Sabha in

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

and

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...

for the

Jalandhar Jalandhar () is a city in the state of Punjab, India, Punjab in India. With a considerable population, it ranks as the List of cities in Punjab and Chandigarh by population, third most-populous city in the state and is the largest city in the ...

constituency as a candidate of the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

. He died in May 1994, at the age of 83.

Dates of rank

Notes

Vicky

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sparrow, Rajinder Singh 1911 births 1994 deaths Indian generals Recipients of the Maha Vir Chakra People from Jalandhar district Lok Sabha members from Punjab, India India MPs 1980–1984 India MPs 1984–1989 Military personnel of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 People of the Indo-Pakistani war of 1947–1948 State cabinet ministers of Punjab, India Indian Army personnel of World War II British Indian Army officers Indian National Congress politicians from Punjab, India Presidents of Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee