Former foreign minister of the country and veteran Congress leader Natwar Singh died at the age of 95 after a prolonged illness. He was admitted to a private hospital in Gurugram, where he was undergoing treatment. Natwar Singh was a prominent Congress leader who worked under Dr. Manmohan Singh during the UPA era. Singh was a resident of Bharatpur district of Rajasthan. He studied at Mayo College in Ajmer and Scindia School in Gwalior. Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma has expressed his condolences on the demise of the former Union Minister.
Bhajanlal Sharma wrote on X, ‘The news of the demise of former Foreign Minister of the Government of India, Padma Vibhushan awardee Mr. Natwar Singh is extremely sad. I pray to Lord Shri Ram to grant a place to the departed soul in his lotus feet and provide strength to the bereaved family in this hour of grief.’
The news of the demise of former External Affairs Minister of the Government of India, Padma Vibhushan awardee Ms. Natwar Singh is extremely sad.
I pray to Lord Shri Ram to give a place to the departed soul in his feet and provide strength to the bereaved family in this hour of grief.Om shanti! pic.twitter.com/hwcUNjWwh3
— Bhajanlal Sharma (@BhajanlalBjp) August 10, 2024
Congress leader Randeep Surjewala has also expressed grief over the death of Natwar Singh on social media platform X. He wrote, ‘The news of the death of former Foreign Minister Natwar Singh is sad. May God give strength to his family to bear this loss and grant peace to the departed soul.’
The news of the demise of former Foreign Minister Natwar Singh ji is sad.
May God give strength to his family to bear this loss and grant peace to the departed soul. pic.twitter.com/WAP3HQJlgF
— Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) August 10, 2024
Who was Kunwar Natwar Singh
Kunwar Natwar Singh served as the Foreign Minister from May 2004 to December 2005. Singh was selected into the Indian Foreign Service in 1953. In 1984 he resigned from the service to contest elections as a member of the Indian National Congress party. He won the election and served as Union Minister of State until 1989. Thereafter, his political career was full of ups and downs until he was made the Foreign Minister of India in 2004.
Early education
Singh, the fourth son of Govind Singh and his wife Prayag Kaur, was born in the princely state of Bharatpur. He was educated at Mayo College, Ajmer and the Scindia School, Gwalior, the traditional educational institutions for Indian royalty and nobility. He then graduated from St Stephen’s College, Delhi, then studied at Corpus Christi College, University of Cambridge and was a visiting scholar for a time at Peking University in China.
Personal life
In August 1967, Singh married Maharajkumari Heminder Kaur (born June 1939), the eldest daughter of Yadavindra Singh, the last Maharaja of Patiala State. Heminder’s mother, Mohinder Kaur, was also active in public life.
How was the diplomatic career
Singh joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1953 and served for 31 years. One of his early appointments was in Beijing, China (1956–58). He was then posted to India’s Permanent Mission to New York City (1961–66) and as India’s representative on the Executive Board of UNICEF (1962–66). He served on several United Nations committees between 1963 and 1966. In 1966, he was posted to the Prime Minister’s Secretariat under Indira Gandhi. He served as India’s Ambassador to Poland from 1971 to 1973, India’s Deputy High Commissioner to the U.K. from 1973 to 1977 and India’s Ambassador to Pakistan from 1980 to 1982. He served as Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs from March 1982 to November 1984. He received the Padma Bhushan, India’s third highest civilian award, from the Government of India in 1984.