Dharam Singh
Encyclopedia
Narayan Dharam Singh (born December 25, 1936), was the 17th Chief Minister of Karnataka
state in India
and a former Lok Sabha
member. He was sworn into office on May 28, 2004, and left office on February 3, 2006. He represents Congress (I)
in the state. The coalition government formed by the Congress (I) with the help of Janata Dal (Secular)
came to an end in February, 2006 when H. D. Kumaraswamy
and B. S. Yeddyurappa engineered the downfall of the Dharam Singh administration.
village of Jevargi
taluk, Gulbarga District
) in Karnataka
state. He comes from a small numbered Rajput
community in the state. Dharam Singh has an MA
and LLB degrees from Osmania University
, Hyderabad. He was an advocate
by education and a politician by profession. He is married to Smt Prabhavati Dharamsingh. He has two sons Vijaysingh and Dr.Ajaysingh and a daughter Priyadarshini. He has six grandchildren Aarnav, Anushka, Vikramaditya, Aryaveer, Saina and Arhanjay.
region, winning from the backward Jewargi Assembly constituency for eight consecutive terms. For the low profile, controversy-shy but an astute politician, Narayan Singh Dharam Singh, occupying the coveted Chief Minister's post has come as a dream come true in his four-decade long checkered political career.
A sober political leader by all standards, Singh has earned the sobriquet "ajatha shatru" (a man without enemies) and is known for taking things as they come.
Hailing from a microscopic Rajput community in the State, Singh has emerged as one of the front-ranking leaders of North Karnataka region, winning from the backward Jewargi Assembly constituency for eight consecutive terms.
Endowed with vast political and at least two decades of administrative experience, Singh has been one of the top commanders of the Congress for his organizational skills.
Affectionately known as "sweet hearted" in his close circles, he missed the chief minister's chair by a whisker in 1999, when the Congress chose to install the then KPCC (Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee) President S M Krishna who coasted the party to victory in polls.
As KPCC President earlier, Singh has played a key role in reviving the flagging fortunes of the Congress, which was then headed at the national level by late Sitaram Kesri, for whom Singh was said to be his favorite.
Avoiding getting entangled in controversies is one thing Singh has scrupulously followed throughout his political career, which began as an independent corporator in Gulbarga City Municipal Council.
Later in the late 1960s, he joined the Congress and remained a staunch loyalist since then, without deserting the party even when it passed through its worst times at different stages.
He did not follow in the footsteps of his mentor former chief minister late D Devaraj Urs when he broke away from the Congress and floated his own outfit, nor when his close friend and another former chief minister S Bangarappa resigned from the party.
After the Congress was voted to power with comfortable majority, Singh, unlike his close friend and senior minister Mallikarjun Kharge
, did not throw his hat in the ring when the issue of choice of chief minister came.
"If everyone elects me unanimously, I will take up the post. I don't want to engage in competition," he had said then.
Without showing any signs of disappointment, Singh joined the Krishna ministry and handled the Public Works Department portfolio.
On earlier occasions as a minister, he had deftly managed the portfolios of Home, Excise, Social Welfare, Urban Development and Revenue.
Apart from his four-decade long association in State politics, Singh was also a Lok Sabha member once from Gulbarga Parliamentary constituency in 1980, thus having a brush with national politics for a brief period.
He gave up the Gulbarga Lok Sabha seat to accommodate C.M. Stephen, the then Union Home Minister in the Indira Gandhi Cabinet, after he lost the election in Delhi to Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Known for his adaptability, he had worked in the ministries of late R Gundu Rao, Bangarappa, Veerendra Patil
and Krishna.
He is the second leader from Gulbarga to become the chief minister after late Veerendra Patil
. However he failed to hold on to his constituency for a record ninth time in the recently concluded Assembly elections losing to a political lightweight - Doddappagouda Patil Naribol from the Bharatiya Janata Party with a margin of 52 votes.
In the recently held Loksabha elections 2009, Dharam Singh contested from Bidar constituency and emerged victorious defeating a political heavyweight Mr Gurupadappa Nagamarpalli by a margin of 39,619 votes.
of Karnataka Justice Nitte Santosh Hegde in 2008 has found Dharam Singh and 11 other officials guilty of causing a loss to the State exchequer owing to irregularities in the mining sector. The Lokayukta
report indicts Dharam Singh of causing loss of Rs. 23.22 crore. According to the report, Dharam Singh is at fault for allowing illegal mining in “patta” lands. The Lokayukta
has also asked for the amount caused as loss to be recovered from Dharam Singh.
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
state in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and a former Lok Sabha
Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha or House of the People is the lower house of the Parliament of India. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by direct election under universal adult suffrage. As of 2009, there have been fifteen Lok Sabhas elected by the people of India...
member. He was sworn into office on May 28, 2004, and left office on February 3, 2006. He represents Congress (I)
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
in the state. The coalition government formed by the Congress (I) with the help of Janata Dal (Secular)
Janata Dal (Secular)
The Janata Dal is a Centre-left ಕನ್ನಡ: ಜನತಾ ದಳIndian political party led by former Prime Minister of India H.D. Deve Gowda.The party recognized as state party in the states of Karnataka and Kerala . It was formed in July 1999 by the split of Janata Dal party. It has political presence mainly in...
came to an end in February, 2006 when H. D. Kumaraswamy
H. D. Kumaraswamy
Hardanahalli Deve Gowda Kumaraswamy was Chief Minister of the state of Karnataka, India from February 4, 2006 to October 9, 2007. He is one of the sons of former Prime Minister of India H. D. Deve Gowda...
and B. S. Yeddyurappa engineered the downfall of the Dharam Singh administration.
Early life & family
Dharam Singh was born in NelogiNelogi
Nelogi is a village in the southern state of Karnataka, India. It is located in the Jevargi taluk of Gulbarga district in Karnataka. Nelogi is located on the banks of Bheema river and is famous for Sri Hanuman temple...
village of Jevargi
Jevargi
Jevargi is a panchayat town in Gulbarga district in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is also the headquarters of the Jevargi Taluk.- Geography :Jewargi is located at . It has an average elevation of 393 metres...
taluk, Gulbarga District
Gulbarga District
Gulbarga district is one of the 30 districts of Karnataka state in southern India. Gulbarga city is the administrative headquarters of the district...
) in Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
state. He comes from a small numbered Rajput
Rajput
A Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...
community in the state. Dharam Singh has an MA
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
and LLB degrees from Osmania University
Osmania University
Osmania University , , since 1918, is a public university located in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India. It was established and named after the last Nizam of Hyderabad, Mir Osman Ali Khan. It is one of the oldest modern universities in India. It is the first Indian University to have Urdu and...
, Hyderabad. He was an advocate
Advocate
An advocate is a term for a professional lawyer used in several different legal systems. These include Scotland, South Africa, India, Scandinavian jurisdictions, Israel, and the British Crown dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man...
by education and a politician by profession. He is married to Smt Prabhavati Dharamsingh. He has two sons Vijaysingh and Dr.Ajaysingh and a daughter Priyadarshini. He has six grandchildren Aarnav, Anushka, Vikramaditya, Aryaveer, Saina and Arhanjay.
Political career
Dharam Singh has emerged as one of the front-ranking leaders of North KarnatakaNorth Karnataka
North Karnataka is an arid plateau from elevation in the Karnataka state of southwest India. It is drained by the Krishna River and its tributaries the Bhima, Ghataprabha, Malaprabha, and Tungabhadra...
region, winning from the backward Jewargi Assembly constituency for eight consecutive terms. For the low profile, controversy-shy but an astute politician, Narayan Singh Dharam Singh, occupying the coveted Chief Minister's post has come as a dream come true in his four-decade long checkered political career.
A sober political leader by all standards, Singh has earned the sobriquet "ajatha shatru" (a man without enemies) and is known for taking things as they come.
Hailing from a microscopic Rajput community in the State, Singh has emerged as one of the front-ranking leaders of North Karnataka region, winning from the backward Jewargi Assembly constituency for eight consecutive terms.
Endowed with vast political and at least two decades of administrative experience, Singh has been one of the top commanders of the Congress for his organizational skills.
Affectionately known as "sweet hearted" in his close circles, he missed the chief minister's chair by a whisker in 1999, when the Congress chose to install the then KPCC (Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee) President S M Krishna who coasted the party to victory in polls.
As KPCC President earlier, Singh has played a key role in reviving the flagging fortunes of the Congress, which was then headed at the national level by late Sitaram Kesri, for whom Singh was said to be his favorite.
Avoiding getting entangled in controversies is one thing Singh has scrupulously followed throughout his political career, which began as an independent corporator in Gulbarga City Municipal Council.
Later in the late 1960s, he joined the Congress and remained a staunch loyalist since then, without deserting the party even when it passed through its worst times at different stages.
He did not follow in the footsteps of his mentor former chief minister late D Devaraj Urs when he broke away from the Congress and floated his own outfit, nor when his close friend and another former chief minister S Bangarappa resigned from the party.
After the Congress was voted to power with comfortable majority, Singh, unlike his close friend and senior minister Mallikarjun Kharge
Mallikarjun Kharge
Mallikarjun Kharge, is an Indian politician and currently the Union Minister of Labour and Employment of the Republic of India. He is a member of the 15th Lok Sabha of India...
, did not throw his hat in the ring when the issue of choice of chief minister came.
"If everyone elects me unanimously, I will take up the post. I don't want to engage in competition," he had said then.
Without showing any signs of disappointment, Singh joined the Krishna ministry and handled the Public Works Department portfolio.
On earlier occasions as a minister, he had deftly managed the portfolios of Home, Excise, Social Welfare, Urban Development and Revenue.
Apart from his four-decade long association in State politics, Singh was also a Lok Sabha member once from Gulbarga Parliamentary constituency in 1980, thus having a brush with national politics for a brief period.
He gave up the Gulbarga Lok Sabha seat to accommodate C.M. Stephen, the then Union Home Minister in the Indira Gandhi Cabinet, after he lost the election in Delhi to Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Known for his adaptability, he had worked in the ministries of late R Gundu Rao, Bangarappa, Veerendra Patil
Veerendra Patil
Veerandra Patil was Chief Minister of Karnataka state of India twice. The first time was from 1968 - 1971; and the second time was almost 20 years later from 1989 - 1990. He was elected several times from Chincholi assembly constituency of Gulbarga district to Karnataka state legislative assembly...
and Krishna.
He is the second leader from Gulbarga to become the chief minister after late Veerendra Patil
Veerendra Patil
Veerandra Patil was Chief Minister of Karnataka state of India twice. The first time was from 1968 - 1971; and the second time was almost 20 years later from 1989 - 1990. He was elected several times from Chincholi assembly constituency of Gulbarga district to Karnataka state legislative assembly...
. However he failed to hold on to his constituency for a record ninth time in the recently concluded Assembly elections losing to a political lightweight - Doddappagouda Patil Naribol from the Bharatiya Janata Party with a margin of 52 votes.
In the recently held Loksabha elections 2009, Dharam Singh contested from Bidar constituency and emerged victorious defeating a political heavyweight Mr Gurupadappa Nagamarpalli by a margin of 39,619 votes.
- 1960: Councilor, GulbargaGulbargaGulbarga is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is the administrative headquarters of Gulbarga District. It was formerly part of Nizam's Hyderabad state...
City Municipal Council. - 1972: Member of Karnataka Legislative AssemblyLegislative AssemblyLegislative Assembly is the name given in some countries to either a legislature, or to one of its branch.The name is used by a number of member-states of the Commonwealth of Nations, as well as a number of Latin American countries....
. - Member of State Backward Classes Commission.
- Minister for Urban Development, Karnataka.
- Minister for Home & Excise, Karnataka.
- Minister for Revenue and Social Welfare, Karnataka.
- Minister for Public works, Karnataka.
- CHIEF MINISTER OF KARNATAKA (28 May 2004 to 02 Feb 2006)
- LEADER OF OPPOSITION, KARNATAKA LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY {08-02-2006 to 28-11-2007}
- Member Of Parliament (Bidar constituency)2009
Criticism and Controversy
The LokayuktaLokAyukta
The Lokayukta is an anti-corruption ombudsman organization in the Indian states.The Administrative Reforms Commission headed by Morarji Desai submitted a special interim report on "Problems of Redressal of Citizen's Grievances' in 1966...
of Karnataka Justice Nitte Santosh Hegde in 2008 has found Dharam Singh and 11 other officials guilty of causing a loss to the State exchequer owing to irregularities in the mining sector. The Lokayukta
LokAyukta
The Lokayukta is an anti-corruption ombudsman organization in the Indian states.The Administrative Reforms Commission headed by Morarji Desai submitted a special interim report on "Problems of Redressal of Citizen's Grievances' in 1966...
report indicts Dharam Singh of causing loss of Rs. 23.22 crore. According to the report, Dharam Singh is at fault for allowing illegal mining in “patta” lands. The Lokayukta
LokAyukta
The Lokayukta is an anti-corruption ombudsman organization in the Indian states.The Administrative Reforms Commission headed by Morarji Desai submitted a special interim report on "Problems of Redressal of Citizen's Grievances' in 1966...
has also asked for the amount caused as loss to be recovered from Dharam Singh.