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Major General Janak Singh (surname Katoch) CIE, OBI, (7 August 1872 – 15 March 1972) was an officer of the Jammu and Kashmir State Forces in the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. After retirement, he briefly served as the prime minister of the state during a crucial period in 1947, which was evidently a temporary appointment while the Maharaja looked for a more permanent candidate.[1][2][3]
Janak Singh | |
|---|---|
 Major General Janak Singh | |
| Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir | |
| In office 11 August 1947 – 14 October 1947 | |
| Preceded by | Ram Chandra Kak |
| Succeeded by | Mehr Chand Mahajan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 8 July 1872 |
| Died | 15 April 1972 (aged 99) |
Biography
editJanak Singh was from the village of Khaira in the Kangra district, in the present-day state of Himachal Pradesh in India.[4]
Military career
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Political career
editSingh was army minister in the government of Maharaja Hari Singh of Jammu and Kashmir during 1929–1931.[5] He also served as the revenue minister.[citation needed] On 11 August 1947 he was brought out of retirement to be the prime minister at a turbulent time on the eve of the independence of India and Pakistan.[6] This is deemed to be a temporary appointment while the Maharaja searched for a more permanent replacement.[2][3][7]
He steered the Standstill Agreement that Kashmir wanted to sign with India and Pakistan.[8] The agreement was not signed by India, and before further deliberations were done Pakistan-assisted raiders had marched into Kashmir state. Janak Singh was replaced by Mehr Chand Mahajan on 15 October 1947.[9] On 13 September 1947 Maharaja Hari Singh requested the loan of the services of Lt. Col. Kashmir Singh Katoch (son of Janak Singh) to act as the military adviser to the Maharaja. This request was granted by the Indian government.[7][a]
Honours
editSingh had won a Military Cross with a unit of the Frontier Force Rifles during World War II in action in Italy. He ultimately retired as a Lt. General in the Indian Army. The other two sons also served in the Indian Army, one in the 5 Gorkha Rifles, Brigadier Devendra Singh Katoch, AVSM, and the youngest, Lt. Colonel Rajendra Singh Katoch, followed his father into the J&K State forces, where he was commissioned into the J&K Bodyguard Cavalry.[10]
Notes
edit- ^ Lt. Col. Kashmir Singh Katoch was the eldest of the three sons of Janak Singh.
References
edit- ^ Nanda, (Lieut. Gen.) K. K (1994). Conquering Kashmir : A Pakistani Obsession. New Delhi: Lancers Books. p. 45. ISBN 978-81-7095-045-5.
- ^ a b Das Gupta 1968, pp. 87–88.
- ^ a b Jha 1996, p. 44.
- ^ Śarmā, Baṃśī Rāma; (Simla India), Institute of Integrated Himalayan Studies (2007). Gods of Himachal Pradesh. New Delhi: Indus Pub. Co. in association with Institute of Integrated Himalayan Studies, H.P. University, Shimla. p. 105. ISBN 978-81-7387-209-9.
- ^ Singh 2010, pp. 149, 163.
- ^ Robert. G. Wirsing. India, Pakistan, and the Kashmir Dispute.On Regional conflict and its Resolution. P.33. St Martins Press, New York, 1998
- ^ a b Singh 2010, p. 215.
- ^ Looking Back: The Autobiography of Mehr Chand Mahajan Former Chief Justice of India. Asia Publishing House, New Delhi, 1963, p. 125 & 267
- ^ Bajwa, K. S (2003). Jammu and Kashmir War, 1947-1948 : Political and Military Perspective. New Delhi: Har-Anand Publications. p. 77. ISBN 978-81-241-0923-6.
- ^ Bhattacharya, Brigadier Samir (2013). Nothing But! : Book Three: What Price Freedom. Partridge Publishing. p. 30. ISBN 9781482816266.
Bibliography
edit- Das Gupta, Jyoti Bhusan (1968), Jammu and Kashmir, Springer, ISBN 978-94-011-9231-6
- Jha, Prem Shankar (1996), Kashmir, 1947: Rival Versions of History, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-563766-3 – via archive.org
- Singh, K. Brahma (1990), History of Jammu and Kashmir Rifles, 1820-1956: The State Force Background, Lancer International, ISBN 978-81-7062-091-4
- Singh, K. Brahma (2010) [first published Lancer International 1990], History of Jammu and Kashmir Rifles, 1820-1956: The State Force Background (PDF), brahmasingh.co.nf, ISBN 978-81-7062-091-4, archived from the original (PDF) on 6 March 2016