Khushwant Singh - Biography

Date of Birth  15 February 1915

He was educated at Modern School, New Delhi, Government College, Lahore, St. Stephen's College in Delhi and King's College London, before reading for the Bar at the Inner Temple. Singh became an accomplished journalist.

He became editor of  Yojana,an Indian government journal. He later edited two major Indian newspapers, The National Herald and the Hindustan Times He became editor of The Illustrated Weekly of India, a newsweekly;  During his tenure, The Illustrated Weekly became India's pre-eminent newsweekly, with its circulation raising from 65,000 to 400000. After nine years, on 25 July 1978, a week before he was to retire, the management asked Singh to leave "with immediate effect". The new editor took charge the same day. After Singh's departure, the weekly suffered a huge drop in readership.

From 1980 through 1986, Singh was a member of Rajya Sabha.  He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1974  In 1984, he returned the award in protest against operation Bluestar the siege of the Golden Temple by the Indian Army. In 2007, the Indian government awarded Khushwant Singh the Padma Vibhushan.