Sardar Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa (1936–2025)
A Life Rooted in Sewa, Shaped by Struggle, and Remembered with Reverence.
Sardar Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa (1936–2025): End of a Titanic Innings
As the sun sets over the dusty plains of Sangrur, the air in Ubhawal village grows solemn in anticipation of bidding farewell to one of its most distinguished sons—Sardar Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa. At 89, he breathed his last at Fortis Hospital, Mohali, on 28 May 2025, following a protracted illness and cardiac-related complications. Yet, even in his passing, his legacy continues to resonate—in the gurudwaras of Punjab, in the parliamentary archives of Delhi, and in the living conscience of Sikh political life.
Tomorrow, in the very village where he once pedalled to college with dreams not of office but of service, his antim sanskar will take place—the traditional cremation on a funeral pyre, surrounded by family, farmers, and faith. As Punjab bows its head and the nation mourns, it is time not only to recount Dhindsa Sahib’s public milestones, but to reflect on the rarer virtues that defined his private self: humility in success, defiance in injustice, and an unshakable belief in principled public service.
Roots in Rural Punjab: The Formation of a Servant-Leader
Born on 9 April 1936 in Ubhawal, then part of princely Patiala State, under the suzereity of the British crown, Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa grew up amid modest means and moral clarity. His father, a small farmer, instilled in him a reverence for hard work and Sikh values. These early teachings would shape every chapter of his life. At Government Ranbir College, Sangrur, he was elected president of the Students’ Council, foreshadowing his instinct for grassroots leadership. At 22, he became the youngest sarpanch in Sangrur—a role in which he learned the art of listening and the discipline of governance.
The Political Ascent: From MLA to Cabinet Minister
Dhindsa Sahib entered formal politics in 1972, contesting and winning from Dhanaula as an independent. Soon after, he joined the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)—a party whose ideological spine then stood for federalism, Panthic sovereignty, and Sikh values. Over time, Dhindsa Sahib emerged not merely as a legislator, but as a master strategist and disciplined organiser.
1972: Elected MLA (Independent), Dhanaula.
1977, 1980, 1985: Re-elected MLA from Sunam and Sangrur on SAD ticket.
1977–1980: Served as Punjab’s Transport, Sports & Tourism Minister.
During this tenure, he legalised tractor-trolleys as rural transport, introduced innovative concessions for farm vehicles, and laid the groundwork for what would become a hallmark of his leadership—practical reforms driven by the needs of Punjab’s agrarian base.
National Politics and the Union Ministry Years
Despite being overlooked for a Cabinet berth in the first Vajpayee ministry in 1998—reportedly due to internal SAD politics and the rise of Sukhbir Singh Badal—Dhindsa ji maintained stoic loyalty. A year later, he was inducted into the Cabinet, when Vajpayee returned to power.
1998: Elected to Rajya Sabha.
1999–2004: Served in the Union Cabinet under Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Urban Employment and Poverty Alleviation
Youth Affairs and Sports
Mines
Chemicals and Fertilizers
2004: Elected Lok Sabha MP, Sangrur.
2010: Returned to Rajya Sabha, serving till 2022.
As Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers, Dhindsa Sahib was instrumental in modernising India’s urea distribution and fertiliser subsidy frameworks, ensuring rural affordability. His stewardship of Youth and Sports saw India prepare for the 2000 Sydney Olympics with renewed seriousness, marking a rare period when a leader from Punjab shaped policy with national consequence.
Personal Recollections: A Teacher Without a Classroom
Though I never worked with Sardar Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa in any official capacity, I had the occasion to meet him several times—both in public functions and private meetings. Despite our different professional trajectories that did not officially intersect, he always engaged with calm attention, graciousness, and curiosity.
My clearest memory is from 1998, during that dramatic interregnum when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was designated Prime Minister and preparing to be sworn in. Dhindsa Sahib had received a formal invitation to join the Council of Ministers and was expected to be present at the Rashtrapati Bhavan swearing-in ceremony. However, he was advised against attending by Sardar Parkash Singh Badal, who reportedly wanted to reserve the Union berth for his son, Sukhbir Singh Badal.
Many around Dhindsa Sahib believed he had every right to take the oath—indeed, that doing so would make his position irrefutable. And yet, true to his character, he subordinated personal ambition to party discipline. This quiet act enabled the political rise of Sukhbir Singh Badal, who was sworn in as Minister of State for Industry in that short-lived government. Dhindsa Sahib waited—without complaint—and was only later inducted as Union Cabinet Minister when Vajpayee returned to power in 1999.
The second interaction I remember came just before the announcement of the Padma Bhushan. My wife, then Principal Commissioner of Income Tax in Chandigarh, noted that a small disputed tax amount had emerged during routine vetting. I discreetly approached Dhindsa Sahib, who responded with dignified candour and cleared the issue promptly. What struck me most was that he had no idea he was under consideration for such an honour. “You are the first person to tell me,” he said quietly. A few days later, his name appeared in the Republic Day list—and he accepted it not with triumph, but with grace and dignity.
The Padma Bhushan—and Its Return
In 2019, the Government of India conferred upon him the Padma Bhushan, honouring a lifetime of public service. But when the contentious farm laws were passed by Parliament in 2020, Dhindsa Sahib—by then estranged from both the ruling alliance and the Akali leadership—made headlines again. He returned the honour in solidarity with Punjab’s farmers.
“A medal cannot weigh more than the tears of a farmer,” he said in his characteristically understated tone.
Faith, Fracture, and Tankhah
In December 2024, amid political friction and accusations concerning his past ministerial tenure, the Akal Takht Sahib issued a tankhah against him—a religious penalty for perceived failings during SAD’s controversial years (2007–2017). Though not directly implicated in those decisions, Dhindsa accepted the edict without protest. At age 88, he was seen performing sewa at Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib, cleaning utensils, standing barefoot in humility.
Mastuana Sahib Trust and the SGPC Battle
Dhindsa served for decades as Chairman of the Sant Attar Singh Mastuana Sahib Trust. In recent years, the Trust became embroiled in a bitter dispute with the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) over 186 acres of prime land in Sangrur—land earmarked for a government medical college.
While the litigation dragged on, Dhindsa offered a pragmatic solution: in 2023, the Trust allowed 25 acres to be transferred for the project. His reasoning was simple: public health must prevail over institutional ego. Even his detractors admitted—this was Dhindsa Sahib at his finest: resolute, yet conciliatory.
The Worthy Heir: Parminder Singh Dhindsa
His son, Parminder Singh Dhindsa, has walked a similar path—once SAD’s Finance Minister, now a prominent face in SAD (Sudhar Lehar). Expelled alongside his father in 2020, Parminder remains one of the sharpest Panthic voices against the SAD’s centralisation under Sukhbir Singh Badal. Though their 2022 alliance with the BJP ended in electoral defeat, their ideological campaign to revive Panthic values continues—and bears Dhindsa Sahib’s unmistakable imprint.
Condolences: Reverence from All Quarters
The tributes since his passing have come from across the political spectrum:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi: “A statesman of immense dignity and deep rootedness in Punjab’s soil.”
Union Home Minister Amit Shah: “His clarity and discipline strengthened India’s coalition era.”
Amarinder Singh Raja Warring: “He witnessed Punjab’s best and worst—and stood firm through all.”
Sukhbir Singh Badal: “His contributions to SAD and Panthic leadership are immeasurable.”
Bhagwant Mann, Punjab CM: “His compromise on the Mastuana college showed a leader above faction.”
Even the SGPC, despite litigation, acknowledged the passing of “a bridge-builder from a bygone era.”
Tomorrow in Ubhawal: The Final Return
On 30 May 2025, under the blazing zenith of the summer sun, Sardar Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa’s mortal remains will be consigned to the funeral pyre in his ancestral village of Ubhawal. As the sacred flames rise, they will bear witness to a final gathering of all who walked with him through Punjab’s political, spiritual, and social corridors—family members with tears, farmers with folded hands, political peers with bowed heads, and the sangat with silent prayer.
But beyond the ritual of cremation, the moment will carry a deeper symbolism: it will mark the passing of a generation that stood for a kind of Panthic leadership forged in austerity, guided by conscience, and lived in quiet resolve. A leadership that placed humility above hierarchy, conviction above convenience, and service above spectacle.
He was never loud, never theatrical. He amassed no illicit wealth, fostered no cult, demanded no chant. And yet, when he walked into a village, men instinctively straightened their backs. When he stood before the Akal Takht, even the seasoned bowed, not to the man, but to the spirit of sincerity he carried within him.
Sardar Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa is no more. But his sewa (service), his soch (vision), and his model of sangat-rooted politics—tempered by experience, anchored in values, and elevated by grace—will live on. Not merely in speeches or symbols, but in the daily struggles of those who still believe leadership can be principled, and that public life can still be sacred, if done in the name of Punjab and the Guru.
Karan Bir Singh Sidhu is a retired IAS officer of the Punjab cadre, having served for 37 years and superannuated as Special Chief Secretary.
Extra ordinary write up