ÿþ<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>LACHHMA&#7750 SI&#7748GH GILL (1917-1969)</TITLE> <style type="text/css"> .BODY { background-color: #EAF1F7; background-image: url('images/gtbh.jpg'); background-repeat: no-repeat; background-attachment: fixed; background-position: center; color: #0066CC;} .C1{text-align: justify;color: #0066CC;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} .BIB{text-align: center;color: #000099;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} .CONT{text-align: right;color: #FF0000;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} </style><META NAME="keywords" CONTENT="LACHHMAF,SIDGH,GILL,Person,Person"> <META http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8"></HEAD> <BODY class="BODY" oncontextmenu="return false" ondragstart="return false" onselectstart="return false"> <FONT ALIGN="JUSTIFY" FACE="Tahoma"> <p class="C1">&#65279LACHHMA&#7750 SI&#7748GH GILL (1917-1969), Ak&#257l&#299 politician and chief minister of the Punjab for a brief term, was born at Jagr&#257o&#7749 in Ludhi&#257&#7751&#257 district. He started life in 1937 as a government contractor. He entered politics via the Shiroma&#7751&#299 Ak&#257l&#299 Dal of which he became a member during the Punjabi S&#363b&#257 <i>morch&#257</i> or agitation. The agitation was started in the 1950's in support of a separate state for the Punjabi-speaking people to be carved out of the then existing Punjab. In 1960 began his membership of the executive committee of the Shiroma&#7751&#299 Gurdw&#257r&#257 Parbandhak Committee. In 1966, he was elected a member of the Sikh Educational Committee for the management of Sikh colleges at Q&#257d&#299&#257&#7749 (Gurd&#257spur) and at Ba&#7749g&#257 Jalandhar). In 1962, he was nominated a member of the Sr&#299 Nank&#257&#7751&#257 S&#257hib Education Trust, Ludhi&#257&#7751&#257. In 1961, he became general secretary of the Shiroma&#7751&#299 Gurdw&#257r&#257 Parbandhak Committee.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The renewal of the Punjabi S&#363b&#257 agitation in 1959-6l ended in a split in the Shiroma&#7751&#299 Ak&#257l&#299 Dal. Lachhma&#7751 Si&#7749gh Gill sided with the group led by Sant Fateh Si&#7749gh. In the legislative elections held in 1962 he was elected a member of the Punjab Assembly from Jagr&#257o&#7749 constituency. The Punjab went through a major realignment of its boundaries in 1966 when Hary&#257&#7751&#257 and the Punjab were split into two political entities.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Lachhma&#7751 Si&#7749gh Gill was elected to the legislative assembly (this time from Dharamko&#7789 constituency in F&#299rozpur district) in February 1967. Although the Ak&#257l&#299 Dal won only 26 seats against 48 for the Congress in a house of 104, it made a joint front of all non-Congress MLA's and a few independents and formed a ministry headed by Sard&#257r Gurn&#257m Si&#7749gh. Lachhma&#7751 Si&#7749gh Gill was sworn in as minister for education and revenue on 8 March 1967. However, in April he joined Harcharan Si&#7749gh Hu&#7693i&#257r&#257 to form a separate group. By November this group had a strength of 19 members led by Lachhma&#7751 Si&#7749gh. On 22 November 1967 Lachhma&#7751 Si&#7749gh Gill pledged his support to the Congress party. The United Front ministry put in its resignation the same day. The Congress party, however, instead of forming a ministry of their own offered support to Lachhma&#7751 Si&#7749gh Gill, who was sworn in as Chief Minister on 25 November 1967. Lachhma&#7751 Si&#7749gh Gill's first action as chief minister was to declare Punjabi as the official language up to the secretariat level. The language bill was passed in the assembly on 19 December and it received the governor's assent on 29 December 1967. According to this bill, Punjabi was to come into force by 14 January 1968 up to district level and by 13 April up to secretariat level. He had already announced on 13 December 1967, the grant of U.G.C. (University Grants Commission) grades to university teachers. His other historic decision was to connect all villages to market towns with metalled roads. On 20 August 1968 the Congress party withdrew its support leading to the fall of Lachhma&#7751 Si&#7749gh Gill's ministry. The Punjab was placed under the President's rule. In the mid-term elections which took place in February 1969, Sard&#257r Gurn&#257m Si&#7749gh bounced back into power, heading a United Front ministry.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Lachhma&#7751 Si&#7749gh Gill died of a severe heart attack at Cha&#7751&#7693&#299ga&#7771h on 26 April 1969.</p> </font> <p class="BIB"> BIBLIOGRAPHY<p class="C1"><ol class="C1"><li class="C1"> Dilgeer, Harjinder Si&#7749gh <i>Shiroma&#7751&#299 Ak&#257l&#299 Dal</i>. Chandigarh, 1980<BR> <li class="C1"> Ashok, Shamsher Si&#7749gh, <i>Shiroman&#299 Gurdw&#257r&#257 Parbandhak Committee d&#257 Pañjah S&#257l&#257 Itih&#257s</i>. Amritsar, 1982<BR> <li class="C1"> Wallace, Paul and Surendra Chopra, eds., <i>Political Dynamics of Punjab</i>. Amritsar, 1981<BR> </ol><p class="CONT">Major Gurmukh Si&#7749gh (Retd.)<br></p><BR> </font><img src="counter.aspx" width="1px" height="1px" alt=""></HTML></BODY>