My dad & LKY – two top law students

| Prem Singh | Singapore | Asia Samachar | 2 Apr 2015

My late father, Kirpal Singh, the lawyer who topped the local law cohort in 1963 (as a part-time student), is the man beside him in this picture. I share with readers what I wrote on my Facebook page:

Mr LEE KUAN YEW with my dad, KIRPAL SINGH, on his left (both in very happy mood, for some good reason, I am sure) in a Sikh Temple many many years ago. They were schoolmates in Raffles Institution. LKY topped his law cohort in Cambridge and Dad topped his law cohort in Singapore.

Dad passed away on 8 August 2012 at age 92 and I am missing him to this day. Now LKY has departed too and already I feel a great sense of loss. The entire Nation is in grief.

Mr LEE KUAN YEW has taught us many invaluable lessons. One significant lesson, which is so clearly manifested in the rapid growth and development of Singapore, is you can dream the impossible dream and work towards crystallising that dream into reality.

We merged with the Malayan States, when it looked like an impossibility, and when we got kicked out of Malaysia due to no fault of ours, we, against all odds, succeeded in becoming a strong, vibrant and prosperous independent nation; and, for many years now, we have been looked upon with adulation by nations far and wide.

We have come this far because of the grand vision of one amazing man and his able team of politicians. Do not take his achievements for granted or downplay his titanic contributions. It is so easy to find faults looking from the outside, never going through the trials and tribulations as LKY and his team did and pretending not to see the nations’ rapid growth and development under his sterling leadership.

Governing a nation of multi-racial and multi-religious communities on a land space of about 716 sq km (land area expanded due to reclamation but it was much smaller during his tenure as PM) to bring about peaceful co-existence seemed impossible, some would say.

The above is shared not only by me but also by all of my siblings, who are law graduates Harbajan, Manjit and Sarjit (Kaur). We received inspiration from the likes of LKY and our father.

Prem Singh studied law at National University of Singapore (NUS)

 

[ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs in Southeast Asia and surrounding countries. We have a Facebook page, do give it a LIKE! Visit our website: www.asiasamachar.com]

 

RELATED STORIES:

BBC’s Sharanjit: Watching my country mourn from afar (Asia Samachar, 30 Mar 2015)

Remembering Lee Kuan Yew: ‘Carry on forging racial harmony’ – ST  (Asia Samachar, 30 Mar 2015)

Sikhs brave rain to bid final farewell to Lee Kuan Yew (Asia Samachar, 29 Mar 2015)

Asia Samachar pays respect to Singapore’s LKY (Asia Samachar, 26 Mar 2015)

Sikhs pay tribute to Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew (Asia Samachar, 25 Mar 2015)

Working for LKY a ‘wild dream come true’ – DAVINDER (Asia Samachar, 24 Mar 2015)

 

OTHER SINGAPORE STORIES:

Malminderjit youngest ever to head SICCI (Asia Samachar, 26 Feb 2015)

Singapore’s Harmony on Wheels launched (Asia Samachar, 18 Feb 2015)

Singapore’s Sikh Centre ceiling collapses (Asia Samachar, 7 Feb 2015)

50 Singapore Sikhs for SG50 (Asia Samachar, 1 Feb 2015)

Chamkaur aims Singapore stripes for SEA Games 2015 (Asia Samachar, 23 Jan 2014)

17 saroops reach Singapore (Asia Samachar, 19 Jan 2014)

Singapore worker speaks out on hiring practice (Asia Samachar, 17 Jan 2014)

Malacca-Singapore cycling to raise funds for Siwec (Asia Samachar, 5 Dec 2014)