For Gah, though, the signs of its link to Singh are everywhere. As Ali’s nephew Aashiq Hussain said at the dua ceremony: “Had Dr Saab not been there, our village would have none of this – the two-lane road, the high school, vocational training, solar power. Poora gaaon afsos ka izhaar kar raha hai jaise koi ghar ka bada chala gaya ho (Our entire village is mourning this loss like we have lost a family elder).”
Ibrar Akhtar Janjua, among those present, said: “He did so much for us, our wish was that he visit his village at least once. But that remained unfulfilled.” Singh said once that there were too many painful memories of Partition associated with Gah for him.
The school at Gah village in Pakistan.Aashiq told The Indian Express that Ali used to be full of stories about Singh, particularly how “studious” he was, a refrain that comes up regularly in conversations about the former PM. “When they met in Delhi, Dr Saab recounted to his wife (Gursharan Kaur) that while it was he who broke berries off trees by striking them with stones, my uncle would eat them all.”
When Ali died, a letter of condolence came from the Indian Embassy, Aashiq said, along with a personal message from Singh.
The villagers of Gah in Pakistan’s West Punjab gathered to say the last dua (prayer) for their “Dr Saab.”Born in Gah, Singh took lessons in Urdu and Punjabi at a local gurdwara before joining the local Government Primary School, where he studied till Class 4. He later studied at Khalsa School after moving to Peshawar with his father Gurmukh Singh. Following the trauma of losing his grandfather Sant Singh during the Partition riots, the family crossed over to India in 1947.
The Government Primary School has preserved with care the “daakhla (admission)” register with its most famous student entered in records in Urdu as: “Number 187. Father’s name: Gurmukh Singh. Caste: Kohli. Date: 17 April 1937.”
After Singh became PM, and his link to Gah became known, the local government vowed to develop it as a ‘Model Village’ on the orders of then Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf. The roads, a health centre, a vet clinic, a government high school followed, and after that solar street lights, solar-powered water heaters in village mosques, computers and furniture for the government primary school.
The admission register showing he was admitted in the school as student number 187The solar projects were completed with the help of a team sent from across the border by the Singh government, and led by TERI.
The Pakistan government also announced it would rename Singh’s school after him. But that didn’t happen.
Altaf Hussain, the current head teacher at the primary school, told The Indian Express over phone that since Singh became “India’s Wazir-e-Azam”, he has remained in the prayers of the people of Gah.
“It was only due to him that even the Pakistan government gave some attention to the village… For the people of Gah, it was a big moment when we got the metalled road to Chakwal city, 30 km from here. Earlier, that alone was a big task… After Gah was declared a ‘Model Village’, a high school also came up for both boys and girls,” ssaid Altaf, adding proudly that the primary school, with 115 children on its rolls now, also has two computers now.
Unlike the school, no trace remains of the Singh family home in Gah.
In 2004, then PM Musharraf gifted Singh a water painting of Gah village, and a marksheet from his school. Singh reciprocated with similar gifts for Musharraf a year later; Musharraf’s family had lived in a haveli in Old Delhi before Partition. “You scored better than me…,” Musharraf laughed as he looked at Manmohan’s scorecard.
Singh’s pain was evident in the Urdu couplet he recited on receiving the gifts: “Kuchch aise bhi manzar hain tareekh ki nazron mein; lamhon ne khata ki, sadiyon ne saza paayi (There are such episodes in the gaze of history; moments commit a crime and centuries bear the punishment).”
The head teacher of Singh’s school said that for them, his death means a greater responsibility. “Even after I leave this school, I will ensure that the teacher who comes after me preserves the record of our most intelligent student,” Altaf said.
Added Ashfaq: “We celebrated when Dr Saab became India’s PM in 2004. Today in 2024, we are mourning… Had it not been impossible due to the ties between the two countries, we would have visited India to attend his last rites.”
