SEVA SINGH, BHAI

SEVA SINGH, BHAI (1882-1945), journalist and author, was born in 1882 at Sarai Alamgir, in Gujrat district (now in Pakistan), where his father, Lal Singh, was a village moneylender. Passing his middle school examination from Jehlum, he trained as a junior vernacular teacher at Rawalpindi, and took up service at Khalsa Middle School, Pindi Gheb, in Attock district. Simultaneously, he started giving sermons in gurdwaras. He also wrote polemical pamphelts in Urdu to propagate Sikh teachings as well as to rebut the critical propaganda of the Arya Samajists.

Some of his titles were Guru Nanak Sahib aur Islam, Afzalul Ambia, Nur ka Fatur, Vedik Shadi ki Fazilat, and Ved Bhagvan. Once Bhai Seva Singh, accompanied by his wife, visited Amritsar, to participate in a religious debate. The couple were so fascinated by the Golden Temple that they decided to settle in the city for good. Seva Singh got an appointment in Sant Singh Sukkha Singh Middle School as a teacher. A regular reader of the Khalsa Samachar, a Punjabi weekly owned and edited by the Sikh poet and savant Bhai Vir Singh, Seva Singh was deeply impressed by its tone and style. He started contributing articles to the journal. This led to personal acquaintance with Bhai Vir Singh who offered him appointment as a subeditor in March 1914.

Seva Singh rose to be the editor of the paper which he served ably and diligently for over 30 years. Modest and humble looking, Seva Singh wielded a sharp pen. His name will go down in Punjabi letters as a formidable editor, revelling in religious discussion and debate. An attack of paralysis towards the end of August 1944 incapacitated him, the end coming on 28 January 1945. Besides his monumental work in the field of Punjabi journalism, Bhai Seva Singh was the author of a number of books. These included Mokhsh Marag, Amrit, SvargiJivan, Anha Chuha Thothe Dhan, Daya Nand Charitra, Surme Lal Mamira, Quran di Kunji, Quran di Kaham, Quran Shant and Bahadar Singhanian.