A doyen of Indian journalism who challenged the sword with his pen, Kuldeep Nayar bid goodbye to the world, at the age of 95. The veteran journalist breathed his last at a private hospital in New Delhi, late last night.
Mr Nayar who was born in Sialkot (now in Pakistan) in 1923, started his career as an Urdu reporter and went on to become the editor of English daily The Statesman.
During his sterling career spanning across many decades, the eminent writer has authored over 15 books and written columns for over 80 newspapers in 14 different languages.
But apart from being a syndicated columnist, Mr Nayar also donned myriads of roles outside the literary realm.
He was the former High Commissioner of India to the UK in 1990 and was also nominated as a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha (Upper House of India’s Parliament) in 1997. He was also the media advisor to former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri.
When emergency was declared in India in 1975, Mr Nayar was among the first few journalists who were put behind the bars for leading a protest against the excesses of the administration.
Kuldip Nayar (left)and Khushwant Singh (second from left) take part in a protest against the Anti-Defamation Bill in 1988. Source: twitter/posted by Haider Sherazi
Remembering his role during the emergency, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted a tribute to the late scholar, calling him the “intellectual giant of our times.”
In the last few years of his life, Mr Nayar made relentless efforts to restore peace between India and Pakistan.
He is also credited for initiating the joint Independence Day celebrations between the two estranged neighbors at the India-Pakistan Border near Amritsar in the northern state of Punjab, a ritual which is practiced till date.
In his autobiography, ‘Beyond the Lines’ published in 2012, Mr Nayar drafted a heartfelt account of his “perilous journey” from Pakistan to India while recalling some of the most significant historical events that led to the partition and beyond.
Kuldeep Nayar's autobiography 'Between the Lines' was published in 2012 Source: Twitter
Tributes poured in fast for the man who has left an indelible mark on the canvas of India’s journalism.
His last rites will be performed at the Lodhi crematorium in South Delhi later today.
