'A boy from our village became PM': Residents of Manmohan Singh's ancestral village in Pakistan cherish the old link

Residents of Gah village in Chakwal district, Punjab, Pakistan, are mourning the death of former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, feeling as though they have lost a family member. Altaf Hussain, a local teacher and Singh's former classmate, shared that the community held a condolence meeting to honor the memory of their fellow villager.

Manmohan Singh, who attended school in Gah until the fourth grade, was remembered fondly by those who knew him. His father, Gurmukh Singh, was a textile merchant, and his mother, Amrit Kaur, was a housewife. Friends affectionately called him 'Mohna.' 

Gah village is situated approximately 100 km southwest of Islamabad and was part of Jhelum district at the time of Singh's birth, later becoming part of Chakwal district in 1986.

Singh’s rise brought to spotlight his forgotten ancestral village

Singh’s rise brought to spotlight his forgotten ancestral village, surrounded by lush fields. Some classmates who were around when he became prime minister in 2004 are dead now. But their families still live in Gah, and cherish the old link.

The former Prime Minister passed away at the age of 92 on Thursday night at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi. Raja Muhammad Ali, a schoolmate of Singh, had traveled to Delhi in 2008 to meet him. During the condolence meeting, Raja Ashiq Ali, nephew of Muhammad Ali, said that many villagers wished to attend Singh's last rites in India but were unable to do so, so try gathered to hold a condolence meeting instead.

A boy from our village became PM

The pride of Gah village is evident as families reflect on their connection to Singh, celebrating the moment when he became Prime Minister in 2004. Ashiq Ali remarked on the collective pride felt by the village, recalling the days when they celebrated 'a boy from our village' achieving such a high office.

The village school, where Singh received his early education, holds a special place in the hearts of locals. His admission number was 187, and he enrolled on April 17, 1937. Singh's success is credited with inspiring local development efforts, and there were discussions about naming the school in his honor.

After completing fourth grade, Singh's family moved to Chakwal and later to Amritsar just before the Partition. Although he never returned to Gah, the villagers hope that someone from his family will visit to honor his memory now that he has passed away.