A veteran of the Indian independence movement against Britain, he was personally popular for his earthy humor and political skills. - Zail Singh

His earliest inspiration came from the martyrdom of Bhagat Singh and his companions on 23 March 1931. **In: p. 71.

The dismissal threat was only a "deliberate ploy" by him to frighten the prime minister and regain the initiative for himself. The truth is that constitutional experts and even some opposition leaders had told him that the president had absolutely no authority to sack a prime minister enjoying majority support. Obviously, it was a war of nerves he was waging.

The June 1984 assault on the Harmandir Sahib complex by government troops, which killed hundreds, put him in a difficult situation with the Sikh community—made worse by the violence against Sikhs that erupted following Gandhi’s assassination by her Sikh bodyguards four months later.