Mota Singh

Description

Mota Singh, the first Judge to sit on English bench wearing a turban instead of a wig, was born in 1930 in Nairobi, Kenya. He had his early education in Nairobi, but due to the death of his father S. Dalip Singh in 1946, he had to leave his studies and start jobs for supporting a family of 8 persons including five young siblings, mother and grandfather. After working for sometime in East African Railways and Harbors, he joined a European firm of lawyer in Nairobi. This association led him to continue his Bar studies which he completed in 1955 and then started his own practice as a Barrister in Nairobi. In 1965 he migrated to England and joined the English Bar. He had to face difficult situations to appear in the court by wearing a turban instead of a wig, but with his hard work, sincerity and dedication he started winning case after case. People were excited to see a turbaned person arguing the case.

With his presence, not only the court rooms were flooded with people, the media also wrote about him and covered his cases extensively. When the race relations Act was introduced in U.K in 1967, he was appointed by the then Home Secretary as one of the 12 statuary members of the board and he served upon it for 11 years. He was also appointed as an examiner of Supreme Court and then Chairman of the London Rent Assessment Committee. Soon he became popular ‘Land and Tenant’ specialist Barrister in England. In 1978, Mota Singh took ‘silk’, meaning that he was appointed Queens’ Counsel (‘QC’). ‘Silks’ are senior barristers who have excelled themselves at the Bar and once so appointed can, theoretically, be called upon by the Queen to counsel her on a legal matter. The nomenclature refers to the fact that, only permissible after the appointment, the black robes the QCs wear in court are indeed of silk. In 1979, Mota Singh was appointed a Recorder by The Lord Chancellor, a parttime judicial appointment as a Judge for three years, aimed at assessing how the candidate performs on the Bench before his permanent appointment as Judge is considered. After three years, in 1982 Mota Singh was appointed a Circuit Judge, the first appointment from a minority ethnic group. What was even more significant was that for the first time in the English Judicial history, going back to three hundred years, a Judge would sit on the English Bench wearing a turban instead of a horse-hair wig. The creator of history in Britain raised the prestige of turban and making all the Sikhs of the world proud of him. During his tenure and even after he retired in 2002, Judge in the turban got unprecedented applaud and praises. He was invited by the Queen for his service to the Judiciary and for charitable works in 2012. His charitable works include his helping attitude for everyone. Even now being a devout Sikh, he is associated with all Sikh activities including with the local Gurdwara in Southfield. His behavior marked with humanity, courtesy and generosity presents him as a true Sikh who wakes up in the small hours of the day and performs Nitnem. The great role-model has been rightly described by ‘The Asian Age’ as “The Dignified and Humble Sikh Judge”.