Anand Singh

Infobox Politician (general)


name= Anand Kumar Singh
image_width=
title= Member of House of Representatives (Fiji)
Lautoka Rural Indian Communal Constituency
term_start= 1999
term_end= 2000
predecessor=
successor= Udit Narayan
title2= Member of the Senate (Fiji)
term_start2= 2001
term_end2= 2006
predecessor2=
successor2=
title3=Attorney General (Fiji)
term_start3=1999
term_end3=2000
predecessor3=
successor3=
title4=
term_start4=
term_end4=
predecessor4=
successor4=
birth_date=
birth_place=
death_date=
death_place=
party= Fiji Labour Party
residence=
spouse=
profession=
religion= Hindu
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Anand Kumar Singh is a Fijian lawyer and politician of Indian descent. He was born on 8 August 1948 in Bombay, when his family had temporarily moved to India. The family returned from India in 1951 to live at the birthplace of his father, Parmanand Singh, in Yalalevu, Ba. His father was one of the first three Indo-Fijians to be elected to the Legislative Council of Fiji.

A member of the Fiji Labour Party, he was elected to represent the Lautoka Rural Indian Communal Constiuency in the House of Representatives, and was appointed Attorney-General in the government of Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry, serving until the government was deposed in the Fiji coup of 2000.

On 19 May 2000, He was among the 43 members of the People's Coalition Government, led by Mahendra Chaudhry, taken hostage by George Speight and his band of rebel Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF) soldiers from the Counter Revolutionary Warfare Unit. He was released on 12 July 2000. [ [http://www.fijihosting.com/pcgov/docs_c/activities_report_2000.htm Fiji Labour Party - Activities Report: 1999-2000] ]

From 2001 to 2006, he served as one of 8 Senators nominated by the Leader of the Opposition.

Singh also practices law privately, and is the senior partner of the Chaudhry and Singh law firm, which includes Rajendra Chaudhry, Mahendra Chaudhry's son.

Sugar industry controversy

In early December 2005, Singh found himself embroiled in controversy over allegations raised in the House of Representatives by Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase that a senior member of the FLP (whom he declined to name) had attempted to collect commissions from Indian companies applying for contracts for the reform of Fiji's sugar industry. Qarase's repeating of the charges outside of Parliament provoked threats of a lawsuit from the FLP leader, Mahendra Chaudhry. On 5 December, Anand Singh came out with his own version of events, saying that work he had undertaken in connection with a loan associated with the scheme had not been compensated, and threatened to sue the Indian government if it was not forthcoming. On 9 December, he announced that he was definitely going ahead with his lawsuit.

He claimed that he had masterminded the sugar deal, and that it had been adopted without compensation or acknowledgement by the Fijian and Indian governments. Singh's version was rejected, however, by government-appointed Senator Hafiz Khan, who was Chairman of the Fiji Sugar Corporation (FSC) at the time. The FSC had not committed to Singh's proposals at the time, and no undertakings had been given, Khan said.

Jioji Kotobalavu, the chief executive officer in the Prime Minister's Office, announced on 12 December that the government had received a complaint from Jeewan Jyoti Bhagat, the leader of the Indian Technical Mission for sugar industry reforms, about "obnoxious emails" from Singh. Singh threatened to sue Bhagat along with the Indian government, and said that if there was no favourable response from the Indian government, he would pursue the matter through Fijian courts. On 13 December, he told the Fiji Live news service that he had hired lawyers from New Zealand to prepare the case on his behalf.

On 27 December 2006, the Fiji Sun referred to an email from Bhagat, dated 26 November 2004, appreciating Singh's work, and cited the letter as evidence that Singh deserved to be paid for his services.

Personal life

Singh has two children, Hamish and Nikish, from a previous marriage. Their mother and sister died in an air accident in 1999. He has two younger children, Manish and Pranish from a second marriage.

References