Early Life and Education
Born in Georgetown, Penang, Karpal Singh was the son of watchman and part-time herdsman Ram Singh. Ram had moved from India to Penang in 1921. Karpal's ancestors were wheat farmers from the village of Samna Pind, near Amritsar, in the Punjab region. He visited the village in 1963 while attending university and in 1974 when his father was killed in an accident there.
Karpal studied at St. Xavier's Institution. He met his wife, Gurmit Kaur, while herding his father's cows.
He obtained his Bachelor of Laws from the University of Singapore. During his time there, he also served as president of the student's union. He was barred from the hostel for protesting against the university's decision to mandate the "certificate of political suitability" for enrolling students. Karpal said he took seven years to graduate, admitting that he was "playful" and "didn’t attend lectures." After failing his final year courses, the dean, made him sit at the front of the class, and according to Karpal, "I couldn’t play the fool any more and I passed my exams accordingly!"
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