10 Facts About S Rajaratnam

Sinnathamby Rajaratnam, better known as S Rajaratnam, was a Singaporean politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore between 1980 and 1985.

Second child of Sabapathy Pillai Sinnathamby and his wife N Annamah, both of Sri Lankan Tamil descent, Rajaratnam was born in Vaddukoddai, Yazhpanam, Sri Lanka.

In London, Rajaratnam wrote a series of short stories which The Spectator's J B Trend reviewed positively.

In 1954, S Rajaratnam co-founded the People's Action Party together with Lee Kuan Yew, Toh Chin Chye, Goh Keng Swee and others.

Nonetheless, S Rajaratnam did not believe in the need for a strong opposition in Parliament, which he considered "non-communist subversion"; he was unapologetic about the dominant party system in Singapore saying:.

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Couple moved to Malaya at the conclusion of the Second World War but S Rajaratnam's parents disapproved of their new daughter-in-law, even telling her that they would not accept "half-caste" descendants.

In 1994, S Rajaratnam was diagnosed with dementia and was unable to move or talk by 2001.

In recognition of his contributions as one of the nation's founding fathers, S Rajaratnam was accorded a state funeral at the Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay on 25 February 2006.

The Singapore National Pledge was recited by the mourners in honour of S Rajaratnam, who penned down the National Pledge against the backdrop of racial riots in the 1950s and 1960s to inculcate in all Singaporeans his vision of building one united Singapore regardless of race, language or religion.

Organisations with which S Rajaratnam was associated in life published obituaries in The Straits Times; these included the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Ceylon Sports Club, Singapore Ceylon Tamils' Association, Singapore Indian Fine Arts Society, Nanyang Technological University, Old Rafflesians' Association, Raffles Institution, Raffles Junior College and Raffles Girls' School.