 Several prominent Indian leaders tried to convince him to abandon his fast.He ended his fast on 9 January 1961, after the Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru issued a statement indicating the support for establishment of a Punjabi Suba.Paul R. Brass, the Professor Emeritus of Political Science and South Asian Studies at the University of Washington, opines that the Sikh leader Fateh Singh tactically stressed the linguistic basis of the demand, while downplaying the religious basis for the demand—a state where the distinct Sikh identity could be preserved.