Singh was the prime ministerial candidate for the National Front in the 1991 elections, but was defeated. He spoke out against the Babri Masjid demolition in 1992. After 1996, Singh retired from political posts, but continued to remain a public figure and political critic. He was diagnosed with bone marrow cancer in 1998, and ceased public appearances until the cancer went into remission in 2003. He died on 27 November 2008, at the age of 78 due to kidney failure and was honoured with state honour.