PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Caretaker Chief Minister Muhammad Azam Khan passed away due to illness at a private hospital here on Saturday. He was 89.
The Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa expressed its deep grief over the sudden death of the caretaker chief minister and announced three-day mourning from Nov 11 to 13 across the province; during the period the national flags on government buildings will be hoisted at half-mast.
Azam Khan had a severe stomach infection and was admitted to Rehman Medical Institute (RMI) in Peshawar on Friday night.
Caretaker KPK CM Azam Khan passes away
He was under treatment when he breathed his last due to a heart attack.
The chief minister’s nephew said his uncle had invited him yesterday and discussed a plan to visit Charsadda University next Monday and was “absolutely fine”.
“I was making the arrangements, when the news of his death arrived,” Ahmed told a private news channel.
According to the spokesperson of the Rehman Medical Institute, Azam Khan was shifted to the private hospital on Friday night when his health deteriorated.
Hospital spokesman Shabbir Shah said Azam Khan was suffering from multiple diseases and was in a critical condition.
He was kept in the hospital’s intensive care unit (ICU). Due to his illness, he had limited his movement for the past few days.
According to the family sources, the chief minister died at 10:25am on Saturday.
Dr Gulzar of Rehman Medical Institute Peshawar told the media that caretaker CM Azam Khan had been suffering from stomach disease for the past three to four days. He said that all tests were run on Azam Khan, and even his CT scan was also conducted. “CM Azam Khan was diagnosed with a hernia. His condition improved last evening, but it worsened late at night,” the doctor revealed.
Dr Gulzar said that the hospital staff made utmost efforts to save Azam Khan but they failed.
Former secretary of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Kanwar Dilshad said that the provincial cabinet has been dissolved after the death of the KP chief minister as per the law.
He added that all the powers have been transferred to KP Governor Ghulam Ali till the appointment of a new chief minister.
The former ECP secretary said that the matter would be decided by the leader of the opposition in the Senate and the leader of the house.
However, he added, if the decision is not made through mutual consultations, then the matter will land in the ECP’s court. He maintained that the matter has to be decided within a week.
“If the National Assembly or the provincial assemblies are dissolved, then the decision is made by the Senate,” said Dilshad.
Meanwhile, the caretaker chief minister Azam Khan’s Namaz-i-Janaza was offered at his hometown of Prang in Charsadda district on Saturday.
Funeral was attended by provincial cabinet members, senior officials, bureaucrats, political leaders of various parties and others.
Former bureaucrat Mohammad Azam Khan had taken oath as the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa caretaker chief minister on January 21, 2023, after KP Governor Haji Ghulam Ali formally appointed Khan as the caretaker chief minister of the province in the interim set-up.
A Barrister-at-Law from Lincoln’s Inn, Azam Khan had earlier served as minister for interior, capital administration and development in the caretaker cabinet of prime minister Nasir-ul-Mulk in 2018.
He also remained the provincial minister for finance, planning and development in the KP caretaker cabinet of CM Shamsul Mulk from October 2007 to April 2008 and served on key positions in the federal and provincial governments.
Earlier, he had served as chief secretary from September 1990 till July 1993. He also remained the Pakistan Tobacco Board chairman.
He was the real brother of former Inspector General Police, ex-caretaker provincial minister Abbas Khan, and cousin of Chairman Qaumi Watan Party Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao.
Meanwhile, Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar termed the KP CM an honest and pious person. He prayed for the deceased’s family.
President Dr Arif Alvi also expressed his grief on the news and recalled that he found Khan a “gentleman” whenever he met him.
The ECP and the government conveyed their grief, as well.
Caretaker Information Minister Murtaza Solangi remembered Azam as a ‘gentleman’ and ‘polite’ person. In the same way, caretaker Interior Minister Sarfraz Ahmed Bugti prayed for Khan’s family.
Sindh Governor Kamran Khan Tessori showed his profound grief on Khan’s death and prayed for deceased’s elevated ranks.
Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman said the chief minister’s services would be remembered.
PPP leader Faisal Karim Kundi also prayed for the bereaved family, saying he was ‘deeply saddened by the loss’.
Punjab Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi expressed heartfelt sympathy and condolences to the family members of the late Azam Khan.
Expressing sorrow over Azam Khan’s death, former prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif said he belonged to a family whose members served the country with great devotion. “He worked with great sincerity during the flood campaign,” recalled the former premier.
“Deeply saddened by the death of Azam Khan,” Mohsin Naqvi said and added that his services for the country and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will always be remembered.
Pakistan People’s Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari also expressed condolences over Khan’s death, saying that he had performed the most important administrative duties in a proper way. “Azam Khan’s service towards the people will always be remembered,” added Bilawal.
Sindh Caretaker Chief Minister Justice Maqbool Baqar also poured in condolences and prayed for the deceased.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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