Veteran lawyer Sharifuddin Pirzada passes away

KARACHI: Renowned veteran lawyer of Pakistan Syed Sharifuddin Pirzada died in Karachi on Friday morning after a prolonged illness at the age of 94.

Pirzada was a noted Pakistani lawyer, who served as a senior advocate at the Supreme Court of Pakistan and the longest serving Attorney General of Pakistan. He remained AGP from 1968-1971 and 1977-1985,respectively.

He was born on June 12, 1923 in Burhanpur, British India. His father was also a noted barrister.

Pirzada began his legal career in the Bombay High Court before moving to the newly created Pakistan.

Sharifuddin Pirzada served as Foreign Minister under Ayub Khan and Attorney General under Yahya Khan and Zia-ul- Haq regime.

He served as Secretary General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference 1985-1988 and was a member of Committee of Eminent Jurists to review the OIC Charter 2007. For his best performance in the legal field with honesty and dedication, he was awarded Nishan-i-Imtiaz in 1998.

Pirzada was most recently the counsel for former president General (retd) Pervez Musharraf in the treason case against him.

Pirzada was secretary to Quaid Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah in the 1940s.

All leading proceedings were temporarily suspended in the Sindh High Court after the news of his death.