Gohar Ayub Khan passes away

HARIPUR: A former senior parliamentarian and federal minister Gohar Ayub Khan passed away in Islamabad, family sources confirmed here on Friday evening. He was 86 and left behind two sons and two daughters to mourn his death.

One of his sons is Omar Ayub Khan, the secretary general of PTI who has been in hiding since May 9 episode as he was facing multiple charges. Gohar Ayub Khan’s wife, Begum Zeb Gohar Ayub Khan, the daughter of late General Habib Ullah Khatak and sister of Gen Ali Kuli Khan, had died of cancer in December 2015.

Family sources in Islamabad said that Gohar Ayub Khan’s heart beat suddenly rose and was moved to Kulsoom International Hospital where according to doctors he passed away. His body would be shifted to his native village of Rehana, Haripur, for burial in the native graveyards.

His namaz janaza would be offered today (Saturday) at 3 pm. Gohar Ayub Khan, the son of Field Marshal Ayub Khan, was born on January 15, 1937 in Rehana. He was commissioned in the Pakistan Army in 1959 and resigned from the service in1962 as captain.

After winning NA seat from Haripur during election 1990 on the ticket of IJI, he was elected as speaker of National Assembly. During the general elections of 1993 and 1997 he retained his seat and served as foreign minister and later as minister for water and power.

After the dismissal of Nawaz’s government by Gen Musharraf, he joined the PML-Q in 2001 with his son Omar Ayub Khan who later won the election of PML-Q’s ticket in 2002. Gohar Ayub Khan practically retired from politics after the 2002 elections. He authored three books — The Testing Times as Foreign Minister, Shikar, The Days By gone and Glimpses in the Corridors of Power.