Late Justice (R) Fazal Elahi termed man of principles

PESHAWAR: Former chief justice of the Federal Shariat Court Justice Fazal Elahi Khan lived a life away from limelight and always turned down offers for political positions in the last two decades.

He served as the chief justice of the Peshawar High Court and was later elevated as judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. He passed away on Tuesday at the age of 91 and was laid to rest at his ancestral village Ikrampur, Baizo Kharkai, in Mardan district. He had been ill for the last four years.

Born in January 1933, he graduated from the Edwardes College Peshawar and later did his LLB from the Khyber Law College in 1956 and started practice as advocate in the local courts in Peshawar in 1957. He was enrolled as advocate of the high court in 1959 and advocate of the Supreme Court in 1976.

Justice Fazal Elahi was appointed as judge of the Peshawar High Court in 1982 and was appointed as chief justice of the PHC in February 1991. He served as acting governor of the then NWFP for a brief period.

He was elevated to the Supreme Court of Pakistan in 1993. After his retirement as judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan he served as member of the Federal Public Service Commission. In January 2000, he was appointed chief justice of the Federal Shariat Court from where he retired in January 2003.

His eldest son, Fazal Subhan, followed in his footsteps and joined the judiciary. He remained a senior session judge before he was appointed judge of the high court last year. One of his sons Inayat Elahi serves in Pakistan International Airlines while two sons, Noor Elahi and Zahoor Elahi, are senior doctors.

Both his sons-in-law Dr Gohar Amin and Dr Adnan Khalid Jan are also associated with the medical field.

“He was offered senior positions many times after retirement, including the caretaker setups, but he always turned down the offers and preferred to spend quality time with his family, children, grandchildren and friends,” said Dr Gohar Amin, his son-in-law who remained close to him in the last many years. He recalled that Justice Fazal Elahi was a man of principles who lived a simple life even after serving at the senior most offices.

Other family members and friends recalled how the late judge always talked about the importance of education. Many of his children and grandchildren are doctors as well as doing well in other fields.