Maleeha meets Nawaz to condole Begum Kulsoom’s death

LONDON: Dr Maleeha Lodhi, Pakistan’s former representative to the United Nations in New York, called on former prime minister Nawaz Sharif to enquire about his health and to condole the death of his wife Begum Kulsoom Nawaz.

Dr Lodhi arrived at the Avenfield apartments on Wednesday noon and stayed for about an hour. A source said that Dr Lodhi asked the former premier about his health and wished him recovery. The source said that Dr Lodhi offered condolences to Nawaz Sharif over the death of Kulsoom Nawaz who succumbed to cancer here in September 2018.

Sources said that Dr Maleeha Lodhi asked Sharif about his health but no politics was discussed. Dr Lodhi was not available to comment but she was seen leaving the apartment block by this reporter and family sources confirmed that the meeting took place. “This was a courtesy call focused only on Nawaz Sharif’s health,” said the source.

Last week, former Afghanistan president Hamid Karzai met Nawaz Sharif at the apartments and asked about his health situation. Dr Maleeha Lodhi quit her job in September last year. Prime Minister Imran Khan appointed veteran diplomat Munir Akram as new envoy to the world body’s headquarters.

Since her retirement, Dr Lodhi has taken part in several high profile discussions on the issue of Kashmir and Pakistan’s foreign policy. In 1994, Dr Lodhi was appointed by then prime minister Benazir Bhutto as Pakistan’s envoy to the US, a position she retained until 1997. She was once again appointed to the same position in 1999 by Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf until 2002 when she completed her tenure and moved on to be High Commissioner to the UK. Between 2008 and 2010, she served as a resident fellow at the Institute of Politics and the Kennedy School of Harvard University. In February 2015, Lodhi was appointed by then prime minister Nawaz Sharif to serve as Permanent Representative and Ambassador of Pakistan to the UN in New York City, making her the first woman to hold the position.