Air Marshal Asghar Khan passes away at 96

Author: Web Desk

ABBOTABAD: Former Commander in Chief of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Air Marshal Asghar Khan on Friday morning died after a long illness at the age of 96. His funeral prayers will be offered on Saturday in Abbotabad.

Asghar Khan became the youngest head of PAF at the age of 35. He was born in Jammu and Kashmir and was a veteran of World War II.

He remained an active politician after his retirement from the air force. After leading the movement to get Zulfikar Ali Bhutto freed from imprisonment under the dictatorial regime of General Ayub Khan in the 1960s, Asghar Khan was one of the Pakistan National Alliance (PNA) leaders who opposed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in the 1977 election.

He had founded his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Istaqlal in 1970. After the election, Asghar Khan spearheaded the movement against the alleged rigging in the 1977 election. The movement eventually culminated into the ouster of the government by General Ziaul Haq who imposed Martial Law in the country on July 5, 1977.

The famous Asghar Khan case, the inquiry under which still remains pending with Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), alleged several political leaders, including former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, to have accepted funds from Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in the 1990 elections.

Asghar Khan joined Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in December 2011. It is pertinent to mention here that Nawaz Sharif had also started his political career in the late 1970s from Asghar Khan’s Tehreek-e-Istaqlal, though he later joined Muslim League and went on to become chief minister and prime minister of Pakistan.

In 2017, PAF academy in Risalpur was named after Asghar Khan.

PTI chairman Imran Khan expressed grief over Asghar Khan’s death, saying Asghar Khan ‘was a man of steadfast principles and integrity’.

President of Pakistan Mamnoon Hussain, Pakistan People’s Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) chairman Asif Ali Zardari, Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa and air chief Suhail Aman also expressed grief over the demise of PAF’s first air chief.

Suhail Aman said that Air Marshal Asghar Khan bravely lead the air force in its initial years and turned it into a modern air power through his excellent leadership skills. He added that Air Marshal Asghar Khan was a man of integrity, extraordinary professional skills and unshakable resolve.