KP caretaker chief minister Azam Khan passes away

PESHAWAR: Caretaker Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Muhammad Azam Khan passed away in Peshawar on Saturday, ARY News reported.

According to reports, Azam Khan was shifted to Hayatabad Medical Complex in Peshawar on Friday after he fell ill.

نگراں وزیراعلی خیبر پختونخوا انتقال کرگئے#ARYNews pic.twitter.com/j8TXYGIuI8

— ARY NEWS (@ARYNEWSOFFICIAL) November 11, 2023

Khan was suffering from a severe stomach infection and suffered a heart attack on Friday night. He was kept in the hospital’s intensive care unit (ICU).

His funeral prayers will be offered in Charsadda at 3:00 pm, according to family sources.

In January this year, former bureaucrat Azam Khan took oath as caretaker chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Governor Haji Ghulam Ali administered oath to Khan as caretaker CM.

KP cabinet stands dissolved

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s interim cabinet has been dissolved after the death of the KP chief minister Azam Khan, said former secretary of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Kanwar Dilshad.

He added that all the powers have been transferred to KP Governor Ghulam Ali.

He emphasised that Article 224 of the Constitution empowers the Senate to make decisions in emergency situations, and if there’s a disagreement in selecting a new CM, the matter will be referred to the ECP.

Condolences

Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar expressed grief over the demise of an “honest and pious person”. He prayed for the deceased’s family to be given patience.

Sindh Governor Kamran Khan Tessori expressed his grief on the CM’s death and prayed for the deceased’s ranks.

PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said he was “deeply saddened by the loss” and sent his prayers to Khan’s family.

پاکستان پیپلزپارٹی کے چیئرمین بلاول بھٹو زرداری کا خیبرپختونخوا کے نگران وزیراعلی اعظم خان کے انتقال پر اظہار افسوس

مرحوم اعظم خان نے اہم ترین انتظامی ذمہ داریوں کو خوش اسلوبی سے نبھایا، چیئرمین بلاول بھٹو زرداری

مرحوم اعظم خان کے عوام کی خدمت کے حوالے سے اٹھائے جانے والے…

— PPP (@MediaCellPPP) November 11, 2023

Azam Khan’s Profile

He was a retired bureaucrat and former chief secretary besides having a good reputation in the province.

Khan, who belongs to Charsadda, has served as K-P finance minister from October 24, 2007, to April 1, 2008. He also remained the secretary of the ministry of petroleum and natural resources in Islamabad and the chief secretary in K-P from September 1990 to July 1993.

Azam graduated from the University of Peshawar, following which he went to Lincoln’s Inn, London to complete his Barrister-at-Law degree.