Pakistan’s veteran nuclear scientist denies rumors of his death

ISLAMABAD: Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, also known as founder of Pakistan’s nuclear program, said on Tuesday that the reports circulating on social media about his death were untrue and that he was “doing well and living a normal life.”
“It could be the wish of my detractors and enemies of the country,” Khan added.
Earlier on Tuesday, there were rumors on social media in Pakistan on the death of Dr. A Q Khan and people started expressing their concerns on the news linked to the country’s famous personality.
“I was in Lahore last week and just a day earlier came back to Islamabad,” Khan said.
Dr. Khan was put under house arrest in February 2004 after he publicly confessed on television to nuclear proliferation and illicit transfer of nuclear weapons technology to Iran, Libya, North Korea and other countries.
“I take full responsibility for my actions and seek your pardon. I offer my deepest regrets and unqualified apologies to a traumatized nation,” Khan had said in his televised confession.
However, he later denied the charges and said the statement was given under duress and and not out of his free will during the regime of a military dictator.
After an exhausting legal battle challenging his detention, a Pakistani court ordered lifting the restrictions imposed on him and declared him a free person in 2009.
Khan is considered a hero by many in the country due to his lead role in making Pakistan a nuclear power but he was sidelined from the sensitive program after a presidential pardon in response to his startling confession.
He currently lives a retired life with his family in the capital city of Islamabad and refrains from politics or work pertaining to his former career line.