PESHAWAR: Muhammad Azam Khan, the interim chief minister of Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, passed away on Saturday after being rushed to the hospital due to his deteriorating health the previous day.
A former civil servant, Khan was appointed to the post in January of this year after former prime minister Imran Khan dissolved the provincial assembly in an attempt to exert pressure on the government to hold early national elections.
Advocate Sawal Nazir, the provincial caretaker minister for local government and rural development, told Arab News he received the news early in the morning.
“The late chief minister was in his 90s,” he said. “As you know, old age itself can be a form of ailment. Additionally, the late chief minister was grappling with acute health issues, including a heart problem.”
Nazir added that Khan had been unable to chair a meeting of the provincial health department on Friday due to his illness.
“Legally, if the chief minister resigns or passes away, the cabinet is dissolved,” he explained.
Muhammad Azam Khan, hailing from Charsadda city, had previously served as the provincial finance minister. He also held the positions of secretary of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources in Islamabad and chief secretary in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from September 1990 to July 1993.
Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar expressed deep sorrow and grief over Khan’s passing in a statement, offering prayers for the deceased and condolences to the bereaved family.
“Azam Khan served the people all his life as a dutiful and competent officer,” the PM said. “His role as a public officer will be a beacon for all civil servants.”
Kakar highlighted that the late chief minister had managed the administrative affairs of his province in a challenging situation.
“Khan took all possible measures to prevent law and order problems and smuggling in the province,” he continued.
The funeral prayer for the deceased chief minister will be held in his hometown of Charsadda at 3:30 pm today.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa interim chief minister Muhammad Azam Khan passes away
https://arab.news/bamgx
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa interim chief minister Muhammad Azam Khan passes away
- Caretaker PM Kakar says Khan’s role as a public officer will be a beacon for all civil servants in Pakistan
- His demise may lead to the dissolution of the provincial cabinet under the legal framework of the country
Death toll in Pakistan shopping plaza fire rises to 67, officials say
- Rescue teams still searching for damaged Gul Plaza in Karachi where blaze erupted on Saturday, says police surgeon
- Karachi has a long history of deadly fires, often linked to poor safety standards, weak regulatory enforcement
KARACHI: The death toll from a devastating fire at a shopping plaza in Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi jumped to 67 on Thursday after police and a hospital official confirmed that the remains of dozens more people had been found.
Police surgeon Dr. Summaiya Syed said rescue teams were still searching the severely damaged Gul Plaza in the Karachi, where the blaze erupted on Saturday.
Most remains were discovered in fragments, making identification extremely difficult, but the deaths of 67 people have been confirmed, she said. Asad Raza, a senior police official in Karachi, also confirmed the death toll. Authorities previously had confirmed 34 deaths.
Family members of the missing have stayed near the destroyed plaza and hospital, even after providing their DNA for testing. Some have tried to enter the building forcibly, criticizing the rescue efforts as too slow.
“They are not conducting the search properly,” said Khair-un-Nisa, pointing toward the rescuers. She stood outside the building in tears, explaining that a relative who had left to go shopping has been missing since the blaze.
Another woman, Saadia Saeed, said her brother has been trapped inside the building since Saturday night, and she does not know what has happened to him.
“I am ready to go inside the plaza to look for him, but police are not allowing me,” she said.
There was no immediate comment from authorities about accusations they have been too slow.
Many relatives of the missing claim more lives could have been saved if the government had acted more swiftly. Authorities have deployed police around the plaza to prevent relatives from entering the unstable structure, while rescuers continue their careful search.
Investigators say the blaze erupted at a time when most shop owners were either closing for the day or had already left. Since then, the Sindh provincial government has said around 70 people were missing after the flames spread rapidly, fueled by goods such as cosmetics, clothing, and plastic items.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, though police have indicated that a short circuit may have triggered the blaze.
Karachi has a long history of deadly fires, often linked to poor safety standards, weak regulatory enforcement, and illegal construction.
In November 2023, a shopping mall fire killed 10 people and injured 22. One of Pakistan’s deadliest industrial disasters occurred in 2012, when a garment factory fire killed at least 260 people.
