LAHORE - Thousands of people from across the country offered namaze janaza of three-time first lady of Pakistan, Begum Kulsoom Nawaz yesterday.
Eminent religious scholar Maulana Tariq Jamil led the funeral prayer at Sharif Medical Complex (SMC) ground, near Jati Umra farmhouse of the Sharif family. The ground was almost filled to its capacity of about 40,000 people.
Spouse of deceased and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his brother and former Punjab chief minister Shehbaz Sharif along with other family members accompanied the ambulance carrying the casket from their residence to the sprawling ground, where thousands were already awaiting for offering the funeral prayer.
A huge number of people rushed towards Nawaz Sharif as soon as he alighted from the vehicle. But the security persons checked their way. A visibly grieved Nawaz remained quiet most of the time while receiving condolences from the political figures and other participants on the occasion.
Due to rush of the participants, Nimaze Janaza was offered 15 minutes later than the stipulated time of 5pm. After the funeral prayer, Maulana Tariq Jamil led dua for the departed soul, and the ambulance carrying the body was then driven back to Jati Umra farmhouse where Begum Kulsoom’s body was buried near the graves of her father-in-law Mian Muhammad Sharif and brother-in-law Abbas Sharif.
A number of tearful mourners were seen at janaza while some others were carrying portrait of Nawaz Sharif. After jinaza the participants dispersed peacefully.
Among the eminent persons who attended the funeral were Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani; National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser, Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri, ex-speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq; Punjab Governor Ch Muhammad Sarwar and Speaker Ch Pervez Elahi, former President Mamnoon Hussain, former Prime Ministers Ch Shujaat Hussain, Yousaf Raza Gilani, and Raja Pervez Ashraf; Gilgit-Biltastan CM Hafiz Hafeeur Rahman.
The attendees also included AJK President Masood Khan and PM Raja Farooq Haider, JUI-F Ameer Maulana Fazlur Rehman; JI Ameer Maulana Sirajul Haq, PKMAP head Mahmood Khan Achekzai, QWP’s Aftab Ahmad Sherpao, and PCB ex-chairman Najam Sethi.
Some other prominent figures there were PTI ministers Mian Mahmoodur Rashid, Fiazul Hassan Chohan and Mian Aslam Iqbal; PML-N leaders Raja Zafarul Haq and Javed Hashmi, Zahid Hamid, Khwaja Asif, Khwaja Saad Rafiq, Muhammad Mehdi, Rana Sanaullah Khan; PPP leaders Syed Khursheed Shah and Qamar Zaman Kaira; and MQM leaders Dr Farooq Sattar, Khalid Maqbool Siddiqi, Mian Muhammad Attique, and Aminul Haq; and ANP’s Ameer Haider Hoti, Ghulam Ahmad Biluour and Shahi Saeed. Apart from them, delegations of lawyers, doctors and other professions were also present at jinaza.
Qurankhwani and dua for Begum Kulsoom Nawaz will be held between Asr and Maghrib prayers at Jati Umra on September 16 (Sunday).
The Home Department Punjab had increased the parole time of Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and son-in-law Cap (r) Muhammad Safdar till 4pm on September 17 (Monday).
Begum Kulsoom Nawaz had died at the age of 68 in London on Tuesday due to cancer disease. She was elected Member of the National Assembly from Lahore in September last year but she never joined the Parliament due to her treatment abroad.
Kulsoom Nawaz was known as ‘iron lady’ and ‘mother of democracy’ for braving the rule of Pervez Musharraf after he threw down the government on her spouse in October 1999.
Earlier in the morning last day, body of Begum Kulsoom was brought from London to Lahore by her brother-in-law Shehbaz Sharif and 12 other family members who included the younger daughter of Begum Sahiba, Asma Dar.
Hamza Shehbaz, Salman Shehbaz, Yousaf Abbas, Aziz Abbas, and Atta Tarar received the body at the airport and brought it to Sharif Medical Complex on an ambulance. The family members of the deceased including her spouse Nawaz Sharif and daughter Maryam Nawaz were already present at the Complex.
In a very emotional and sad atmosphere, they had glances of Begum Kalsoom after which the body was put to the morgue at the Complex and after Juma prayers it was taken to Jati Umra where a huge number of women were present in the covered area of the Sharif’s farmhouse. Around 4:45pm the body was driven to the Complex ground and it took the vehicle half an hour to cross about 200-meter distance due to huge rush of mourners.
Very tight security arrangements were made all around Jati Umra and venue of Jinaza. Special routes were made for vehicular movement coming from various sides to the venue besides setting up car parking lots. More than 450 traffic persons among thousands of security men, including that of Rangers, were deputed to control traffic and secure the place.
Earlier in the morning, a large number of PML-N workers were stopped from entering Jati Umra by the security personnel. They had begun to reach Jati Umra in the morning yet they were not allowed to enter the farmhouse where the other day a tent house was set up to see and offer condolences to Nawaz Sharif.
The workers resented the restrictions and they raised slogans against the government and the administration. The security persons wanted them to move to Sharif Medical City ground where nimaze jinaza was to take place but they insisted on going inside the Jati Umra to condole the death of Begum Kulsoom with the PML-N Quaid.
Some workers tried to break the restrictions by force but the security personnel checked their way. Only family members of the Sharifs and selective party leaders were allowed to go inside the Jati Umra farmhouse.
The PML-N workers from all over Punjab and other provinces came in huge number to attend the funeral. Many of them had reached the city two days earlier. Majority of them was women. A number of women workers were seen weeping and sobbing outside. They wanted to enter the farmhouse and for that they even intercepted the vehicle of Senator Pervez Rashid and Senator Asif Saeed Kirmani to beseech for their help for entry. But they failed to help them.
Thousands bid farewell to Begum Kulsoom Nawaz