AJK President Sultan Mehmood passes away at 71 from prolonged illness
AJK President Sultan Mehmood Chaudhry. Photo: File
Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Barrister Sultan Mehmood Chaudhry passed away at the age of 71 on Saturday due to prolonged illness.
Chaudhry also served as the prime minister of AJK from 1996 to 2001. In addition, he was the president of the Pakistan Peoples Party in AJK from 1991 to 2001.
His funeral prayers will be offered tomorrow at 4pm at the Mirpur Cricket Stadium.
صدرِ مملکت آصف علی زرداری کا صدرآزاد جموں و کشمیر، بیرسٹر سلطان محمود چوہدری کے انتقال پر گہرے رنج و غم کا اظہار۔
صدرِ مملکت نے الّلہ تعالیٰ سے مرحوم کی مغفرت اور جنتِ فردوس میں اعلیٰ مقام کی دعا کی۔
صدرِ مملکت نے مرحوم کی قومی اور سیاسی خدمات کو گرانقدر قرار دیتے ہوئے…Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the deceased was a wise and seasoned politician who had devoted his entire life to serving the people of AJK.
وزیرِ اعظم محمد شہباز شریف کا صدر آزاد جموں و کشمیر بیرسٹر سلطان محمود چوہدری کے انتقال پر گہرے دکھ اور رنج کا اظہار@CMShehbaz pic.twitter.com/Acl3oey8KV
Senate Chairman Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani also expressed sorrow over the passing, calling Chaudhry a wise, dignified and principled politician. “Barrister Sultan Mehmood played a key role in highlighting the Kashmir issue effectively on the international stage,” he said.
Gilani added, “His services for AJK will always be remembered. His political struggle remains a guiding light for future generations.”
His official Facebook page had rubbished rumours about his health on January 10 and said he was better than before.
Bhat said the death was a great loss for the people of AJK. He added that the late president remained committed to the Kashmir cause and consistently raised the issue of the Kashmiri people’s right to self-determination at both national and international forums.
Chaudhry was born on August 9, 1955, in Chechian, Mirpur. He received his early education in his native village before completing his matriculation from Cantt Public School, Rawalpindi. He graduated from Gordon College, Rawalpindi, and later travelled to the United Kingdom for higher education, earning a law degree, Bar-at-Law, from Lincoln’s Inn.
Chaudhry returned to Pakistan in 1983 and began his political career. He served as deputy opposition leader in the AJK Legislative Assembly. In 1990, he was nominated for the presidency but missed the election by a month due to age eligibility rules. He later served as prime minister of AJK in 1996 and as opposition leader in the legislative assembly in 2001.
A veteran politician, Chaudhry was elected nine times as a member of the assembly from his native Mirpur constituency. Over the years, he held leadership roles in several major political parties, including as president of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference, the Liberation League of AJK, the PPP in AJK, and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf in AJK.
Chaudhry highlighted the plight of Kashmiris at the United Nations, the United States State Department, various parliaments, and European institutions. He led demonstrations and rallies in Trafalgar Square in London, in front of the UN office in New York, before the European Union and European Parliament in Brussels, and at the Parliament of Ireland in Dublin. He also led a historic march at the Berlin Wall.
On the diplomatic front, Chaudhry held numerous meetings with ambassadors of European and Islamic countries in Islamabad, briefing them on the situation in occupied Kashmir and Indian atrocities against the Kashmiri people.
He was the only AJK leader to be granted permission to visit Indian Illegally Occupied Kashmir, where he addressed the people of Srinagar at the historic Lal Chowk. During this visit, he met key Kashmiri leaders, including Syed Ali Gilani, Syed Shabbir Shah, and Yasin Malik, chairman of the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front.