Remembrance: Chehlum held for Begum Nusrat Bhutto

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari among those at the service.

LARKANA: The chehlum of Begum Nusrat Bhutto, former first lady of Pakistan and the mother of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, was observed on Sunday. Prayers, Quranic readings and other religious services were held at Begum Nusrat’s grave and at President House in Naudero. The ‘Isaal-i-Sawab’ was also recited for others from the Bhutto family who had passed away.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Begum Nusrat’s grandson and chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party, attended the memorial service. Bilawal visited Garhi Khuda Baksh, the ancestral graveyard of the Bhutto family, alongside aunt Sanam Bhutto, ministers, members of Parliament and local PPP leaders. Bilawal laid wreaths and offered prayers at the graves of family members.

Begum Nusrat was married to Pakistan’s ninth prime minister, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. She was an active political voice after her husband’s death, earning her the title ‘Mother of Democracy’ following her death.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 28^th, 2011.