Laid to rest: Lawyer who defended Benazir dies at 82

Chauhan also served as the advocate general of Sindh.

HYDERABAD: Advocate Qurban Chauhan, who defended Benazir Bhutto, President Asif Ali Zardari and his late father Hakim Zardari, died at the age of 82 on Thursday.

A top criminal lawyer by profession, Chauhan defended several other Pakistan Peoples Party leaders and workers as well. He also served as the advocate general of Sindh. The Sindh High Court Bar Association and the District Bar Association observed a day of mourning and the lawyers did not attend court proceedings.

Chauhan was the president’s attorney in the famous murder case of the federal secretary, Alam Baloch, who was gunned down in Hyderabad in September, 1997. The late Hakim Ali Zardari was also accused in the case until they were acquitted in February, 2011. The late lawyer also represented Benazir Bhutto in the 1989 Pucca Qila operation case. The legal community in Hyderabad also remembers him as a top-notch criminal lawyer of the city.

Chauhan, who died after an illness, is survived by a widow and six sons. His funeral prayers were offered at a mosque near his home Silawat Parah, Heerabad Town and he was laid to rest in Tando Yousuf graveyard. His soyem will be observed on Saturday, March 9.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 8^th, 2013.