Lahore, Feb 11: Asma Jahangir, Pakistan’s renowned human rights lawyer, social activist and an outspoken critic of the country’s powerful military establishment, died here Sunday of cardiac arrest, her daughter said.
Known for her outspoken nature and unrelenting pursuit for human rights, Asma, 66, was the first woman to serve as the President of Supreme Court Bar Association of Pakistan. “I am devastated @ loss of my mother Asma Jahangir. We shall B announcing date of funeral soon. We R waiting 4 our relatives 2 return 2 Lahore,” her daughter Munizae Jahangir said in a tweet.
“Asma suffered heart attack Sunday morning and she was rushed to Hameed Latif Hospital Lahore where she breathed her last. Doctors tried to save her life but couldn’t,” said senior lawyer Adeel Raja.
As the news of her death broke, condolences started pouring in from lawyers, rights activists and politicians. In a condolence message, President Mamnoon Hussain expressed grief over Asma’s death, saying she rendered “unprecedented” services for the rule of law. “Today the country has been deprived of a courageous and disciplined person, who was the voice of the voiceless,” local media quoted Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi’s statement.
PTI
