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Wali Khan's death a great loss, says Musharraf

B. Muralidhar Reddy

Indian team to attend funeral at Peshawar

ISLAMABAD: Veteran freedom fighter and Awami National Party leader Rehber Khan Abdul Wali Khan, 89, breathed his last in Peshawar on Thursday. He was ailing for several months and had slipped into a coma two days ago.

An Indian delegation, led by Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairperson K. Rehman Khan, is expected to fly to Peshawar in a special aircraft to attend the last rites. Mr. Khan is the son of Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan, also known as "Frontier Gandhi."

Paying rich tributes, Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf said Mr. Khan came from a rare breed of human beings who led their lives based on their principles and convictions. "The entire political life of the late Wali Khan was an embodiment of these qualities. The sad demise is indeed a great loss for the nation."

Born in Utmanzai area of Charsadda on January 11, 1917, Mr. Khan got his preliminary education at the Azad School, established by his father.

Khudai Khidmatgar

He started his political career as a `Khudai Khidmatgar' (Servant of God) in 1942 and was sent to jail in 1943 under the Frontier Crimes Regulations. Like his father, Mr. Wali Khan spent most of his life behind bars or under house arrest. He was a member of the All-India Congress Committee and the joint secretary of the NWFP Congress in 1947. He was jailed in 1948 without trial and freed in 1954. In 1970, he was elected to the National and Provincial Assemblies and also elected leader of the combined opposition in the National Assembly.

He was put on trial before the Hyderabad Tribunal and freed in December 1977. He authored the books Facts are Sacred and Khudai Khidmatgar Movement. He quit politics after losing to Maulana Hasan Jan in the 1990 general elections.

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