Religious Party Chief Passes Away

Islamabad, April 16, IRNA -- Chairman of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) Sahibzada Fazal Karim passed away on Monday, local media reported. He was undergoing treatment for liver cancer at Allied Hospital in Faisalabad. He went into coma two days ago and could not survive the ailment, doctors told media. Sahibzada Fazal Karim, born on October 24, 1954 in Faisalabad, was a senior and vocal member of the SIC. He was elected MNA for his first term as a Pakistan Muslim League-N candidate and was previously politically affiliated with JUP. A businessman by profession, he completed an M.A degree in Islamic Studies from Jamia Rizvia, Faisalabad, in 1987 and has served as Member of Provincial Assembly Punjab from 1993-1997 and Minister of Punjab Province from 1997-1999. The SIC chief had denounced suicide bombings as un-islamic and had condemned the attack on the grandest shrine of Lahore, the “Data Darbar”. His funeral prayers will be held at 10 am Tuesday./end