PESHAWAR: Awami National Party leader and former Khyber Pakhtunkhwa agriculture minister Arbab Ayub Jan breathed his last in the United States on Monday, family and party said.

The deceased is survived by four sons.

A statement issued by the ANP here said Jan had died in the US and that the schedule of his funeral would be announced afterwards.

Qasim Jan, personal assistant to Arbab Ayub Jan, told Dawn that Jan, who had been staying with his son in the US state of Oklahoma since July, had suffered stroke a week ago.

Born in 1944, Jan studied at Islamia Collegiate School and Edwardes College Peshawar and did his master’s in History from University of Peshawar in 1966.

His first political foray came under General Ziaul Haq’s local government elections when he was elected district councillor.

Later, he was elected chairman of the Peshawar district council, which then comprised Nowshera and Charsadda district as well.

Jan was elected MPA for the first time in the 1985 non-party general elections and became health minister.

In 1988, he was elected MPA again and got the local government ministry in the Sherpao government.

Jan was again elected MPA in 1993 and 1999 and joined ANP in 1996.

He however joined Ajmal Khattak when he parted ways with ANP in 1999 over differences with party following his meeting with the then military ruler, Pervez Musharraf.

When Ajmal Khattak formed the National Awami Party Pakistan, Jan was made its provincial president. For a shorter period, he also remained the party’s central president.

Jan lost the 2002 general elections.

He rejoined the ANP in 2007 and was elected MPA before becoming agriculture minister in the Ameer Haider Khan Hoti-led cabinet.

Jan contested the 2013 general elections in the NA-4 constituency but suffered defeat.

Like many other ANP leaders, Jan came under terrorist attack during 2013 election campaign and that too twice. He however escaped unhurt.

In a joint statement, ANP chief Asfandyar Wali Khan, central general secretary Mian Iftikhar Hussain and provincial general secretary Sardar Hussain Babak condoled Jan’s death.

They said Jan was a seasoned politician and was an asset for the party.

They sympathised with the deceased’s family and prayed for his soul.

Published in Dawn September 23rd, 2015

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