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November 8, 2026

Findivoza

Muzaffarabad, the capital of Azad Jammu and Kashmir
Pakistan

Former Azad Kashmir President Raja Zulqarnain Khan Dies at 90

Faizan Altaf

Raja Muhammad Zulqarnain Khan, the former president of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), has died at the age of 90. His death was confirmed on Saturday, 7 November 2026, and it has brought an outpouring of tributes from across Pakistan for a politician whose public career stretched back more than six decades.

The government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir announced a one-day mourning period for Sunday, 8 November, with the national flag flying at half-mast on government buildings across the region. His funeral prayers were scheduled for 11am on Sunday in his native area of Thathi Kasguma, in Bhimber district, and he was to be laid to rest with full state honours.

President Asif Ali Zardari led the condolences, saying the political and public services of Zulqarnain Khan would always be remembered. Senate Chairman Yousaf Raza Gilani, National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, and Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar also expressed grief, paying tribute to his leadership, his public welfare work, and his advocacy for the Kashmir cause.

Who Was Raja Zulqarnain Khan?

Raja Muhammad Zulqarnain Khan was one of the longest-serving public figures in Azad Kashmir. He served as the president of Azad Jammu and Kashmir for a full five-year term, from 25 August 2006 to 25 August 2011, and was a senior leader of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference, the region’s oldest political party.

Born on 15 March 1936 in Gujrat, Punjab, into a Rajput family, he was the son of Khan Bahadur Raja Muhammad Afzal Khan, a member of the Indian Civil Service who had served as the Home, Education and Revenue Minister in the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir from 1930 to 1941. That family background placed the young Zulqarnain Khan close to the politics and administration of the region from an early age.

He studied in Srinagar, New Delhi and Lahore, completing his Cambridge studies at Aitchison College in Lahore before joining Forman Christian College, Lahore. He later graduated in French, an unusual qualification for a politician of his generation and a sign of the broad education he received.

A Political Career That Began in 1960

Zulqarnain Khan began his political career in 1960, when he associated himself with Khurshid Hasan Khurshid, one of the early leaders of the Kashmir freedom movement. Two years later, in 1962, he became the first general-secretary of the Jammu Kashmir Liberation League.

His first steps in electoral politics came through local government. He served as a Basic Democracies member and as chairman of the Kasguma Union Council, learning politics from the ground up in his home area before moving to the regional stage.

In 1975, he was elected to the Azad Kashmir Legislative Assembly from Samahni in the region’s first parliamentary elections. He won another assembly seat from Bhimber in the general elections of 1985, and over the following years he held several of the most important ministerial portfolios in the region’s government, including finance, revenue, planning and development, and health. He served as a minister for around a decade, in 1985 and again in 1991, and also served in a three-member cabinet under President Major General (retired) Abdul Rehman.

In 1996, he was elected a member of the Kashmir Council in Islamabad, the body that links Azad Kashmir with the federal government. He also served as an adviser to the prime minister of Pakistan before his election to the presidency. Through all of this, he remained a central figure in the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference, helping to keep the region’s oldest party active in its politics for decades.

Five Years as President

After decades of public service, Zulqarnain Khan was elected president of Azad Jammu and Kashmir in August 2006. He served the full five-year term, from 25 August 2006 to 25 August 2011, and was succeeded by Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob Khan.

The presidency of Azad Kashmir is a largely ceremonial office, but it carries real weight as the head of the region’s state. The president represents Azad Kashmir at home and abroad, and the office is closely tied to the Kashmir cause — the demand that the people of Jammu and Kashmir be allowed to decide their own future.

His presidency covered a difficult period for the region. The devastating earthquake of October 2005 had struck just a year before he took office, and the work of rebuilding homes, schools and hospitals in Muzaffarabad and the surrounding districts was still under way. The region also faced the long-running political question of its relationship with Pakistan and the future of the Kashmir dispute, issues on which the president’s voice carried moral authority even when the office held limited executive power.

Those who worked with him remember a politician who was calm, patient and deeply familiar with the workings of government. He had spent so many years in the assembly and in ministerial office that there was little about the region’s administration he did not understand.

A Voice for the Kashmir Cause

Throughout his career, Zulqarnain Khan was known as a steady advocate for the rights of the Kashmiri people. Senate Chairman Yousaf Raza Gilani, in his condolence message, paid tribute to his services to the Kashmir cause, saying he had played an important role in highlighting the Kashmir issue and raising his voice for the rights of the Kashmiri people.

Ishaq Dar, the deputy prime minister and foreign minister, said in a message on X that Zulqarnain Khan’s “devoted leadership and dedicated service to the people of Azad Jammu and Kashmir will be remembered with honour and respect.” He offered his condolences to the family and the people of Azad Kashmir, and prayed for the departed soul.

National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq described him as an astute and seasoned political and social figure, and said his services would be remembered for a long time.

The tributes shared a common theme: that Zulqarnain Khan belonged to a generation of Kashmiri leaders who had worked for the cause for most of their lives, and that his death marks the passing of one of the last links to the early politics of Azad Kashmir.

What Is Azad Jammu and Kashmir?

For readers outside Pakistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir — often shortened to AJK — is the part of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir that is administered by Pakistan. Its capital is Muzaffarabad, a city set between steep green hills at the meeting point of the Neelum and Jhelum rivers.

The region has its own president, prime minister and legislative assembly, and it sends representatives to the Kashmir Council in Islamabad. The president is elected by the legislative assembly and serves a five-year term.

The wider region of Jammu and Kashmir has been disputed between Pakistan and India since 1947, and it remains one of the oldest unresolved disputes on the agenda of the United Nations. Leaders in Muzaffarabad, including Zulqarnain Khan during his presidency, have consistently argued that the Kashmiri people should be given the right to decide their own future.

Funeral and Day of Mourning

The Azad Kashmir government issued an official notification declaring Sunday, 8 November a day of mourning across the region. During the mourning period, the national flag flies at half-mast on government buildings.

Funeral prayers were scheduled for 11am on Sunday in Thathi Kasguma, his native area in Bhimber district, and he was to be buried with full state honours. State honours are a mark of respect normally reserved for senior public figures, and they reflect the standing he held in the region.

No cause of death has been publicly confirmed. What is clear is that he died at 90, after a political career that began in 1960 and ended with the presidency of the region he served for most of his life.

Why His Death Matters

The death of a former president is always a moment for a region to take stock. In Azad Kashmir, Zulqarnain Khan’s passing closes a chapter in its political history.

First, he was one of the last politicians whose career reached back to the early years of Azad Kashmir’s politics. He began in 1960, when the region’s political institutions were still young, and he was still in public life half a century later. That kind of long service is becoming rare.

Second, his career shows how politics in the region has worked across generations. He moved from local government to the assembly, from ministerial office to the Kashmir Council, and finally to the presidency. It was a slow, steady path through the institutions of Azad Kashmir, and it gave him a deep knowledge of how the region is governed.

Third, his death comes at a time when the Kashmir dispute remains unresolved. The leaders who spent their lives arguing the Kashmiri case are passing away, and the question of who carries that cause forward is becoming more pressing for the region’s politics.

What Happens Next

The day of mourning on Sunday, 8 November, is the immediate official response. Beyond that, the focus will turn to the longer question of his legacy: how he is remembered in Muzaffarabad, in Bhimber, and in the wider region.

Former presidents of Azad Kashmir are often remembered less for individual decisions than for the steadiness of their service, and Zulqarnain Khan’s record — a full five-year term as president, a decade as a minister, and more than six decades in public life — is likely to be the measure by which he is judged.

For the people of Azad Kashmir, his death is the loss of a familiar figure: a man who was part of the region’s politics for longer than most of its citizens have been alive.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who was Raja Zulqarnain Khan?

Raja Muhammad Zulqarnain Khan was a Pakistani politician from Azad Jammu and Kashmir. He served as the president of Azad Jammu and Kashmir from 25 August 2006 to 25 August 2011, and was a senior leader of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference.

How old was he when he died?

He was 90 years old. He was born on 15 March 1936 and died on 7 November 2026.

How long was his political career?

More than six decades. He began his political career in 1960, became the first general-secretary of the Jammu Kashmir Liberation League in 1962, and went on to serve in the Azad Kashmir Legislative Assembly, as a minister for around a decade, as a member of the Kashmir Council, and finally as president.

What was the official response to his death?

The government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir declared a one-day mourning period for Sunday, 8 November 2026, with the national flag at half-mast. His funeral prayers are scheduled for 11am on Sunday in his native area of Thathi Kasguma, in Bhimber district, and he is to be buried with full state honours.

Who succeeded him as president?

Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob Khan succeeded him as president of Azad Jammu and Kashmir in August 2011.

Conclusion

Raja Muhammad Zulqarnain Khan spent more than sixty years in the public life of Azad Kashmir. He served in its assembly, in its cabinet, on the Kashmir Council, and as its president for a full five-year term. He was a steady, patient politician who knew the region’s institutions inside out, and a consistent voice for the Kashmir cause.

His death at 90, and the day of mourning that followed, is a moment for Azad Kashmir to remember a leader who served it for most of his life. The tributes from Pakistan’s president, the Senate chairman, the National Assembly speaker and the foreign minister all point to the same conclusion: his political and public services will be remembered.

Sources

This article is for general information and education only. It is not legal or financial advice.

Faizan Altaf

Faizan Altaf is the founder and author of findivoza.com, a news blog covering world, Pakistan, business, technology, health and sport in plain English. He writes for general readers who want clear, trustworthy news without jargon. His work focuses on explaining what happened, why it matters, and what to watch next.

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