Mrs Khurshid had been under treatment in the local Combined Military Hospital after a hip bone fracture more than a month ago where breathed her last in the morning, family sources said.
Born in what’s now India occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Mrs Khurshid who had done her Masters in History from Kinnaird College, Lahore had tied the nuptial knot with her paternal cousin Mr Khurshid in Sialkot in December 1955.
A year earlier, Mr Khurshid, who had previously served as private secretary to the founder of Pakistan Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah during the epoch-making period of Pakistan movement, had returned from the UK where he had earned his barrister at law degree from the prestigious Lincoln’s Inn at the persuasion of Miss Fatima Jinnah who treated him like her son.
After his return, he practiced law in Karachi and the couple spent initial years of their married life as members of Ms Jinnah's household – flagstaff house - in Karachi.
As the then President Ayub Khan had been urging Mr Khurshid to become the AJK president, he accepted this office on the advice of Ms Jinnah in May 1959. He became the first ever elected president of AJK in 1961 after holding the first ever presidential elections, but resigned from the office in August 1964 following serious differences with president Khan.
During their days in the presidency, Mrs Khurshid became a source of strength for her spouse and as the First Lady launched and inaugurated several projects for amelioration of Kashmiri women.
Mrs Khurshid was a towering political and literary personality in her own right. After the demise of Mr Khurshid in a road accident in 1988, she also looked after the affairs of Jammu Kashmir Liberation League (JKLL) - the party Mr Khurshid had founded in 1962.
She also served as a member of the AJK Legislative Assembly for a brief stint from 1990-1991 against a reserved seat as nominee of the JKLL .
Apart from a collection of short stories (amaltas ke pairr), she had authored ‘Banihal k us paar’, a memoir on her childhood across the divide, ‘Yaadon ki kehkashan’, recollection of times spent in the company of Ms Jinnah and some other books. Mrs Khurshid had also edited the biography of Ms Jinnah by the name ‘Fatima Jinnah ke shab o roz.’
Mrs Khurshid is survived by her two children - daughter Yasmeen Khurshid and son Khurram Khurshid - and grandchildren.
Former BBC journalist and writer Shahid Malik, sitting caretaker federal minister Fawad Hasan Fawad and PTI spokesperson Rauf Hasan are also among her close relatives.
The funeral prayers of Mrs Khurshid will be held in Khalid Masjid, Cavalry Ground, Lahore after Zohar on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, while expressing grief over her demise, a number of Kashmiri leaders paid glowing tributes to Mrs Khurshid for her contribution to the cause of the oppressed Kashmiri nation.
In their separate messages, AJK prime minister Chaudhry Anwarul Haq, his predecessors Sardar Tanveer Ilyas and Chaudhry Abdul Majeed, PML-N regional president Shah Ghulam Qadir, general secretary Chaudhry Tariq Farooq, Legislative Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Latif Akbar and others said the services of Mrs Khurshid as spouse of a legendary leader, the first lady and legislative assembly members will always be remembered by Kashmiri people.
Tariq Naqash
املتاس کے پیڑ، بانہال کے اس پار، یادوں کی کہکہشاں اور فاطمہ جناح کے شب و روز۔۔۔کی خالق بیگم ثریا خورشید نے ریاست جموں و کشمیر کی خاتون اول کی حیثیت سے جس سادگی اور عمومی انداز سے زندگی بسر کی۔۔۔۔وہ ہماری تاریخ کا درخشندہ باب ہے۔
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