Ra'ana Liaquat Ali Khan Politician

Begum Ra'ana Liaquat Ali Khan (Urdu: رعنا لیاقت علی خان‎; 13 February 1905 – 13 June 1990) (formerly Sheila Irene Pant), DPhil, NI, was one of the leading woman figures in the Pakistan Movement along with her husband Liaquat Ali Khan, and a career economist, and prominent stateswoman from the start of the cold war till the fall and the end of the cold war. Ra'anna was one of the leading woman politicians and nationwide respected woman personalities who started her career in 1940s and witnessed key major events in Pakistan. She was one of the leading and pioneering woman figures in the Pakistan Movement and served as the executive member of Pakistan Movement committee working under Muhammad Ali Jinnah. She also served as economic adviser to Jinnah's Pakistan Movement Committee and later became First Lady of Pakistan when her husband Liaqat Khan Ali became Pakistan's first prime minister. As First Lady of Pakistan, she launched programs for woman's development in the newly founded country. Later, she would went on to start her career as stateswoman that would last a decade.In the 1970s, she joined hands with Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's political movement and joined the socialist government of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, elected prime minister at that time. She was one of the most trusted and close government and economical advisers to Bhutto and his government, and had played influential role and involved with many key economical decisions taken by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto led the appointment of Ra'ana as the Governor of Sindh Province, and she took the oath in 15 February 1973. Ra'ana was the first woman Governor of Sindh as well as first Chancellor of University of Karachi. In 1977, Ra'ana along with Bhutto and his party, and won the parliamentary elections of 1977, but did not take the gubernatorial office due to martial law imposed by General Zia-ul-Haq, Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan Army. Ra'ana went on to work and dedicated her life for the social and economic benefit of women of Pakistan till her death in 1990. She died in 1990 due to cardiac arrest and was buried in Karachi, with full state and military honours given to her in her funeral. Because of her services and efforts for medical and woman development and woman empowerment, Ra'ana is commonly known as "Māder-e-Pakistan" (English translation: Mother of Pakistan).

Personal facts

Ra'ana Liaquat Ali Khan
Birth dateFebruary 13, 1905
Birth nameSheila Irene Pant
Birth place
United Provinces of Agra and Oudh , Almora
Nationality
Culture of India
Religion
Islam
Date of deathJune 13, 1990
Place of death
Karachi , Sindh
Education
Master of Science
University of Lucknow
Spouse

Search

Office holder

awards
Nishan-e-Imtiaz
military operations
Indo-Pakistani War of 1947
military command
Naval Woman Reserves Corps
Pakistan Army Medical Corps
Pakistan Woman National Guard
military rank
Brigadier general
military unit
Pakistan Army Medical Corps
party
Muslim League (Pakistan)
Independent (politician)
president
prime minister
region
Karachi
service end1951
service start1947
successor
Muhammad Dilawar Khanji

Ra'ana Liaquat Ali Khan on Wikipedia