TLP chief Khadim Hussain Rizvi is dead

Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) chief Allama Khadim Hussain Rizvi has died in Lahore at the age of 54, his political party confirmed on Thursday night.

The cause of his demise wasn't immediately clear.

Rizvi was said to be ill for quite some time and passed away during treatment at the Farooq Hospital in Lahore's Allama Iqbal town. His body is being transported to his residence.

Pir Aijaz Ashrafi, a senior leader of Tehreek-i-Labbaik Ya Rasool Allah (TLYRA), in a statement said the timings of his funeral prayers will be announced later.

The firebrand cleric made his last public appearance at a sit-in staged by thousands of TLP followers at Islamabad's Faizabad Interchange to protest the publication of blasphemous caricatures of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) in France.

The group had decided to end the sit-in on Monday after successful negotiations with the government.

Minister for Religious Affairs Noorul Haq Qadri expressed grief and sorrow over the TLP chief's demise. He said "Pakistan has lost a respected religious scholar and true admirer of the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H)", adding that Rizvi's services for Islam will be remembered for long.

Who is Khadim Hussain Rizvi?

Born in 1966 in the Pindi Gheb area of Attock district, Punjab, Rizvi was said to be an introvert who shied away from talking about his personal life even among his close circles, let alone with media personnel. A Hafiz-e-Quran and Sheikh-ul-Hadith, Rizvi used to deliver Friday sermons at Lahore’s Pir Makki Masjid, located near Daata Darbar, during his time in the Punjab Auqaf Department.

Rizvi had been confined to a wheelchair since 2006 ever since an accident near Gujranwala. Contrary to rumours, Rizvi was injured because the driver of his vehicle fell asleep while driving from Rawalpindi to Lahore.

Many mistook him as a Shia because of his last name, but in truth, he was a staunch follower of Imam Ahmed Raza Khan Barelvi, the 19th-century founder of the Barelvi sect.

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COURTESY DAWN NEWS

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