| Gohar Ayub Khan گوہر ایوب خان  | |
|---|---|
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 25 February 1997 – 7 August 1998 | |
| Prime Minister | Nawaz Sharif |
| Preceded by | Sahabzada Yaqub Khan(Acting) |
| Succeeded by | Sartaj Aziz |
| Speaker of the National Assembly | |
| In office 4 November 1990 – 17 October 1993 | |
| Deputy | Nawaz Khokhar |
| Preceded by | Malik Meraj Khalid |
| Succeeded by | Yousaf Raza Gillani |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 8 January 1937 Rehana, British Raj (now Pakistan) |
| Political party | Pakistan Muslim League(Before 1977) Independence Movement(1977–1985) Pakistan Muslim League- Functional (1985–1988) Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (1988–present) |
| Other political affiliations | Islamic Democratic Alliance(1988–1990) |
| Alma mater | Royal Military Academy Sandhurst |
| Military service | |
| Nickname(s) | Kaptaan |
| Allegiance |  Pakistan |
| Service/branch |  Pakistan Army |
| Years of service | 1959–1962 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Unit | 1/14 Punjab |
| Battles/wars | 1958 Pakistani coup d'état |
Gohar Ayub Khan hails from the village of Rehana, located in the Haripur District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and belongs to the Tareen tribe of ethnic Hazarawal Pashtuns, He is fluent in Hindko and Pashto. He is the son of former President Field Marshal Ayub Khan and played an influential role in sustaining his father's presidential rule after the 1965 presidential elections. Educated at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, after graduation Gohar Ayub Khan was given a commission in Pakistan Army in 1959. During his military service he served as his father's aide-de-camp, travelling with him on several foreign trips. Upon his resignation in 1962 with the rank of Captain, he established a business conglomerate and entered in politics in 1974.
He first contested the 1977 general elections through the Independence Movement platform, but later joined the Islamic Democratic Alliance (IDA) in 1988. After the 1990 general elections he was appointed as the fourteenth Speaker of the National Assembly. He became the 20th Minister of Foreign Affairs after securing his seat with a heavy margin in the 1997 general elections. Later he shifted to the energy department, serving as Minister for Water and Power beginning 7 August 1998. His term abruptly ended on 12 October 1999, by General Pervez Musharraf, and he subsequently retired from national politics.
Early life and military career
Gohar Ayub Khan was born in the village of Rehana, in Haripur District during the British Raj in the North-West Frontier Province (present day Khyber Pakhtunkwa) into a military family on 15 January 1937.[1] Although a Hindko speaker, Gohar Ayub is ethnically a Pashtun (or Pashtuns) of the Tarin tribe. His father, Ayub Khan, was a senior commanding officer in the British Army and later ascended to staff and field operational assignments in the Pakistan Army. Ayub Khan subsequently became President of Pakistan through a bloodless military coup that commenced in 1958.
Gohar Ayub was sent to study at the military-controlled Army Burn Hall College and eventually moved on to attend St. Mary's Academy private school in Rawalpindi. Gohar Ayub joined the Pakistan Army in 1957, and trained at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in the United Kingdom. Upon his return from the UK, he began serving active duty with the Pakistan Army and started to work on staff appointments. In 1958 he began to serve as his father's aide-de-camp, travelling with him on several foreign trips throughout Europe, the Americas, the Soviet Union and Asia.He did not rise beyond the rank of Captain during his time in the army, despite his father's support. In his army records, there are allegations of professional and behavioral misconduct.
Gohar Ayub was prematurely given retirement in 1962 by the Army's Promotion Branch, despite his father's efforts to stop the investigations against his son. After his early retirement he and his father-in-law, General (retired) Habibullah Khan established a private industrial firm, the Universal Insurance Co. Ltd.
Post-retirement and controversies
After his retirement from national politics in 2002, Gohar Ayub wrote Glimpses into the Corridors of Power and published his father's diary. He opposed the proposal to rename the NWFP to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, while supporting the creation of a separate Hazara province.
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