LAHORE, Nov 14: Former deputy speaker of the Punjab Assembly Sardar Shaukat Hussain Mazari died of cardiac arrest during proceedings of the house here on Friday.

Elected for the fourth time to the house, he had joined Friday’s proceedings after Maghrib prayers when he suffered the attack after 10 minutes and leaned against another MPA sitting on his right.

The MPA drew the attention of the chair towards Mr Mazari’s condition and several members rushed to him.

A hope for his survival rekindled when Mr Mazari slightly responded to a cardiac massage by MPA Dr Asad Ashraf. He was immediately shifted to the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) but he could not survive.

His body will be taken to his native town Rojhan, Rajanpur district, for burial.

He used to tell his colleagues that death from heart attack was his family history.

Son of Sardar Muhammad Hussain Mazari, he was born on Feb 10, 1948, at Rojhan.

After graduating from the Government College, Lahore, in 1967, he obtained diploma in textile from Black Burn College of Technology & Design, UK.

He served as Dera Ghazi Khan district council member in 1979 and Rajanpur in 1983. He represented the country twice in the United Nations General Assembly in 1974 and in 1995.

Having been elected as MPA for the fourth time after contesting the February 2008 polls as an independent candidate, he joined the PML-N and was a strong candidate for the office of deputy speaker.

He had held the same office in the previous assembly, while he was deputy opposition leader in the 1988-90 assembly and a provincial minister in 1977.

Meanwhile, PML-N patron Nawaz Sharif, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, speaker Rana Muhammad Iqbal Khan and all members of the cabinet have condoled the death of Mr Mazari, who was popular among the assembly staff as a well-wisher of the poor.

Proceedings of the house were adjourned for Monday evening to enable the members to attend his last rituals.—Amjad Mahmood