RAWALPINDI, July 2: Veteran journalist, columnist and poet, Anwaar Feroze, died here suddenly on Tuesday of cardiac arrest. He was 75.

His funeral procession will leave his house D-538, Satellite Town at 9am on Wednesday (today) and funeral prayers will be offered at nearby Jamia Rizvia Ziaul Uloom. Later, he will be buried at H-8 Graveyard.

Anwaar Feroze left four sons, three daughters and a large circle of colleagues, friends and admirers to mourn him.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has condoled his death with the family, with the prayer that Almighty Allah may bless him with eternal peace and grant courage to his family to bear the irreparable loss.

Born in Ferozepur, India, in 1938, he was nine when his family migrated to Pakistan.

After his schooling in Attock, where the family had settled, he moved to Rawalpindi for higher education and did Masters in Urdu language from the city’s Gordon College in early 1960s, after his marriage and while employed in the Village Aid department of those days.

His long journalistic career started in Daily Tameer as sub-editor, reporter, columnist – all rolled in one. “Ankhein Meri” (My Eyes), the title of his column reflected his literary flare and talent. Later, he worked as correspondent of Daily Kohistan in Murree.

But Anwaar Feroze stayed longest – more than 35 years - with Daily Nawa-i-Waqt, which he joined in 1971. After his retirement from the newspaper in 2011, he continued to write columns but mostly devoted himself to writing poetry.

A genial person in life, he sounds deep inside a broken man in his poetry. One of his quartet reflects his frustrations with the downward spiral of the society:

Dil jala kar bhi ujala nahien honay wala Yeh jo aansoo hai sitara nahien honay wala; Chhor dein kar’e mohabbat yahi behtar hoga, Itni ujrat mein guzara nahien honay wala.

(Burning the heart won’t bring a soothing light And the teardrop is not going to become a star; Better it would be to give up my work of love For the return is not enough for survival).

A collection of his poetry was published last year under the title ‘Samanadr muztarib hai’ (The Ocean is Restless) and a travelogue ‘Naya Columbus’ (New Columbus) is to be published soon.

His son Iftikhar Ahmad Khan may carry on his poetic tradition. Another son Shahryar Khan is Secretary of the National Press Club, Islamabad.