Mohammed Ikramullah

Mohammad Ikramullah KCMG (hon) was a prominent figure in the administration of Pakistan at the time of independence. As a member of the provisional government of Pakistan, before the independence, he was Secretary and Advisor at the Ministries of Commerce, Information and Broadcasting, Commonwealth Relations and Foreign Affairs. He was also a member of Muslim League partition committee and a close companian of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammed Ali Jinnah.

After independence, he was appointed the first Foreign Secretary of Pakistan in 1947. He also remained the Ambassador of Pakistan to Canada, France, Portugal and the United Kingdom. He was married to a leading figure of Pakistan independence movement Shaista Suhrawardy Ikramullah, and father of Princess Sarvath of Jordan.

Biography

His father Khan Bahadur Hafiz Mohammed Wilayatullah belonged to the muslim royal state of Bhopal, the second largest princely state in the British Indian sub-continent. His family is reputed to have hailed originally from the Hijaz and are regarded as both Quraishi and Chishti. There are documents held in the State Archives of India which trace the family's settlement in India back to the time of the Emperor Auranzeb, and it is assumed that some earlier branches of the family came to India with the first Muslim conquerors. Wilayatullah's family served against many significant royal posts for several generations at the Court of the state of Bhopal; where Ikrmullah was born in 1903. He joined ICS through British Indian Civil Services in 1934 in the pre-partition era. Later, Ikramullah served as Advisor to the preparatory commissions of the United Nations in London and San Francisco, and at its first general assembly, between 1945 and 1946.

In July 1947, when States Departments were established, Ikramullah was appointed from ICS as Secretary, States Department, Provisional government of the British India prior to independence. ^[1]. Subsequent to partition, he immigrated from Bhopal to Karachi, the then federal capital of Pakistan and started foreign office, Government of Pakistan after being appointed the foreign Secretary of Pakistan by the founder Muhammed Ali Jinnah in October 1947. During the subsequent era, He represented Pakistan in U.N.O. many times and also officiated as ambassador of Pakistan to Canada, U.K. Purtagal and France. Ikramullah played key roles in establishing the Commonwealth Economic Committee and had been nominated as Secretary-General of the Commonwealth at the time of his death.

Personal life

His brother, Mohammad Hidayatullah, was Chief Justice of India from 1968-70, Vice President of India from 1979-84, and served as acting President of India twice. He married Shaista Suhrawardy in 1933 and had four children:

• Inam Ikramullah (born 1934)
• Naz Ashraf (nee Naz Ikramullah) (born 1938)
• Salma Sobhan (August 11, 1937 – December 30, 2003) - former barrister and professor
• Sarvath (born July 24, 1947) - now Princess Sarvath of Jordan

References

1. ^ University of Southampton, Special Collections

External links

• Family history

Diplomatic posts
Preceded by Post established	Foreign Secretary of Pakistan 1947–1951	Succeeded by Mirza Osman Ali Baig
Preceded by Sikandar Ali Baig	Foreign Secretary of Pakistan (2nd term) 1959–1961	Succeeded by S.K. Dehlavi