ISLAMABAD: The birth anniversary of Chaudhry Rehmat Ali was observed here on Friday.
He is credited with coming up with the name for a separate Muslim homeland in South Asia, Pakistan.
Chaudhry Rehmat Ali was born in a Muslim Gujjar family in Hoshiarpur District of Indian Punjab in 1897.
After graduating from Islamia Madrassa, Lahore in 1918 he taught at Aitchison College before joining Punjab University (PU) to study law.
In 1930, he moved to England to join Emmanuel College Cambridge (ECC). In 1933, he published a pamphlet ‘Now or Never Are We to Live or Perish Forever’, coining the word ‘Pakistan’ for the first time.
In 1933, he founded the Pakistan National Movement (PNM) in England. Subsequently, he obtained a BA and MA degree from the University of Cambridge.
In 1943, he was called to the Bar Middle Temple Inn London.
Until 1947, he continued publishing various booklets about his vision for South Asia.
Chaudhry Rehman Ali died at the age of 53 on February 3, 1951, in Cambridge, England, United Kingdom (UK).
