Renowned Urdu language poet, scholar, and eminent authority on Allama Iqbal, Professor Jagan Nath Azad died in New Delhi. He is survived by his wife, two sons and three daughters, reports Kashmir Media Service.
The cremation of the great Urdu poet took place in New Delhi on Sunday. Azad got his education and started his career in cities now in Pakistan and migrated to Delhi after partition in 1947. After passing matriculation from a school in Mianwali and graduation from the Gordon College, Rawalpindi, he qualified for MA in Persian in 1944 from the Oriental College Lahore.
Jagan Nath Azad served as a lecturer in Urdu at DAV College, Lahore. He moved to Delhi after partition. Securing a job in the Press Information Department, he was posted to Srinagar. Offered the professorship of Urdu in the Jammu University, he moved there in 1977.
Azad had been attending Mushairas and delivering lectures, and had written about most of his foreign trips. Daily "Greater Kashmir" report said Jagan Nath Azad had won several awards in Pakistan, India, Russia and other countries. For the 'Na'ats' composed by him, he was given the Seerat-i-Pak Award by Bradford Publications of UK. Not only that, Jagan Nath Azad has written a long poem condemning the destruction of the Babri Mosque, saying: 'Hamarey dil ko toda hey imarat ko nahin toda, Khabasat ki bhi had hoti hey aey todney waley'.
The books authored by Jagan Nath Azad include some on literary criticism while about 11, both in English and Urdu, are on Iqbal.
Azad has authored 87 books. Eight thesis have been written on him for PhD degrees and about 15 books have also been written on him. Azad has published about 13 of his poetic collections and recently four new books written by him have been published.
He was an accredited expert on Allama Iqbal, and revived Iqbal tradition. He was known as Mahar-e-Iqbaliat.
Azad was recipient of various awards, including prestigious Iqbal Medal from Pakistan, and awards from Qattar, Doha and almost from every country of the world where Urdu is read.
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