Former president Muhammad Rafiq Tarar passed away in Lahore on Monday after a prolonged illness.

This was announced by Muhammad Rafiq's grandson, Ataullah Tarar in a tweet today.

Muhammad Rafiq, 92, served as the 9th president of the country from January 1998 until his resignation in June 2001.

Prior to that, he had served as a senator from Punjab in 1997.

Before joining politics, Muhammad Rafiq served as a senior justice of the Supreme Court from 1991 to 1994. He also served as the 28th Chief Justice of Lahore High Court from 1989 to 1991.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz President Shehbaz Sharif, President Arif Alvi and Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa have expressed their sadness on the leader's demise on Twitter.