Adviser AF Hassan Ariff passes away

AF Hassan Ariff, land and civil aviation adviser of the interim government, died of a cardiac arrest on Friday afternoon.

He succumbed to the massive heart attack at LabAid Hospital in Dhanmondi. He was 85.

Mohammad Nasir Uddin, his personal secretary, said Ariff collapsed while having lunch at home.

He was rushed to hospital where doctors confirmed he had suffered a cardiac arrest.

He was pronounced dead at 3:10 pm.

Chief Adviser Prof Dr Muhammad Yunus is deeply saddened by the demise of the adviser.

Dr Yunus heard the sad news as soon as a plane carrying him from Dubai landed at Dhaka airport, said a spokesperson for the CA Office.

He rushed to LabAid Hospital in Dhanmondi from the airport to pay last respects to the late adviser.

"I'm deeply shocked at his sudden demise. Adviser Hassan Ariff was a top lawyer who played a very significant role in the Interim Government," he said in a condolence message.

The chief adviser also paid rich tribute to Hassan Ariff's decades-long public service, including his time as a former adviser to a caretaker government and an attorney general of the country.

"He will be remembered as a brilliant lawyer and for his legal activism and defending human rights of dissidents, dissenting voices and the marginalised people of our society."

Dr Yunus sent his condolences to the members of the bereaved family and prayed for the salvation of the departed soul.

Other advisers of the interim government and BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir also condoled the death.

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