Two Parsi doctors from Mumbai have been posthumously nominated for Pakistan's highest civilian honour, the Nishan-e-Imtiaz, for keeping the terminal illness of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Pakistan's founder, a secret. The announcement was made on X by Ahsan Iqbal, Pakistan's federal minister for planning, development and special initiatives and head of the Awards Committee, following the nominations' announcement on August 14.
The Doctors and Their Diagnosis
Physician Dr Jal Ratanji Patel and radiologist Dr Jal Dhaybho-Koo examined Jinnah's X-ray in 1946 and diagnosed him with advanced tuberculosis. According to Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre's book Freedom at Midnight, the doctors concluded that Jinnah had only around a year or two to live. The Times of India reported that the doctors maintained professional confidentiality despite the seriousness of his condition.
The Minister's Statement
In his post, Iqbal said he felt honoured to nominate "two remarkable doctors, a physician and a radiologist, both members of Bombay's Parsi community, who faithfully guarded the secret of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah's terminal illness." He added that the doctors maintained "absolute professional confidentiality" at a critical moment and performed a "quiet but extraordinary service." Their adherence to their professional oath, he said, "inadvertently became a significant contribution to the circumstances that made the creation of Pakistan possible."
Iqbal also cited Lord Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India, who later acknowledged that had he known how seriously ill Jinnah was, he might have delayed Partition, potentially altering the course of history and perhaps even jeopardising the creation of Pakistan. According to the minister, any revelation about Jinnah's frail health could have impacted the creation of Pakistan in 1947.
The Hindu reported that Iqbal did not reveal the names of the doctors or who would receive the awards on their behalf.
Historical Context
Jinnah, revered as the father of the nation, was suffering from tuberculosis, which was incurable at the time, and he died a year after Partition. Historian Akbar Ahmed, in his book Jinnah, Pakistan and Islamic Identity: The Search for Saladin, wrote that Jinnah had been suffering from tuberculosis since the 1930s. Ahmed noted that Jinnah complained of "tremendous strain" on his nerves and physical strength from 1938 and began falling ill regularly. According to Ahmed, the secret of Jinnah's illness was known only to a small group, including Jinnah's sister Fatima and the two doctors.
The national civil and military awards of Pakistan are traditionally announced on Independence Day (August 14) and formally conferred at a presidential investiture ceremony on the following Pakistan Day (March 23). The honour is scheduled to be conferred posthumously at a ceremony in March 2027.