president condoles passing away of ustad shafat ahmed khan

Tuesday, July 26, 2005

The President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam has condoled the passing away of Tabla maestro, Ustad Shafat Ahmed Khan.

In a condolence message to the late artiste’s brother, Shri Gulzar Ahmed, the President has said, “I am deeply saddened to learn about the passing away of your brother, Ustad Shafaat Ahmed Khan.

Ustad Shafat Ahmed Khan was a talented Tabla player who brought happiness to thousands of classical music lovers around the country. A national awardee, I had occasion to meet him many times and will always remember him as he had performed a number of times with leading musicians at Rashtrapati Bhavan over the last few years. The country has lost a young musician.

Kindly accept my condolences and convey them to the rest of the members of your family. I pray to the Almighty to give you and other members of your family the strength to bear this irreparable loss.”

YSR/DS/SKS