Professor Khurshid Ahmad, renowned Islamic economist and scholar, passes away at 93

On April 13, 2025, Professor Khurshid Ahmad, a leading Islamic economist, academic, and former senator of Pakistan, passed away at the age of 93 in Leicester, United Kingdom. Widely admired for his contributions to Islamic economic thought and socio-political discourse, he leaves behind a profound legacy of scholarship, activism, and institutional development that influenced generations worldwide.

Early life and education 
Born on 23 March 1932 in Delhi, Professor Ahmad received his early education at Delhi College (later Zakir Husain Delhi College). After the 1947 partition, his family relocated to Lahore, where he studied at the Government College University. Demonstrating an early aptitude for economics, he published his first English-language article—on Pakistan’s budget—in 1949 for the Muslim Economist.

Professor Ahmad earned first-class honours in Economics at Karachi University in 1952–3, followed by a master’s degree in 1955 and an LLB in 1958. In 1962, he completed a master’s in Islamic Studies at Karachi University. He later pursued a doctorate in Economics at the University of Leicester, focusing on Islamic economic jurisprudence. The University of Leicester recognized his services to literacy by awarding him an honorary doctorate in Education in 1970.