Raheem Khan

Who was Raheem Khan?

Khan Bahadur Doctor Raheem Khan was the first Muslim Principal of King Edward Medical University. He was awarded the title of Khan Bahadur on 13 March 1872 by British as a personal distinction of his services to the medical profession. The British government also gave him as a gift a large piece of land in Begumpura, Lahore. He was the first Muslim graduate doctor of subcontinent who was the Honorary Surgeon Superintendent King Edward Medical School Lahore. He graduated from Calcutta Medical College in 1850s and started his career as District Health Officer, Shahpur Sadar Sargodha. Then he was honored by Viceroy of subcontinent and made him the member of his medical team. He also authored many books in the field of medicine particularly issues related to children and medical jurisprudence which has been reprinted in 2010 by BiblioBazaar. He belongs to a noble family of Lucknow long celebrated for its learning; descended from Maulana Azeem Ullah Khan. His descendant was Fakir-ullah-khan, grandfather of Khan Bahadur; he maintained an Arabic school at his own cost in Lucknow. Khan Bahadur's father Yusaf Khan was an equally noted as an Arabic Scholar at lucknow, and was invited by the Governor-General's Agent in Assam to become the Mir Munshi, and the Superintendent of the Oriental College at Gauhati. He died in 1856 when Raheem Khan was seventeen years of age. Raheem khan was educated at Dacca College; also at the Medical College Calcutta, where he became a sub-Assistant Surgeon in 1858 and received special and rapid promotion from Government because of his high attainments. In 1860 he was appointed to Medical College of Lahore, where he had greatly distinguished himself by introducing a knowledge of European medical science among the chief Hakims and native physicians of the Punjab. He is a fellow of University of Lahore; and received the rank of Honorary Surgeon on 1 January 1877, on the occasion of the Proclamation of Her Most Gracious Majesty as Empress of India. The Khan Bahadur had five sons- Sadr-ud-din khan born 1862; Kamr-ud-din Khan born 1870 and Badr-ud-din Khan born 1872; Rasheed-ud-din Khan and Waheed-ud-din Khan. His grand son was administrator of Lahore in 1947. Dr.Khan Bahadur died in 1904 and his final resting place is in University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore.