Sahibzada Aftab Ahmad Khan (1867-1930)

Sahibzada Aftab Ahmad Khan (m. 1891) was a lawyer and educator.

He was born in 1867 in what is now Karnal, Haryana, India, and was the son of Nawab Ghulam Ahmad Khan who was a member of Gwalior Council of Regency in the Gwalior State.

Khan studied at Mohammadan Anglo Oriental College from 1878 until 1890. He came up to Christ’s in 1891 and received a degree in the History tripos. After graduating he went on to the Inner Temple in London for his barrister training, before his return to India in 1894. Khan made Aligarh his home and became a practicing lawyer.

Sir Syed Ahmad, the founder of Mohammadan Anglo Oriental College, recognised Khan’s affiliation with the college and in 1897 he appointed him a Trustee. Later that year he was appointed Professor of Law. From 1905 to 1917 Khan served the Mohammadan Education Conference as its Joint Secretary and in 1923 he became President.

Khan was instrumental in establishing students’ voluntary organisation, the Anjuman Al-farz or Duty Society. The duty was a student initiative. Its purpose was to collect funds to enable poor students to come to Aligarh and to promote the interest of the college within the Indian Muslim community and the country as a whole.

Khan was Vice-Chancellor of Aligarh University from 1924 to December 1926. Although he was persuaded to continue for a further term of three years, he declined the offer due to ill health. He died on 18 January 1930 and was buried in the ground of the Ahmadi School for the Blind that he had established in memory of his father.