Jahan Ara [Begum Shah Nawaz]

Begum Jahan Ara Shah Nawaz, daughter of Sir Muhammad Shafi, was born in April 1896. She was educated at the Queen Mary College, Lahore, and was married to Mian Shah Nawaz, bar-at-law, in 1911. With the emergence of the All-India Muslim Women's Conference, she started working for it tirelessly, and it was mainly at her instance that the organisation passed a resolution against polygamy in its session held at Lahore in 1918. She was associated with the educational and orphanage committees of the Anjuman-i-Himayat-i-Islam, Lahore. She was an active member of the All India Women's conference and remained President of its provincial branch for seven years. She was vice-president of the central committee of the All-India Women's Conference as well.

Besides being a member of the Lahore Municipal Committee, she was associated with several hospitals, maternity and child welfare committees. She was a senator of the University of the Punjab. She was the first woman to be elected as vice-president of the 422nd social reform conference held at Lahore in 1929. She worked as vice-president of provincial executive and member of the All India Indian General Committee of the Red Cross Society. She was a woman delegate to the Round Table Conference and was member of Indian delegation which appeared before Joint Selection Committee. In 1935, she founded the Punjab provincial Muslim Women's League. In 1937, she was elected a member of the Punjab legislative assembly, and was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Education. Medical Relief and Public Health. In 1938, she was taken on the Women's Central Sub-Committee of the All-India Muslim League. In 1942, she was appointed a member of the National Defence Council by the Government of India.

In 1946, she was elected a member of the Punjab Assembly. In the same year she was sent along with M.A.H. Ispahani on a good will mission to the U.S.A. to explain the Muslim League point of view. During the civil disobedience movement in the Punjab in 1947. She played an important role and was arrested along with other Muslim League leaders.