Wasim Sajjad (born 30 March 1941) was
President of PakistanThe President of Pakistan is the head of state of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan has a parliamentary form of government. According to the Constitution, the President is chosen by the Electoral College to serve a five-year term. The electoral college comprises the Senate, National...
on two occasions, serving as interim President prior to elections. Currently, being a member of
PML-QThe Pakistan Muslim League or officially Pakistan Muslim League is a centrist, conservative political party in Pakistan. The present form of PML-Q was formed prior to 2002 general elections....
, he is the Leader of the Opposition in
Senate of PakistanThe Senate of Pakistan is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Pakistan. The Constitution does not give the President of Pakistan the authority to dissolve the Senate...
.
Sajjad was born on 30 March 1941 in
JalandharJalandhar , is a city in Jalandhar District in the state of Punjab, India. In Hindu mythology, Jalandhar was the eponymous kingdom of a devil in Satyuga...
,
PunjabPunjab was a province of British India, it was one of the last areas of the Indian subcontinent to fall under British rule. With the end of British rule in 1947 the province was split between India and Pakistan...
. He spent his childhood days at
Army Burn Hall CollegeThe Army Burn Hall College is a situated in Mandian region of Abbottabad city. It is divided into two separate colleges for boys and for girls. The girls branch is located on the Mall Road near the city center, and the boys' branch is in near Mandian. Originally these were Junior Burn Hall and...
,
AbbottabadAbbottabad is a city located in the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan and is the third-largest city in the province after Peshawar and Mardan. The city is situated in the Orash Valley, 150 km north of Islamabad and 200 km east of Peshawar at an altitude of...
, from where he completed his
O and A LevelsThe Advanced Level General Certificate of Education, universally referred to as an A-level, is a qualification offered by education institutions in England, Northern Ireland and Wales and by a small minority of institutions, typically private, in Scotland....
. His father, the late Mr Justice Sajjad Ahmed Jan, served as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, and later as the Chief Election Commissioner.
Wasim Sajjad (born 30 March 1941) was
President of PakistanThe President of Pakistan is the head of state of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan has a parliamentary form of government. According to the Constitution, the President is chosen by the Electoral College to serve a five-year term. The electoral college comprises the Senate, National...
on two occasions, serving as interim President prior to elections. Currently, being a member of
PML-QThe Pakistan Muslim League or officially Pakistan Muslim League is a centrist, conservative political party in Pakistan. The present form of PML-Q was formed prior to 2002 general elections....
, he is the Leader of the Opposition in
Senate of PakistanThe Senate of Pakistan is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Pakistan. The Constitution does not give the President of Pakistan the authority to dissolve the Senate...
.
Early life
Sajjad was born on 30 March 1941 in
JalandharJalandhar , is a city in Jalandhar District in the state of Punjab, India. In Hindu mythology, Jalandhar was the eponymous kingdom of a devil in Satyuga...
,
PunjabPunjab was a province of British India, it was one of the last areas of the Indian subcontinent to fall under British rule. With the end of British rule in 1947 the province was split between India and Pakistan...
. He spent his childhood days at
Army Burn Hall CollegeThe Army Burn Hall College is a situated in Mandian region of Abbottabad city. It is divided into two separate colleges for boys and for girls. The girls branch is located on the Mall Road near the city center, and the boys' branch is in near Mandian. Originally these were Junior Burn Hall and...
,
AbbottabadAbbottabad is a city located in the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan and is the third-largest city in the province after Peshawar and Mardan. The city is situated in the Orash Valley, 150 km north of Islamabad and 200 km east of Peshawar at an altitude of...
, from where he completed his
O and A LevelsThe Advanced Level General Certificate of Education, universally referred to as an A-level, is a qualification offered by education institutions in England, Northern Ireland and Wales and by a small minority of institutions, typically private, in Scotland....
. His father, the late Mr Justice Sajjad Ahmed Jan, served as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, and later as the Chief Election Commissioner. Wasim Sajjad would follow in his footsteps, becoming a lawyer, and attending
Wadham CollegeWadham College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, located at the southern end of Parks Road in central Oxford. It was founded by Nicholas and Dorothy Wadham, wealthy Somerset landowners, during the reign of King James I...
, Oxford University on a
Rhodes ScholarshipThe Rhodes Scholarship named after Cecil Rhodes is an international award for study at the University of Oxford and was the first large-scale programme of international scholarships...
.
Education
He took a degree in Jurisprudence in 1966, and the Degree of
Bachelor of Civil LawBachelor of Civil Law or BCL is the name of various degrees in law conferred by English-language universities. Historically, it originated as a postgraduate degree in the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, but many universities now offer the BCL as an undergraduate degree...
from Oxford University in 1967. He was also awarded an M. A. from the
University of OxfordThe University of Oxford , located in the UK city of Oxford, is the oldest surviving university in the English-speaking world and is regarded as one of the world's leading academic institutions. Although the exact date of foundation remains unclear, there is evidence of teaching there as far back...
in 1967. He obtained first position in
Administrative LawAdministrative law is the body of law that governs the activities of administrative agencies of government. Government agency action can include rulemaking, adjudication, or the enforcement of a specific regulatory agenda. Administrative law is considered a branch of public law...
at Oxford and was called to the Bar by the
Inner TempleThe Honourable Society of the Inner Temple is one of the four Inns of Court around the Royal Courts of Justice in London which may call members to the Bar and so entitle them to practise as barristers...
, London. At
OxfordOxford is a city, and the county town of Oxfordshire, in South East England. The city has a population of just under 165,000, with 151,000 living within the district boundary. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through Oxford and meet south of the city centre...
, Wasim Sajjad was also the President of the Oxford University Islamic Society in 1966, and President of the Oxford University Pakistan Society from 1965 to 1966. He was elected President Oxford University Birkenhead Society 1965-1967, and as Secretary of Wadham College, Oxford, in 1966. He later graduated in 1964.
Political career and President of Pakistan
His political career began in the 1980s when he was elected to the Pakistani Senate. He served as the Federal Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary affairs, and also held the portfolio of the Federal Minister for Interior, under the Government of Prime Minister Muhammad Khan Junejo. He moved up to Chairman of the Senate in 1988, and served his first term as President in 1993, following the resignation of
Ghulam Ishaq KhanGhulam Ishaq Khan also known as Mr. Nuke, was President of Pakistan from August 17, 1988 until July 18, 1993.-Early life:...
. As interim president, Sajjad was essentially a placeholder for the office until elections were completed. He would run in the election for President, but was defeated by
Farooq LeghariSardar Farooq Ahmad Khan Leghari was President of Pakistan from November 14, 1993 until December 2, 1997. He was the first Balouch President of Pakistan.-Early life:...
. In 1997, Sajjad was again made interim President and stepped down upon the election of
Muhammad Rafiq TararMuhammad Rafiq Tarar was President of Pakistan from January 1, 1998 until June 20, 2001 and before that Supreme Court of Pakistan judge & Chief Justice of Lahore High Court....
.
In 2002, Sajjad was accused of mis-use of government vehicles and phones, amounting to millions of rupees. He was ordered to pay a fine, but served no time in jail.
Sajjad continues to serve in the Pakistani government.
External links