Syed Sajjad Hussain Bokhari () is a Pakistani politician, author and businessman. A senior party official and Senator affiliated with

Pakistan Peoples Party The Pakistan People's Party ( ur, , ; PPP) is a centre-left, social-democratic political party in Pakistan. It is currently the third largest party in the National Assembly and second largest in the Senate of Pakistan. The party was founded ...

(PPP), he was a close aide of

Benazir Bhutto Benazir Bhutto ( ur, بینظیر بُھٹو; sd, بينظير ڀُٽو; Urdu ; 21 June 1953 – 27 December 2007) was a Pakistani politician who served as the 11th and 13th prime minister of Pakistan from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 t ...

, former

Prime Minister of Pakistan The prime minister of Pakistan ( ur, , romanized: Wazīr ē Aʿẓam , ) is the head of government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen cabinet, despite the president of Paki ...

, and served in various capacities under her leadership.

Early life and education

Bokhari was born on February 8, 1955, in

Bhalwal Bhalwal ( Punjabi and ur, ), is a city and capital of Bhalwal Tehsil of Sargodha District in the centre of the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the 99th largest city of Pakistan, according to 2017 census. The city of Bhalwal is the headquar ...

, District

Sargodha Sargodha ( Punjabi and ur, ) is a city and capital of Sargodha Division, located in Punjab province, Pakistan. It is Pakistan's 12th largest city by population and one of the fastest-growing cities of the country. Sargodha is also known as ...

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

to a Syed family. After receiving his early education in his hometown, Bokhari moved to

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan's ...

, where he completed both his F.Sc (

pre-medical Pre-medical (often referred to as pre-med) is an educational track that undergraduate students in the United States pursue prior to becoming medical students. It involves activities that prepare a student for medical school, such as pre-med course ...

) and

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

from

Government Gordon College Government Gordon College, Rawalpindi is a government college in Rawalpindi, Pakistan that was established as a church school in 1893. The college is named after Andrew Gordon.(Muhammad AsifGordon College Rawalpindi: A victim of flawed policiesP ...

. He further holds three Masters:

M.A. A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

French, ''Language and Literature,'' from

National University of Modern Languages The National University of Modern Languages (NUMLs) (Urdu: ) is a multi-campus public university with its main campus located in Islamabad, Pakistan and other campuses in different cities of Pakistan. Overview At the foothills of the mighty H ...

(previously known as NIML and affiliated with

Quaid-e-Azam University Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad ( ur, ; commonly referred to as QAU), founded as University of Islamabad, is a ranked 1 public research university in Islamabad, Pakistan. Founded as the University of Islamabad in 1967, it was initially dedi ...

) in

Islamabad Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital T ...

Political Science and

History from

University of Punjab The University of the Punjab (Urdu, pnb, ), also referred to as Punjab University, is a public, research, coeducational higher education institution located in Lahore, Pakistan. Punjab University is the oldest public university in Pakistan. ...

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

Career

In 1992,

appointed Bokhari as the

chief executive A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

and printer/publisher of ''Daily Musawat'' (a newspaper founded by

Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Zulfikar (or Zulfiqar) Ali Bhutto ( ur, , sd, ذوالفقار علي ڀٽو; 5 January 1928 – 4 April 1979), also known as Quaid-e-Awam ("the People's Leader"), was a Pakistani barrister, politician and statesman who served as the fourth ...

and closely affiliated with

). He was tasked with reviving the newspaper that had been banned during the

martial law Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory. Use Marti ...

regime of

Zia-ul-Haq General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq HI, GCSJ, ร.ม.ภ, (Urdu: ; 12 August 1924 – 17 August 1988) was a Pakistani four-star general and politician who became the sixth President of Pakistan following a coup and declaration of martial law in ...

and held that position until 2010, when it was handed over to

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari Bilawal Bhutto Zardari ( ur, بلاول بھٹو زرداری; born 21 September 1988) is a Pakistani politician who is serving as the 37th Minister of Foreign Affairs, in office since 27 April 2022. He became the chairman of Pakistan Peopl ...

. He was also the President of International Affairs (PPP) from 1992 till 2007, during which PPP transitioned from an observer party to a full member party at

Socialist International The Socialist International (SI) is a political international or worldwide organisation of political parties which seek to establish democratic socialism. It consists mostly of socialist and labour-oriented political parties and organisations. ...

- a global organization comprising 135 social democratic, socialist and labour parties seeking to establish democratic socialism. In 2003, Bokhari was elected as a Member of the

Senate of Pakistan Senate of Pakistan or Aiwān-e-Bālā Pākistān ( ur, , , literally "Pakistan upper house"), is the upper legislative chamber of the bicameral legislature of Pakistan, and together with the National Assembly makes up the Parliament of Pakista ...

from

. In 2006, he was appointed as the Chief Election Commissioner of the Party for its first intra-party polls, and as Deputy Secretary Information in the Central Executive Committee (CEC) of PPP (2006 - 2010). Bokhari has authored 21 books in the ''Urdu'', ''English'' and ''French'' languages, contributing to the fields of history, politics and poetry. His notable works include national bestsellers such as ''Zulfikar Ali Bhutto,'' ''Wiladat se Shahadat tak'', ''The Leader of Today'', ''Pakistan kai 17 Wuzar-e-Azam'' and ''Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed kai Akhri 72 Din,'' amongst others. He has also translated Benazir Bhutto's autobiography, ''

Daughter of the East ''Daughter of the East'', also known as 'The Boy of the Dardanelles', is a 1924 Australian silent film directed by Roy Darling. It is considered a lost film. Plot Harry Wharton is born of English parents in Turkey. Despite being engaged to a ...

'', to Urdu under the title ''Mashrik ki Beti.'' Bokhari is distinguished as the first Pakistani to author a book in French titled ''La Premiere Lueur'', a collection of 29 short poems published in 1982, shortly after Bokhari completed his

in French. The book was launched by the then

Federal Minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ‘prime minister’, � ...

for Education in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

, Mr. Mohammad Ali Khan, as reported in Bokhari's autobiography, ''Bhalvāl se Aivān-i Bālā tak.'' Presently, Bokhari runs ''Daily Abtak'', an independent Urdu daily newspaper. He is a member of the Executive Committee of the

All Pakistan Newspapers Society All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS) is an organization of major Pakistani newspapers, their publishers, companies, and corporations. It includes the Jang Group of Newspapers, Dawn Group of Newspapers, and Nawa-i-Waqt Group of Newspapers. ...

(APNS) and a longstanding member of the

Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors The Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE) has worked since its foundation in 1957 as the combined body of newspaper editors in Pakistan

(CPNE). He is also the

Chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

of Pak Media Foundation, a not-for-profit institution for the welfare of journalists.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bokhari, Syed Sajjad Members of the Senate of Pakistan Pakistan People's Party politicians Living people 1955 births People from Sargodha Pakistani writers Government Gordon College alumni