Syed Hamid Raza Gilani (; 17 August 1936 – 24 January 2004) was a former

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

i Federal Minister and

Ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

Early life

In keeping with his family's tradition, Syed Hamid Raza Gilani received his early education at

Aitchison College Aitchison College is an elite private, boarding school, boarding Junior School, Secondary School for boys in Lahore, Pakistan. It has educated Prime Minister of Pakistan, prime ministers, including Imran Khan, Feroz Khan Noon, president of Pakist ...

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

. Mr. Gilani attended

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

and was called to the Bar at Gray's Inn.

Political career

Mr. Gilani's political career began in 1962 when he was elected unopposed from

Multan Multan is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, fifth-most populous city in the Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab province of Pakistan. Located along the eastern bank of the Chenab River, it is the List of cities in Pakistan by populatio ...

to the National Assembly of Pakistan during the government of President

Ayub Khan Mohammad Ayub Khan (14 May 1907 – 19 April 1974) was a Pakistani military dictator who served as the second president of Pakistan from 1958 until his resignation on 1969. He was the first native commander-in-chief of the Pakistan Army, se ...

. He was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs. During this time he became a close friend of

Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (5 January 1928 – 4 April 1979) was a Pakistani barrister and politician who served as the fourth president of Pakistan from 1971 to 1973 and later as the ninth Prime Minister of Pakistan, prime minister of Pakistan from 19 ...

. Mr. Gilani lost the election in 1970, joined the

Pakistan Peoples Party The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is a political party in Pakistan and one of the three major List of political parties in Pakistan, Pakistani political parties alongside the Pakistan Muslim League (N) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. With a Cent ...

, and was appointed Pakistan's ambassador to

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

, where he served from 1971 to 1975. Upon returning to Pakistan in 1975 he contested elections on a PPP ticket and was elected to the National Assembly yet again. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, who was Prime Minister at the time, appointed him to his cabinet as Minister for Industries. During President

Zia ul-Haq Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq (12 August 192417 August 1988) was a Pakistani military officer and statesman who served as the sixth president of Pakistan from 1978 until his death in an airplane crash in 1988. He also served as the second chief of ...

's regime, Mr. Gilani's group won the local bodies elections in Multan with an overwhelming majority. He was elected to the National Assembly in the non-party polls in 1985. He was nominated for Prime Minister in 1985 as the Gilani group was the largest in the non-party elections but

wanted the candidate to be from Sind. Later he served as a Senator from 1990 to 1997.

Social work

Mr. Gilani played a major role in Anjuman Islamia, an organization responsible for establishing over 24 schools and colleges in Multan. He also served as the chairman of the Board of Governors of Nishtar Medical College & Hospital, Multan.

Family background

His father Makhdoom Syed Muhammad Raza Shah Gilani also studied at Aitchison College where he received the much coveted Rivaz Gold Medal. He too was a politician and is best remembered for defeating Penderel Moon (later Sir Penderel Moon), the British Raj's candidate in the local elections. He was chairman of Multan District Council for many years.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilani, Hamid Raza 1936 births 2004 deaths Aitchison College alumni Alumni of the University of Oxford High commissioners of Pakistan to Kenya Pakistan People's Party politicians People from Multan Federal ministers of Pakistan Members of the Senate of Pakistan Yousaf Raza Gillani Pakistani MNAs 1962–1965