Syed Naeem Altaf Bokhari (
Punjabi
Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan
* Punjabi language
* Punjabis, Punjabi people
* Punjabi dialects and languages
Punjabi may also refer to:
* Punjabi (horse), a ...
, ; born 23 March 1948) is a Pakistani lawyer and
television personality
Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group due to the attention given to them by mass media. The word is also used to refer to famous individuals. A person may attain celebrity status by having great w ...
. Previously, he has hosted ''
Khabarnaak
''Khabarnaak'' (Urdu/Punjabi :خبرناک) is an Urdu and Punjabi comedy television show hosted by Ayesha Jahanzeb alongside Mir Mohammad Ali With Replace Irshad Bhatti Journalist that airs on GEO News.
Concept
The news series, which is styled ...
'' on a Pakistani
news channel
News broadcasting is the medium of broadcasting various news events and other information via television, radio, or the internet in the field of broadcast journalism. The content is usually either produced locally in a radio studio or telev ...
Geo News
Geo News () is a old technology foundation Pakistani news channel owned by the Jang Media Group. It was launched in October 2002 as the news and current affairs program was under its flagship channel Geo TV, which later in 2004, Geo TV decided ...
.
On 23 November 2020, he has been appointed Chairman of
Pakistan Television Corporation
Pakistan Television Corporation (; reporting name: PTV); also known as ''Pakistan Television'', is the Pakistani state-owned broadcaster founded by the Government of Pakistan, operating under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. I ...
.
Early life
Bokhari was born in
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 ...
, Pakistan to Dr Syed Altaf Hussain Bokhari. He is the younger brother of Pakistani fast bowler
Saleem Altaf Bokhari. He graduated from
Government College University, Lahore
The Government College University (colloquially known as GCU; Punjabi, Urdu: ) is a public research university in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. Founded as Government College, Lahore, in 1864 under British administration, it became a university i ...
. He then studied law in
Punjab University Law College
Punjab University Law College (PULC) is a public sector law school of University of the Punjab, Canal Road (Quaid e Azam) Campus, Lahore. It is the oldest law institute in Pakistan which was established in 1868, 14 years before Punjab Universi ...
, He served as the editor of "Al-Meezan" (PULC's official magazine).He was the favourite student of Barrister Ijaz Hussain Batalvi who taught there for more than fifty years.
Personal life
He first married popular
ghazal
''Ghazal'' is a form of amatory poem or ode, originating in Arabic poetry that often deals with topics of spiritual and romantic love. It may be understood as a poetic expression of both the pain of loss, or separation from the beloved, and t ...
singer
Tahira Syed
Tahira Syed (in Punjabi and ) (born 1958, Lahore) is a Pakistani ghazal and folk singer. Her repertoire includes folk songs in Urdu, Punjabi, Dogri and Pahari.
Early life
Tahira Syed was born in Lahore to a vocalist Malika Pukhraj and Shab ...
. Bokhari has two children, a son, Hasnain and a daughter, Kiran with his first wife, both of whom are lawyers by profession. Kiran is married and working in New York City. Hasnain is married and working in Muscat, Oman with OMRAN, the Government of the Sultanate of Oman's master developer for tourism projects. Bokhari married Tamannah Khan Bokhari in 1995 and has a son with his second wife, Abbas, who is also following in his fathers footsteps in becoming a lawyer and has completed his Bachelor's in law from Pakistan and is undertaking his BAR from the United Kingdom. He also has two more daughters, Noor Fatima who also has a masters from SOAS in Law and is currently working at RIA BARKER GILLETE and Noor Zainab who is currently undertaking her studies in Pakistan.
In May 2018 he suffered serious injuries when he fell in London underground station. He suffered major head and rib injuries. He and London police dismissed reports that he was attacked.
Naeem Bokhari belongs to a noble family. His father "Dr. Syed Altaf Hussain Bokhari " was a famous doctor in the walled city Lahore; as his Grandfather "Dr. Syed Tufail Hussain Bukhari" was. Naeem Bukhari's Great-grandfather was a spiritual personality named "Peer Syed Fida Hussain Bukhari". Bukhari claims to be Lahori from 6 generations before that his ancestors were from Syedanwali Sialkot.
Career
Television
In 2015 Bokhari joined ''Khabarnak'', a talk show on Geo TV, replacing Aftab Iqbal. He hosted other talk shows, including Apne Andaz Se and ''Naeem Bokhari ke saath'' on which he interviewed many guests. He interviewed
Imran Khan
Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi (born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani politician, philanthropist, and former cricketer who served as the 19th prime minister of Pakistan from August 2018 until April 2022. He was the founder of the political party Pak ...
during his work at Khabarnak.
Chaudhry controversy
His open letter against Chief Justice
Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry published on Feb 16, 2007 created a controversy. This led to the dismissal of the Chief Justice by President
Pervez Musharraf
Pervez Musharraf (11 August 1943 – 5 February 2023) was a Pakistani general and politician who served as the tenth president of Pakistan from 2001 to 2008.
Prior to his career in politics, he was a four-star general and appointed as ...
. The
Punjab Bar Council
The Punjab Bar Council () is a deliberative assembly of lawyers in Punjab, Pakistan.
It is established by the Parliament of Pakistan and consists of 75 members elected from different constituencies of Punjab, Pakistan. Its main functions ar ...
reacted after March 9, 2007, when the controversy had reached its peak and dismissed his membership in
Punjab Bar Council
The Punjab Bar Council () is a deliberative assembly of lawyers in Punjab, Pakistan.
It is established by the Parliament of Pakistan and consists of 75 members elected from different constituencies of Punjab, Pakistan. Its main functions ar ...
. Later on, his membership was renewed.
On 9 March 2007, President Musharraf fired Chaudhry. Most of the charges listed against him were contained in a letter written by Bokhari. A copy of the letter was placed before the CJP when he was called to the Army House that day.
Most of the alleged charges against Chaudhry were related to his son Arsalan Iftikhar's police career while he was a doctor in the Baluchistan government. When the reference against CJP was brought to the Supreme Judicial Council, those in the government who had been facilitating Iftikhar's son were ready to speak against him.
Bokhari's letter contained the name of Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao, whose ministry had issued orders to treat Arsalan with extra care and then allowing him to get police training along with probationers of the Police Service of Pakistan (PSP Cadre). The letter mentioned that the junior VVIP got special treatment because of his father. Later, Arsalan was appointed to FIA on deputation after seeking the written consent of the Federal Interior Minister; Naeem Bokhari gave details.
Joining PTI
On 18 June 2016, Naeem Bukhari joined the
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is a political party in Pakistan established in 1996 by cricketer and politician Imran Khan, who served as the country's prime minister from 2018 to 2022. The party is led by Gohar Ali Khan since late 2023. ...
and formally announced his association the same evening. Speaking on the occasion, Imran Khan thanked the lawyer for joining the PTI and expressed the hope that he would be helpful in party's struggle against corruption.
Chairman of PTV
On 23 November 2020, Prime Minister
Imran Khan
Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi (born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani politician, philanthropist, and former cricketer who served as the 19th prime minister of Pakistan from August 2018 until April 2022. He was the founder of the political party Pak ...
appointed him as Chairman of
Pakistan Television Corporation
Pakistan Television Corporation (; reporting name: PTV); also known as ''Pakistan Television'', is the Pakistani state-owned broadcaster founded by the Government of Pakistan, operating under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. I ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bokhari, Naeem
Living people
Pakistani television talk show hosts
Lawyers from Lahore
St. Anthony's High School, Lahore alumni
1948 births
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf politicians
Mass media people from Lahore