Ahsan Iqbal

MNA Ahsan Iqbal
Minister for Planning and Development
Incumbent
Assumed office 7 June 2013
President	Mamnoon Hussain
Prime Minister	Nawaz Sharif
Preceded by	Naveed Qamar
Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission of Pakistan
Incumbent
Assumed office 8 June 2013
Preceded by	Dr. Nadeem Ul Haque
Minister for Education
In office 31 March 2008 – 13 May 2008
Preceded by	Javed Ashraf Qazi
Minister for Minorities
In office 31 March 2008 – 13 May 2008
Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission of Pakistan
In office 13 August 1998 – 12 October 1999
Preceded by	Hafeez Pasha
Succeeded by	Dr. Shahid Amjad Chaudhry
Personal details
Born	1958 (age 57–58) [1] Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
Citizenship	Pakistan
Nationality	Pakistan
Political party	Pakistan Muslim League (N)
Alma mater	University of Engineering and Technology
Religion	Islam

Ahsan Iqbal Chaudhary (Urdu: احسن اقبال چودھری) is a Pakistani politician who is the current Minister of Planning and Development of Pakistan and the Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission of Pakistan^[2] in the third Sharif's ministry.^[3] A leader of the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) (PML-N), Iqbal previously briefly held the portfolio of Minister of Minorities^[4] and Minister of Education of Pakistan in the Gillani ministry in 2008.^[1][5]

Iqbal has been an elected member of the National Assembly of Pakistan non consecutively since 1993 representing constituency NA-117 (Narowal).^[6] He served as the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission of Pakistan from 1998 to 1999 during the Sharif's second ministry with the title of Minister of State.^[1]

Family and education

Iqbal was born in 1958 from a family with a political background. His mother, Nisar Fatima was the member of the National Assembly of Pakistan on reserved seats for women in Pakistani general election, 1985.^[7][1] Iqbal's maternal grandfather, Chaudhry Abdul Rehman Khan was member of the Punjab Legislative Assembly during the British Raj from 1927 to 1945.^[1]

Iqbal attended the University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore to study mechanical engineering in 1976 from where he graduated with B.Sc in 1981.^[1]

In 1984, Iqbal attended the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania from where he did MBA in 1986.^[1] Dawn reported that he also attended Government College Lahore,, Georgetown University and Harvard University.^[1]

Political career

Iqbal started politics as president of the student union of University of Engineering and Technology. He was then associated with Islami Jamiat Tulaba, student wing of the right wing Jamat-i-Islami.^[7]

Iqbal was sponsored by Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq in the right wing politics of Pakistan in the 1980s.^[7] In 1988, Iqbal joined Pakistan Muslim League (N).^[1]

In Pakistani general election, 1993, he become member of the National Assembly for the first time after winning constituency NA-117 of Narowal. In 1993, he served as Policy and Public Affairs Assistant to then Prime Minister of Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto.^[1]

He was re-elected as the member of the National Assembly for the second time in Pakistani general election, 1997.^[1] when his party PML-N won clear majority in National Assembly for the first time in the history of Pakistan, Iqbal played his role in several key government positions. He was appointed as the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission of Pakistan with the title of Minister of State, chairman Pakistan Engineering Council and was also a chairman for the National Steering Committees on Information Technology and IQM and Productivity. Iqbal continued on the positions allotted to him till the 1999 Pakistani coup d'état in which then Chief of Army Staff, Pervez Musharraf, overthrew elected Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his existing elected government.^[1] Dawn reported that on Iqbal's initiative Pakistan's first national IT policy was formulated.^[1]

In Pakistani general election, 2002, he lost the National Assembly seat.^[1] During the Musharraf rule, Iqbal taught Management at the Mohammad Ali Jinnah University in Islamabad from 2000 to 2007.^[1] Iqbal is considered a loyalist of Nawaz Sharif who kept the PML-N alive during the Musharraf rule.^[1][8]

In Pakistani general election, 2008, Iqbal was re-elected as the member of the National Assembly for the third time. He briefly served as the Minister for Education of Pakistan with an additional portfolio of Minister of Minorities’ Affairs in the Gillani ministry.^[9][10] But after PML-N decided to sit on opposition benches due to a disagreement with PPP related to the reinstatement of the judges dismissed by former President Pervez Musharraf in 2007, their ministers resigned six weeks into the newly formed PPP-led coalition government.^[1]

In 2011, Iqbal was elected as Deputy Secretary General of PML-N.^[1][11]

In Pakistani general election, 2013, Iqbal was made part of PML-N’s central parliamentary board tasked with selecting candidates for the election.^[8] Iqbal was re-elected as the member of the National Assembly for the fourth time in 2013 general election.^[6] He was appointed as the Minister of Planning and Development^[12][13] as well the Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission of Pakistan.^[2]

In February 2016, Iqbal was appointed as the United Nations Development Programme’s ‘champion minister’ from the Asia Pacific region in recognition of his efforts to promote the sustainable development goals.^[14]

References

1. Dawn.Com. "Ahsal Iqbal, Dawn prfile". Dawn newspapers. Dawn newspapers. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
2. Kiani, Khaleeq (11 June 2013). "Planning Commission to be made think tank". Dawn. Dawn. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
3. "Sharif's 25-member cabinet takes oath". Dawn. 7 June 2013. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
4. "Gilani to sit on resignations till Asif's return: Decision final: Nisar". Dawn. Dawn. 14 May 2008. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
5. Jamil, Farah (7 June 2013). "26 member Cabinet to take oath today". Aaj News. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
6. "Another win: PML-N's Ahsan Iqbal clobbers PTI's Abrarul Haq - The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. 11 May 2013. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
7. Ghumman, Khawar (7 June 2013). "Experience and loyalty count in the PML-N kitchen cabinet". DAWN.COM. Dawn. Retrieved 27 October 2016.
8. Mahmood, Amjad (26 March 2013). "'Loyalists dominate' N parliamentary board". Dawn. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
9. Asghar, Raja (31 March 2008). "Swearing-in today to mark belated birth of cabinet". DAWN.COM. Dawn. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
10. Reporter, The Newspaper's (15 April 2008). "Minorities rights to be safeguarded, says Gilani". Dawn. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
11. "Nawaz Sharif elected unopposed PML-N president". DAWN.COM. Dawn. 27 July 2011. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
12. Masood, Salman (7 June 2013). "U.S. Drone Strike Kills at Least 7 in Pakistan as New Prime Minister Announces Cabinet". New York Times. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
13. "Federal cabinet unveiled: Enter the ministers - The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. 8 June 2013. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
14. Reporter, The Newspaper's (26 February 2016). "Ahsan Iqbal appointed UNDP's 'champion minister'". DAWN.COM. Dawn. Retrieved 30 October 2016.