His Excellency Wasim Sajjad
وسیم سجاد
Wasim Sajjad in 2021
Acting President of Pakistan
In office 2 December 1997 – 1 January 1998
Prime Minister	Nawaz Sharif
Preceded by	Farooq Leghari
Succeeded by	Rafiq Tarar
In office 18 July 1993 – 14 November 1993
Prime Minister	Moeenuddin Qureshi (Caretaker) Benazir Bhutto
Preceded by	Ghulam Ishaq Khan
Succeeded by	Farooq Leghari
3rd Chairman of the Senate
In office 24 December 1988 – 12 October 1999
Preceded by	Ghulam Ishaq Khan
Succeeded by	Mohammad Soomro
Interior Minister of Pakistan
In office 29 March 1987 – 28 July 1987
President	Zia-ul-Haq
Prime Minister	Muhammad Junejo
Preceded by	Nadir Pervez
Succeeded by	Aslam Khattak
Law and Justice Minister of Pakistan
In office 20 September 1986 – 4 December 1988
President	Zia-ul-Haq
Prime Minister	Muhammad Junejo
Preceded by	Aitzaz Ahsan
Succeeded by	Sharifuddin Pirzada
Personal details
Born	Wasim Sajjad (1941-03-30) 30 March 1941 (age 82) Jalandhar, Punjab, British India (now in Punjab, India)
Citizenship	Pakistani
Nationality	Pakistani
Political party	Pakistan Muslim League (Q) (2002–present)
Other political affiliations	Islami Jamhoori Ittehad Pakistan Muslim League (N)
Parent	Justice Sajjad Ahmad Jan
Residence(s)	Islamabad, Pakistan
Alma mater	Army Burn Hall College Punjab University Oxford University
Cabinet	Zia Cabinet
Website	Senate biography

Wasim Sajjad (Urdu: وسیم سجاد; born 30 March 1941) is a Pakistani conservative politician and lawyer who served as the acting president of Pakistan for two non-consecutive terms and as the Chairman of the Senate between 1988 and 1999.^[1]

Born in Jalandhar, British India, Sajjad's father (Justice Sajjad Ahmad Jan) went on to serve as a judge of the Supreme Court, later becoming Chief Election Commissioner of Pakistan. Sajjad studied at the Army Burn Hall before moving to Lahore where he studied law at the Punjab University. As a Rhodes Scholar, he moved to Oxfordshire, where he received his Bachelor of Civil Law followed by a graduate degree in Jurisprudence from the Wadham College, Oxford in 1967. He was called to the Bar at the Inner Temple in 1968.^[2] On return to Pakistan, Sajjad was admitted as a lawyer in Pakistan and joined the Punjab Law College where he taught constitutional law between 1967 and 1977.^[3]

Political career

Sajjad was elected as to the Senate in 1985 as a member of the center-right Muslim League and served as the Minister for Law and Justice from September 1986 to December 1988, until December 1988 when he was elected as Chairman of the Senate where he remained until 1997. During which he served as acting President of Pakistan twice during the general elections.^[1] In 1999, Sajjad joined a defecting group that supported General Musharraf's coup and became the Leader of the House in the Senate of Pakistan in 2003, remaining until his political retirement in 2008.^[4] After the imposition of the coup by General Pervez Musharraf, Sajjad joined the PML(Q) and again became a senator. This time he served as Leader of the House in the Senate of Pakistan from March 2003 to March 2008. Thereafter he served as Leader of the Opposition from 2010 until 2012.^[1] After retiring from politics, he has been serving as Chairman of the Foundation for Advancement of Science and Technology (FAST),^[5] and the chancellor of the National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences.^[6]

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.^[7]