Asif Ali Zardari
Who was Asif Ali Zardari?
Pakistani politician who served as President from 2008-2013 and again from 2024, known as the widower of assassinated Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.
Biographical data adapted from Wikipedia’s article on Asif Ali Zardari (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Biography
Asif Ali Zardari was born on July 26, 1955, in Karachi, Pakistan. He was the son of Hakim Ali Zardari, a landowner and tribal leader from Sindh. He went to St Patrick's High School in Karachi and then attended Cadet College Petaro. His political career took off in 1987 when he married Benazir Bhutto, who led the Pakistan People's Party and became Prime Minister after the 1988 elections. This marriage put Zardari in the middle of Pakistani politics but also drew significant public and legal attention over the years.
When Bhutto's first government was dismissed in 1990 by President Ghulam Ishaq Khan, Zardari faced serious corruption charges that were said to have played a part in the government's fall. Despite being imprisoned, he was elected to the National Assembly in 1990. When Bhutto regained power in 1993, Zardari became Federal Investment Minister and Chairperson of the Pakistan Environmental Protection Council. Conflicts arose in the Bhutto family, especially between Zardari and Bhutto's brother, Murtaza, who was killed by police in Karachi on September 20, 1996. Bhutto's second government was dismissed soon after, and Zardari was arrested and charged both with Murtaza's murder and corruption. He was elected to the Senate in 1997 while still imprisoned and stayed behind bars for several years before being released in 2004, after which he moved to Dubai.
The murder of Benazir Bhutto on December 27, 2007, in Rawalpindi drastically changed Pakistan's political scene and Zardari's path. He returned to Pakistan, became co-chairman of the Pakistan People's Party, and led the party to success in the 2008 elections. He then led a coalition that pushed military ruler Pervez Musharraf to step down as president. On September 6, 2008, Zardari was elected as the 11th president of Pakistan, a role he held until 2013. During this time, he was cleared of several criminal charges that had long affected his political career.
As president, Zardari kept Pakistan aligned with the United States during the ongoing war in Afghanistan, a stance that was very unpopular at home, especially after incidents like the Raymond Davis case and the NATO attack at Salala in 2011. Domestically, he oversaw major constitutional changes, such as the 18th Amendment, which gave more power to Pakistan's provinces. He was the first head of state of Pakistan born after the country's independence in 1947. After leaving office in 2013, Zardari stayed active in politics through the PPP and returned to the presidency in 2024, becoming the 14th president of Pakistan. Throughout his career, he received several international honors, including the Order of Ismoili Somoni, the Order of State of the Republic of Turkey, the Nishan-e-Pakistan, and the Grand Cross of the Order of Excellence.
Before Fame
Asif Ali Zardari grew up in Karachi during the 1950s and 1960s, a time when Pakistan was still developing its national identity after gaining independence from British rule in 1947. He was the son of a Sindhi landowner and tribal chief, born into a family with local political influence, though not on a national level. His education at St Patrick's High School in Karachi and later at Cadet College Petaro gave him a taste of both urban life and the structured environments typical of Pakistan's emerging elite.
Before fully diving into politics, Zardari was involved in business ventures, indicating his entrepreneurial background alongside his political ambitions. He rose to national attention mainly through his marriage to Benazir Bhutto in 1987, which quickly placed him at the center of Pakistani political power. The marriage linked him directly to the Bhutto political family, one of the most significant in Pakistan's history, and from that point, his personal and political life became closely tied to the PPP.
Key Achievements
- Served as the 11th executive president of Pakistan from 2008 to 2013 and returned as the 14th president in 2024
- Led the Pakistan People's Party coalition that forced military ruler Pervez Musharraf to resign from the presidency in 2008
- Oversaw the passage of the 18th Constitutional Amendment, which significantly devolved power from the federal government to Pakistan's provincial governments
- Became the first Pakistani head of state born after the country's independence in 1947
- Received the Nishan-e-Pakistan, Pakistan's highest civilian honor, along with multiple international decorations including the Order of Ismoili Somoni and the Grand Cross of the Order of Excellence
Did You Know?
- 01.Zardari spent nearly eleven years in prison across two separate periods of incarceration without ever being convicted of the charges brought against him, earning him the nickname 'Mr. Ten Percent' from political opponents who alleged he took commissions on government contracts.
- 02.He is the first Pakistani head of state to have been born after Pakistan's independence from British rule in August 1947.
- 03.Despite being imprisoned when elected to the Senate in 1997, he nominally held his parliamentary seat throughout his incarceration.
- 04.His son Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, born of his marriage to Benazir Bhutto, went on to become chairman of the Pakistan People's Party and later served as Foreign Minister of Pakistan.
- 05.Zardari was residing in self-imposed exile in Dubai when his wife Benazir Bhutto was assassinated in December 2007, after which he returned to Pakistan to lead the PPP through one of the most politically charged election campaigns in the country's history.
Family & Personal Life
Awards & Honors
| Award | Year | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Order of Ismoili Somoni | — | — |
| Order of State of Republic of Turkey | — | — |
| Nishan-e-Pakistan | — | — |
| Grand Cross of the Order of Excellence | — | — |