Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui

Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui was a prominent Pakistani jurist and legislator who served as the 15th Chief Justice of Pakistan. He also held the position of the 31st Governor of Sindh until his death in 2017. Throughout his career, he maintained a reputation for judicial independence.

Early life and education

Siddiqui was born on 1 December 1939 into an educated, middle-class Urdu-speaking family in Lucknow. He received his early schooling in Lucknow and Calcutta before moving to East Pakistan. In 1952, he passed his Matriculation from the Board of Secondary Education in Dhaka. He later obtained an intermediate degree in Engineering sciences from the University of Dacca in 1954. During this period, he worked within the Physics Department where he taught undergraduate physics laboratory courses.

He moved to Karachi in 1954 to attend Karachi University. After completing his B.A. in Philosophy, he earned an L.L.B from the University of Karachi in 1958. He began his legal practice at the Sindh High Court in 1960.

Career

Siddiqui joined the Bar in February 1961 and became an Advocate of the High Court of West Pakistan in November 1963. He achieved enrollment as an Advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in November 1969. His leadership roles within the legal community included serving as Joint Secretary of the Karachi High Court Bar Association in 1967. He also served as a Member of the Managing Committee for the association during 1968–69. In 1977, he was elected Honorary Secretary of the High Court Bar Library.

His judicial ascent continued when he was elevated to Judge of the Sindh High Court on 5 May 1980. He served as the Chief Justice of the Sindh High Court starting 5 November 1990. On 23 May 1992, he was appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. He held the position of Chief Justice of Pakistan and Chairman of the Pakistan Law Commission from 1 July 1999 until 1 December 2005.

During his tenure as Chief Justice, the 1999 military coup occurred under General Pervez Musharraf. Siddiqui refused to take an oath under the Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) because he believed it deviated from his oath to defend the 1973 Constitution. Following this refusal, four army generals visited his residence to discuss the matter. These officers included Lieutenant-General Moinuddin Haider, Lieutenant-General Ehsan ul Haq, Lieutenant-General Mahmud Ahmed, and Brigadier-General Javed Ashraf Bajwa. After he maintained his stance, he and his family were placed under house arrest by the GHQ.

In 2008, Nawaz Sharif announced Siddiqui as the joint nominee for Pakistan Muslim League (N) and Jamaat-e-Islami to replace Pervez Musharraf as President. He lost the 6 September 2008 presidential election to Asif Ali Zardari by 153 votes. Although he was selected again for the 2013 presidential election, his name was replaced by Mamnoon Hussain at the last moment. Siddiqui remained a neutral candidate who never officially joined the PML-N.

His later appointments included serving as the 31st Governor of Sindh, a role he accepted after being contacted by Nawaz Sharif on 9 November 2016. He was sworn into this office on 11 November 2016. He remained in this position until he died in January 2017.

Awards and recognition

The British Judiciary inducted him into the roles of Judges of eminence for his defense of judicial independence. He also received a letter of commendation from the Judiciary of the United Kingdom. Following his resignation in January 2000, he was awarded honorary membership of the Judicial fraternity of Australia and Canada. His principled stand was later supported by the Lawyers' Movement in Pakistan.

Siddiqui served as a member of a 3-man Contact Group for the Organization of Islamic Conference. He investigated the status of Muslim minorities in Bulgaria and presented three reports to the Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers in 1988, 1989, and 1990. He was also the nominee judge for the International Court of Justice from Pakistan.