Sajjad Saleem

Sajjad Saleem Hotiana is a retired Pakistani civil servant who reached the BPS-22 grade. He is known for his extensive service within the federal and provincial governments of Pakistan. Throughout his career, he held several high-ranking positions including Chief Secretary of Sindh and Chief Secretary of Gilgit Baltistan. After his retirement from active duty, he transitioned to roles in public service commissions.

Early life and education

Sajjad Saleem was born on 14 March 1955 in Hota, Pakpattan. He began his formal schooling at St Mary's Convent High School Montgomery in Sahiwal. This period of his education lasted from 1963 to 1969. He later attended Forman Christian College between 1972 and 1976. During these years, he earned a bachelor's degree in political science and literature.

He continued his academic pursuits at Government College University, Lahore, starting in 1976. This institution awarded him a master's degree in English language, literature and letters. Following his entry into the civil service, he studied law at the University of Karachi. He completed a Bachelor of Laws in 1986.

International studies defined much of his later training. In 1987, he joined the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California. He graduated with a master's degree in public administration in 1989. He also attended the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in 2005 for an executive leadership development program. Finally, he earned a Master of Laws specializing in financial laws from the University of Toronto in 2007.

Career

Hotiana entered the civil service after topping the CSS exam. He joined the District Management Group in 1980 as part of the 9th Common Training Program. Notably, he secured full marks in the CSS viva voce—a record that remains unmatched. After training at the Civil Services Academy in Lahore, he was posted to Sindh in 1982. He served as an assistant commissioner in Tharparkar, Sukkur and Karachi until 1986.

His career moved to the federal government in 1986. He worked as a principal staff officer to the federal minister for finance until 1989. Between 1991 and 1994, he served as the consul general commercial and head of the Pakistan trade mission on South America. In 1998, he took a role as deputy managing director in the Punjab Small Industries Corporation.

He held various administrative posts throughout the early 2000s. From 2003 to 2004, he served as District Coordination Officer D.C.O Chawal. Between March 2009 and March 2012, he acted as secretary of the Environment Protection Department in Punjab. In May 2012, he was appointed chief secretary of Gilgit Baltistan. He held this position until May 2013.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif appointed him as Chief Secretary Sindh in November 2013. He served in this capacity until March 2015. His diverse professional history includes serving as deputy commissioner in Multan and Muzaffargarh. He also acted as the chairman of the board of directors for Karakoram Bank and the Northern Areas Transport Corporation. Other roles included federal secretary for the ministry of industries and production and senior member of the Federal Land Commission. He retired from the civil service in 2015.

Following his retirement, he returned to public administration. On 25 January 2021, he was appointed acting chairman of the Punjab Public Service Commission. He remains a notable figure among his civil service batchmates, which include Babar Yaqoob Fateh Muhammad, Shehzad Arbab and Tariq Bajwa.