1. Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar is a Pakistani and former British politician who served as the 38th and 40th Governor of Punjab, from 2013 to 2015 and from 2018 to 2022.
34 Facts About Chaudhry Sarwar
1. 2.
Chaudhry Sarwar was a member of the Senate of Pakistan from March 2018 until September 2018.
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From 1997 to 2010 Sarwar was a Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom, representing the constituency of Glasgow Central in Glasgow, Scotland.
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Chaudhry Sarwar is the father of Anas Sarwar, the current leader of the Scottish Labour Party.
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Chaudhry Sarwar served as the Scottish Labour Member of Parliament for Glasgow Central from 1997 to 2010 and retired from UK politics in 2010.
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Chaudhry Sarwar was the first Muslim Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom.
7.
Chaudhry Sarwar relinquished UK citizenship in July 2013 and became Governor of Punjab, representing the Pakistan Muslim League.
8.
Chaudhry Sarwar resigned from the position on 29 January 2015 after disagreeing with the government's foreign policy.
9.
Chaudhry Sarwar joined the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf on 10 February 2015.
10.
Chaudhry Sarwar was a member of the Senate of Pakistan from March to September 2018.
11.
Chaudhry Sarwar was appointed to a second term as Governor of Punjab in September 2018.
12.
Mohammad Chaudhry Sarwar was born on 1 January 1950 to a Punjabi Arain family in Sain De Khuie, a village near Lyallpur, Pakistan.
13.
In 2002 the brothers split the business, with Chaudhry Sarwar renaming his part as United Wholesale while his brother retained the previous name.
14.
Chaudhry Sarwar first stood as a Labour councillor for Pollokshields East at the 1987 Glasgow City Council election, almost overturning a large Conservative majority.
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Chaudhry Sarwar was elected as MP for Glasgow Govan at the 1997 general election, becoming the first Muslim MP in the United Kingdom and the first Asian MP elected to represent a Scottish constituency.
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Chaudhry Sarwar was the first MP to swear the Oath of Allegiance on the Qur'an, using the method laid out by the Oaths Act 1978.
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Chaudhry Sarwar was suspended from holding office within the Labour Party in 1997 when he was charged with electoral offences, but he was acquitted in 1999 and the suspension was lifted.
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Chaudhry Sarwar was re-elected in Glasgow Govan at the 2001 general election.
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Chaudhry Sarwar faced an opponent from the far-right British National Party, with whom he refused to share a platform, and he persuaded other candidates to do the same.
20.
The returning officer announced the result from a platform with no candidates, and Chaudhry Sarwar later made a speech from the floor of the hall.
21.
Chaudhry Sarwar became a member of the Scottish Affairs Select Committee from 2004, and was chairman since 2005.
22.
Chaudhry Sarwar played a crucial role in bringing to justice the killers of fifteen-year-old Glasgow schoolboy, Kriss Donald.
23.
On 21 June 2007, Chaudhry Sarwar announced he would not stand for re-election at the 2010 general election.
24.
In November 2008, Chaudhry Sarwar was one of 18 MPs who signed a Commons motion backing a Team GB football team at the 2012 Olympic Games, saying football "should not be any different from other competing sports and our young talent should be allowed to show their skills on the world stage".
25.
In May 2021, shortly before the 2021 Scottish Parliament election, Scottish Pakistani voters received campaign messages on WhatsApp, allegedly from Chaudhry Sarwar, urging them to vote for Scottish Labour, led by his son, Anas Chaudhry Sarwar.
26.
Chaudhry Sarwar established the Chaudhry Sarwar Foundation in 2000, which focuses on provision of healthcare, clean water, education and women empowerment in Pakistan.
27.
Chaudhry Sarwar campaigned and fundraised in Britain for the centre-right conservative party Pakistan Muslim League during the 2013 general election in Pakistan.
28.
Chaudhry Sarwar fought the case of overseas Pakistanis whose houses and flats were confiscated by the land mafia in Pakistan but unable to redress their grievances successfully.
29.
Chaudhry Sarwar resigned as governor of Punjab on 29 January 2015.
30.
On 3 March 2018, Chaudhry Sarwar was elected to the Senate of Pakistan on a general seat from Punjab after receiving 44 first priority and two second priority votes in the senate elections of that year.
31.
On 5 September 2018 Chaudhry Sarwar took oath as 33rd Governor of Punjab in the PTI Punjab administration.
32.
On 3 April 2022, amidst a constitutional crisis in Punjab, Chaudhry Sarwar was removed from the position of Governor of Punjab by the federal government and was replaced with Omar Sarfraz Cheema.
33.
Chaudhry Sarwar's removal followed complaints from Parvez Elahi that he was not cooperative with PTI's allies.
34.
Chaudhry Sarwar then joined the Pakistan Muslim League, and left in early 2024.