View source for Chairman of the Senate of Pakistan

{{Short description|Presiding officer of the Senate of Pakistan}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2015}}
{{Infobox official post
| post = Chairman
| body = <br />the Senate of Pakistan
| native_name = {{nq|صدر ایوانِ بالا}}
| flag = 
| flagsize = 
| flagcaption = 
| insignia = Emblem of Senate of Pakistan.png
| insigniasize = 150px
| insigniacaption = 
| imagesize = 
| alt = 
| incumbent = [[Yusuf Raza Gilani]]
| incumbentsince = 9 April 2024
| type = 
| status = [[President of the Senate|Presiding officer]]
| department = [[Senate of Pakistan]]
| style = [[Chairman|Mr. Chairman]]<br /><small> (Informal; while presiding the house)</small><br />[[Honourable|Honourable Chairman]]<br /><small>(Formal)</small><br>[[Mr. President (title)|Mr. President]]<br>{{small|(While acting as the President)}}
| member_of = 
| reports_to = 
| residence = 
| seat = [[Parliament House, Islamabad|Parliament House]], <br> [[Islamabad]]
| nominator = 
| appointer = The [[Senate of Pakistan|Senate]]
| appointer_qualified = 
| termlength = 3 years, at the Senate’s pleasure.
| termlength_qualified = 
| constituting_instrument = [[Constitution of Pakistan]]
| precursor = 
| formation = 12 April 1973; 52 years ago
| first = [[Khan Habibullah Khan Marwat|Habibullah K. Marwat]]<br>12 April 1973
| last = 
| abolished = 
| succession = [[Line of succession to the President of Pakistan|First]]
| abbreviation = 
| unofficial_names = 
| deputy = 
| salary = 
| website = [https://web.archive.org/web/20150426192319/http://www.senate.gov.pk/en/chairmain.php Chairman Senate]
| image = Delegation from the Islamic Republic of Pakistan - 28 January (54291952937) (cropped) (b).jpg
}}
{{Politics of Pakistan}}

'''Chairman of the Senate of Pakistan''' serves as the president-chair of the [[Senate of Pakistan|Senate]], functioning as the presiding official under constitutional provisions.

According to the [[Constitution of Pakistan]], the Senate must select both a chairman and deputy chairman for three-year terms. During the President's absence, the Senate Chairman is constitutionally empowered to assume presidential duties; in cases where both the President and Chairman are unavailable, the Speaker of the [[National Assembly of Pakistan|National Assembly]] typically performs these responsibilities.

The Senate Chairman holds the position of first in the line of succession to the presidency, ranking ahead of the National Assembly Speaker. Habibullah Marwat served as the inaugural Senate Chairman, while Wasim Sajjad maintains the distinction of being the longest-serving chairman in the institution's history. Senator Yusuf Raza Gilani, elected to the Senate in the April 2 election, currently serves as Senate Chairman, having assumed office on 09 April 2024.
==Role and responsibilities==
The office of Chairman of the Senate is created by Article 60(1) of the Chapter 2 in Part III of the [[Constitution of Pakistan]]:<ref name="Article 601"/>

{{blockquote|text=After the Senate has been duly constituted, it shall, at its first meeting and to the exclusion of any other business, elect from amongst its members a chairman and a Deputy chairman and, so often as the office of chairman or Deputy chairman becomes vacant, the Senate shall elect another member as chairman or, as the case may be, Deputy chairman<br><br>The term of office of the chairman or Deputy chairman shall be 3 years from the day on which he enters upon his office.|sign=Article 60(1)–60(2) of the Chapter 2 in Part III of the [[Constitution of Pakistan]]|source=source<ref name="Article 601"/>}}

The Senate's primary constitutional purpose was to ensure equitable representation for all federating units, particularly since the National Assembly's composition is determined by provincial population. This equal provincial representation in the Senate effectively counterbalances the demographic disparities within the National Assembly, thereby addressing potential concerns regarding marginalization and exploitation.

The Senate functions to foster national unity and harmony while mitigating apprehensions among smaller provinces concerning potential domination by larger provinces, given their numerical advantages in the National Assembly. As a legislative body representing the nation's provinces and territories, the Senate cultivates feelings of equality, peaceful coexistence, and mutual understanding among federating units—elements deemed essential for national development and prosperity.

Consequently, the Pakistani Senate has evolved over time into an indispensable institutional component and a stabilizing force within the federal structure, serving as a crucial mechanism for maintaining equilibrium and promoting inclusive governance across the diverse provincial landscape.

==List of chairmen of the Senate==
{{Legend2|White|[[Independent (politician)|Independent]]|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}

{{Legend2|Green|[[Pakistan Muslim League (N)|Muslim League (N)]]|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}

{{Legend2|LightGreen|[[Pakistan Muslim League (Q)|Muslim League (Q)]]|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}

{{Legend2|Black|[[Pakistan Peoples Party]]|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}

{{Legend2|#6b8f1e|[[Balochistan Awami Party]]|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}

{| class="wikitable"
! colspan=2|Name
! Entered office
! Left office
! Date of birth and death
! Political party
! [[Provinces of Pakistan|Provinces]]
|-
! rowspan=2  style="background:#000000;" |<span style="color:white;">'''1'''</span> 
| rowspan=2|[[Khan Habibullah Khan Marwat|Habibullah Khan]] 
| <sup>6 August 1973</sup>
| <sup>5 August 1975</sup>
| rowspan=2|<sup>{{Death date and age|df=yes|1978|12|05|1901|10|19}}</sup>
| rowspan=2|[[Pakistan People’s Party|PPP]]
| rowspan="4" |[[Khyber Pakhtunkhwa]]
|- 
| <sup>6 August 1975</sup>
| <sup>4 July 1977</sup>
|-
! rowspan=2 style="background-color: White"| 2 
| rowspan=2|[[Ghulam Ishaq Khan]] 
| <sup>21 March 1985</sup>
| <sup>20 March 1988</sup>
| rowspan=2|<sup>{{Death date and age|df=yes|2006|10|27|1915|01|20}}</sup>
| rowspan=2|[[Independent (politician)|IND]]
|-   
| <sup>21 March 1988</sup> 
| <sup>12 December 1988</sup> 
|-
! rowspan=4 style="background-color: DarkGreen"|<span style="color:white;">'''3'''</span>
| rowspan=4|[[Wasim Sajjad]] 
| <sup>24 December 1988</sup> 
| <sup>20 March 1991</sup> 
| rowspan=4|<sup>{{Birth date and age|df=yes|1941|03|30}}</sup>
| rowspan=4|[[Pakistan Muslim League (N)|PMLN]]
| rowspan=4|[[Punjab, Pakistan|Punjab]]
|- 
| <sup>21 March 1991</sup> 
| <sup>20 March 1994</sup> 
|-
| <sup>21 March 1994</sup> 
| <sup>20 March 1997</sup> 
|-
| <sup>21 March 1997</sup> 
| <sup>12 October 1999</sup> 
|-
! rowspan=2 style="background-color: LightGreen"| 4
| rowspan=2|[[Mohammad Mian Soomro]]
| <sup>23 March 2003</sup>
| <sup>22 March 2006</sup>
| rowspan=2|<sup>{{Birth date and age|df=yes|1950|08|19}}</sup>
| rowspan=2|[[Pakistan Muslim League (Q)|PML(Q)]]
| rowspan="5" |[[Sindh, Pakistan|Sindh]]
|-
| <sup>23 March 2006</sup>
| <sup>11 March 2009</sup>
|-
! style="background:#000000;" |<span style="color:white;">'''5'''</span> 
| [[Farooq Naek]]
| <sup>12 March 2009</sup>
| <sup>11 March 2012</sup>
| <sup>{{Birth date and age|df=yes|1950|01|03}}</sup>
| rowspan="3" | [[Pakistan People’s Party|PPP]]
|-
! style="background:#000000;" |<span style="color:white;">'''6'''</span> 
| [[Nayyar Hussain Bukhari]]
| <sup>12 March 2012</sup>
| <sup>11 March 2015</sup>
| <sup>{{Birth date and age|df=yes|1952|12|23}}</sup>
|-
! style="background:#000000;" |<span style="color:white;">'''7'''</span> 
| [[Raza Rabbani]]
| <sup>12 March 2015</sup>
| <sup>11 March 2018</sup>
| <sup>{{Birth date and age|df=yes|1952|07|23}}</sup>
|-
! style="background-color: #6b8f1e"|<span style="color:white;">'''8'''</span> 
| [[Sadiq Sanjrani]]
| <sup>12 March 2018</sup>
| <sup>8 March 2024</sup>
| <sup>{{Birth date and age|df=yes|1970|04|14}}</sup>
| [[Balochistan Awami Party|BAP]] 
| [[Balochistan, Pakistan|Balochistan]]
|-
! style="background:#000000;" |<span style="color:white;">'''9'''</span> 
| [[Yusuf Raza Gilani]]
| <sup>9 April 2024</sup>
| 
| <sup>{{Birth date and age|df=yes|1952|12|23}}</sup>
| rowspan="3" | [[Pakistan People’s Party|PPP]]
| rowspan=4|[[Punjab, Pakistan|Punjab]]
|-
|}

==Timeline==

<timeline>
ImageSize = width:800 height:auto barincrement:20
PlotArea  = top:10 bottom:50 right:130 left:20 
AlignBars = late

DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy
Period     = from:01/01/1973 till:01/04/2021
TimeAxis   = orientation:horizontal
ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:2 start:1973

Colors     =
  id:app  value:green legend: Appointed
  id:abo  value:red legend: Abolished
Legend     = columns:2 left:150 top:24 columnwidth:100

TextData =
  pos:(20,27) textcolor:black fontsize:M
  text:"Chairman of Senate:"

BarData =
  barset:PM

PlotData=
  width:5 align:left fontsize:S shift:(5,-4) anchor:till
  barset:PM

 from: 06/08/1973 till: 04/07/1977 color:app text:"[[Khan Habibullah Khan Marwat]]"
 from: 04/07/1977 till: 21/03/1985 color:abo text:"[[Post Abolished]]"
 from: 21/03/1985 till: 12/12/1988 color:app text:"[[Ghulam Ishaq Khan]]"
 from: 12/12/1988 till: 12/10/1999 color:app text:"[[Wasim Sajjad]]"
 from: 12/10/1999 till: 23/03/2003 color:abo text:"[[Post Abolished]]"
 from: 23/03/2003 till: 11/03/2009 color:app text:"[[Mohammad Mian Soomro]]"
 from: 12/03/2009 till: 11/03/2012 color:app text:"[[Farooq Naek]]"
 from: 12/03/2012 till: 12/03/2015 color:app text:"[[Nayyar Bukhari]]"
 from: 12/03/2015 till: 12/03/2018 color:app text:"[[Raza Rabbani]]"
 from: 12/03/2018 till: 12/03/2021 color:app text:"[[Sadiq Sanjrani|Mir Sadiq Sanjrani]]"
 
</timeline>
== References ==
{{Reflist}}