Sadia Abbasi
Sadia Khaqan Abbasi | |
|---|---|
| Born | Pakistan |
| Occupation(s) | Barrister, Politician |
| Years active | 2003–present |
| Known for | Member of the Senate of Pakistan |
Sadia Khaqan Abbasi () is a Pakistani barrister and politician who currently holds a seat in the Senate of Pakistan, having been elected to a women's reserved position in March 2021. She had previously secured Senate membership in 2003 and 2018; however, in October 2018, the Supreme Court of Pakistan disqualified her due to holding dual citizenship (Pakistan and USA), which contravened the nation's Constitution. She is also the sibling of former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi.
Political career
Abbasi first entered the Senate as a representative of the Pakistan Muslim League (N) (PML-N) on a women's reserved seat from Punjab in March 2003. In February 2009, after being denied a nomination for the upcoming March Senate elections, she resigned both from PML-N and her Senate position.
In December 2011, she became affiliated with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf without being physically present.
For the 2018 Pakistani Senate election, PML-N once again put forward her candidacy. Nonetheless, subsequent to a Supreme Court decision, the Election Commission of Pakistan classified all PML-N nominees as independent candidates.
Abbasi was then re-elected independently on a Punjab women's reserved seat and aligned herself with the PML-N-led treasury benches. She officially took her oath on 12 March 2018.
Her Senate membership was revoked on 17 October 2018 by the Supreme Court due to her possession of dual nationality.
2021 - 2021
In March 2021, Abbasi secured a third six-year term in the Senate representing Punjab on a reserved seat for women. She participates actively in several important standing committees including those focused on Cabinet Secretariat, Petroleum, Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs, as well as Foreign Affairs. Towards the end of 2021, serving on the Senate Standing Committee on Law and Justice, she introduced two constitutional amendment proposals. Among these was an initiative to recognize women's inheritance rights as fundamental; this amendment declared that “no woman shall be deprived of her share from the inheritance in Pakistan,” though it ultimately did not receive committee approval.