LAHORE – Major loss to political landscape as former Punjab Chief Minister Mian Manzoor Ahmed Wattoo passed away in Lahore on Tuesday at age of 86.
President Asif Ali Zardari expressed profound grief over his demise, hailing Wattoo’s “invaluable public service, role in strengthening democracy, and contributions to national unity.”
Manzoor Wattoo
Wattoo was veteran figure in Pakistani politics, passed away on 16 December 2025. Born on 14 August 1939, Wattoo played role in shaping provincial and national politics over several decades.
He started his political career in 1983, becoming Chairman of the District Council in Okara during the non-party elections of General Zia’s era. In 1985, he rose to prominence as Speaker of the Punjab Provincial Assembly, a position he held three times before being elected Chief Minister of Punjab in 1993 on a Pakistan Muslim League (Junejo) ticket.
His tenure witnessed complex coalition politics involving the PPP, PML (Junejo), minorities, and independents. In 1995, amid leadership disputes, Wattoo founded the Pakistan Muslim League (Jinnah). Political rivalries led to his removal from office, but he was reinstated in 1996 by the High Court before leaving office permanently later that year. He faced corruption allegations under then-Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, but the verdict was later overturned.
Wattoo later allied with President Pervez Musharraf, merging his party into the ruling PML (Q) and serving as Senior Vice President. In 2008, he joined the Pakistan Peoples Party and was appointed Federal Minister for Industries and Production, later overseeing Kashmir Affairs and Northern Areas. His children, Rubina Shaheen Wattoo and Khurram Jahangir Wattoo, also pursued political careers.
Wattoo’s political journey spanned local governance, provincial leadership, and federal administration, leaving a lasting imprint on Pakistan’s political landscape.
