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TV host and Member of the National Assembly of Pakistan Aamir Liaquat Hussain was found unconscious at his home in Karachi on Thursday morning, with doctors at the Aga Khan University Hospital declaring him dead upon his arrival to the hospital.
Elected to the National Assembly in 2018 on a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) seat, Hussain contested the NA-245 constituency from Karachi. “We have received sorrowful reports of the death of MNA Aamir Liaquat Hussain,” National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf announced in the Lower House on Thursday afternoon. “I feel it appropriate to adjourn the proceedings of the House until tomorrow, June 10, 5 p.m.,” he added.
According to police, Hussain started feeling unwell on Wednesday night and informed his household staff of his ill health before going to bed. They said that his staff had found him unresponsive on Thursday morning when they sought to wake him for breakfast. Police have told media they are seeking the postmortem of the politician to avoid any controversy over the circumstances of his death.
Hussain was born in Karachi on July 5, 1971 to politician Sheikh Liaquat Hussain and columnist Mahmooda Sultana. He entered politics in 2002 when he was elected to the National Assembly on a Muttahida Qaumi Movement seat from NA-249 in Karachi and was appointed the Minister of State for Religious Affairs in then-prime minister Shaukat Aziz’s cabinet. He continued in the post from 2004 to 2007, when his party directed him to resign from the National Assembly and his position as minister over his statements on Salman Rushdie. He subsequently resigned from politics and was expelled from the MQM in 2008.
A decade later, in March 2018, Hussain jointed the PTI ahead of general elections and was re-elected to the National Assembly. He reportedly parted ways with the PTI earlier this year after he sided against ousted prime minister Imran Khan in the vote of no-confidence that saw the incumbent government comes into power.
Media career
Prior to entering politics, Hussain was most prominently known for his career in media, which he commenced as a radio broadcaster. He joined private broadcaster Geo TV in 2001 and rose to fame by hosting a religious program, Aalim Online, during which he also hosted several Ramzan transmissions.
Hussain left Geo in 2010 and joined ARY Digital Network where he hosted the religious program Aalim Aur Aalam. He subsequently rejoined Geo in 2012, hosting game-show Inaam Ghar, before parting ways once again and joining Express Media Group in 2014. After further stints at Geo, PTV, and Bol, he started hosting a gameshow on Express TV in April 2020.
Personal life
Hussain has married thrice, the most recent of which ended with his wife, Syeda Dania Shah, filing for divorce last month. His second marriage, to Syeda Tuba Anwar, lasted for around three years, ending in 2021. He is survived by two children from his first wife, Syeda Bushra Aamir.
The politician was no stranger to controversy, having been accused of hate speech and incitement through his TV broadcasts. He has also been repeatedly accused of acquiring fake degrees from various educational institutions, with him admitting at one point that he had “purchased” a degree from the Ashwood University in 2015.