Rao Sikandar Iqbal was the Defence Minister of Pakistan

Defence Minister of Pakistan

The Defence Minister of Pakistan heads the Ministry of Defence, under which serve the three armed forces of the country, Pakistan Army, Pakistan Air Force, and Pakistan Navy...

 from 2002 to 2007.

Biography

Born in 1943, Iqbal took his primary education in Quetta

Quetta

is the largest city and the provincial capital of the Balochistan Province of Pakistan. Known as the "Fruit Garden of Pakistan" due to the diversity of its plant and animal wildlife, Quetta is home to the Hazarganji Chiltan National Park, which contains some of the rarest species of wildlife in the...

, after which he joined the Forman Christian College

Forman Christian College

Forman Christian College University, or FCCU, is a chartered university in Lahore, Pakistan, named after its American-born founder, Dr. Charles William Forman.- History :...

 in Lahore

Lahore

Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...

. He held a LLB from Punjab University Law College

Punjab University Law College

Punjab University Law College is a constituent college of the University of the Punjab. The college is located in Quaid-e-Azam campus of the University, Near Canal Bank, Lahore...

, and he was the Secretary General of the Students Union of the University .

In 1969, Iqbal joined the provincial revenue department as a tehsildar

Tehsildar

A tehsildar is a revenue administrative officer in Pakistan and India in charge of obtaining taxation from a tehsil. The term is of imperial Mughal origin made of "tahsil", an Islamic administrative derived from Arabic, meaning "revenue generating; collection" and "dar", Persian for "holder of a...

. In 1975, after meeting with president

President of Pakistan

The President of Pakistan is the head of state, as well as figurehead, of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Recently passed an XVIII Amendment , Pakistan has a parliamentary democratic system of government. According to the Constitution, the President is chosen by the Electoral College to serve a...

 Zulfikar Ali Bhutto

Zulfikar Ali Bhutto

Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was 9th Prime Minister of Pakistan from 1973 to 1977, and prior to that, 4th President of Pakistan from 1971 to 1973. Bhutto was the founder of the Pakistan Peoples Party — the largest and most influential political party in Pakistan— and served as its chairman until his...

, he resigned and joined the Pakistan Peoples Party

Pakistan Peoples Party

The Pakistan Peoples Party , is a democratic socialist political party in Pakistan affiliated with Socialist International. Pakistan People's Party is the largest political party of Pakistan...

 (PPP).

In 1988 Iqbal was elected to the National Assembly of Pakistan

National Assembly of Pakistan

The National Assembly of Pakistan is the lower house of the bicameral Majlis-e-Shura, which also compromises the President of Pakistan and Senate . The National Assembly and the Senate both convene at Parliament House in Islamabad...

, and served as Minister of Food, Agriculture and Cooperatives under Benazir Bhutto

Benazir Bhutto

Benazir Bhutto was a democratic socialist who served as the 11th Prime Minister of Pakistan in two non-consecutive terms from 1988 until 1990 and 1993 until 1996....

, on her first term. He lost the elections in 1990, but was re-elected again in 1993 and served as Minister of Sports, Culture and Tourism, on Bhutto's second term, that ended in 1996. He also served as chairman of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Defence.

Between 1997 and 2001 he was the chief of the Punjab PPP.

In 2002 Iqbal was elected to the National Assembly again and joined the group PPP-Patriots. He was inducted to the Federal Cabinet

Government of Pakistan

The Government of Pakistan is a federal parliamentary system, with an indirectly-elected President as the Head of State and Commander in Chief of the Pakistani Armed Forces, and an indirectly-elected Prime Minister as the Head of Government. The President’s appointment and term are...

 and served as Defence Minister

Defence Minister of Pakistan

The Defence Minister of Pakistan heads the Ministry of Defence, under which serve the three armed forces of the country, Pakistan Army, Pakistan Air Force, and Pakistan Navy...

 between 2002 and 2007 under Prime Ministers Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain

Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain

Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain is a politician from Pakistan who was the Prime Minister of that country from June 30, 2004 until August 28 2004...

 and Shaukat Aziz

Shaukat Aziz

Shaukat Aziz is a world acclaimed Pakistani economist who was the 15th Prime Minister of Pakistan from May 20, 2004 to 15 November 2007 in a joint military government led by General Pervez Musharraf. A Citibank executive, Aziz returned to Pakistan from the United States to be became Finance...

.

Personal life

Iqbal was married and had four children.

Iqbal died after prolonged illness in Okara

Okara, Pakistan

Okara is the capital city of Okara District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The name Okara is derived from Okaan, a name of a tree, the city is located south-west to the city of Lahore and is famous for its agriculture-based economy and cotton mills...

, on September 29, 2010, at the age of 68. He had been suffering from diabetes, and was paralysed in 2007. Later, he suffered renal failure and needed dialysis.