Zafar Saifullah was the first and only Muslim to be appointed Cabinet Secretary of the Government of India

Government of India

The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...

 from 1993 to 1994. He belonged to the Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...

 cadre of Indian Administrative Service

Indian Administrative Service

The Indian Administrative Service is the administrative civil service of the Government of India. It is one of the three All India Services....

 officers. Prior to his role as Cabinet Secretary, he held a variety of positions including that of Member Secretary of the Minorities Commission of India

National Commission for Minorities

The National Commission for Minorities is a body constituted by the Government of India to monitor and evaluate the progress of people classified as minorities by the Indian government. Essentially the minorities in India consist of followers of all religions other than Hinduism and weaker...

, Advisor to the Governor of Haryana, Secretary of Rural Development, Government of Karnataka, among others.

In 2008, Saifullah edited and published a book, Sulaimanis – Lives Less Ordinary. The book was released by the Vice-President of India

Vice-President of India

The Vice-President of India is the second-highest ranking government official in the executive branch of the Government of India, after the President...

 Hamid Ansari.

He serves on the board of CCL Products, a coffee exporting company in Andhra Pradesh. We do not know of his pre-retirement involvement with the company.