On a mainstream political front, Yousuf Raza Gillani wasn’t a popular figure until general elections 2008 in February and his subsequent nomination as prime minister after Pakistan People’s Party emerged victorious in the polls.
He became the longest-serving prime minister in the history of Pakistan, where civilian governments have been repeatedly overthrown by the powerful military, often with the support of the Supreme Court.
Yousuf Raza Gilani was born on 9 June 1952 in Karachi in the southern province of Sindh, but his family comes from Punjab.
The Gilanis are among the most prominent of landowners and spiritual leaders in the south of Punjab province. Their home town is the ancient city of Multan.
Mr Gilani’s grandfather and great-uncles joined the All India Muslim League and were signatories of the 1940 Pakistan resolution. This was the declaration which eventually led to partition.
Gilani, a Multan native, comes from a prominent Punjabi family and earned a master’s degree in journalism before entering the realm of local politics through the Central Working Committee of the Pakistan Muslim League in 1978.
He gradually made his way to the cabinet and later became a rising star in the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) in 1988.
Gilani held several government posts over the next couple of years, as the minister of tourism, then housing and works before becoming speaker of the National Assembly in 1990.
Gilani was arrested and imprisoned for almost six years in 2001 when he was accused of hiring hundreds of his constituents in government jobs.
With the PPP as a party of opposition to President Pervez Musharraf’s government, the charges against Gilani were seen as being largely politically motivated.
See Also: Waseem Akhtar – Age, Political Party, family and Education
With the support of coalition partners, the PPP nominated Gilani for prime minister less than two years after he was released from prison. After winning the election, Gilani’s popularity was sealed with the unanimous vote of confidence from the parliament.
Under his premiership, he had to face some of the worst crises in Pakistan’s history, including extensive flooding, rising Taliban militancy and deteriorating relations with the US after the killing of al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden.
Yousuf Raza Gillani – Age, Political Party, Family and Net Worth
| Complete Name | Yousaf Raza Gillani |
| Age | 66 years |
| Born | July 9, 1952, Multan |
| Political party | Pakistan Peoples Party |
| Nationality | Pakistani |
| Spouse | Fauzia Gillani |
| Children | Ali Haider Gillani, Fiza Gillani, Ali Musa Gillani, MORE |
| Siblings | Ahmed Mujtaba Gillani, Nargis Moeen Bokhari |
| Parents | Alamdar Hussain Gilani, Begum Syed Alamdar Hussain Gilani |
| Net worth | ₨77.5 million (US$730,000) |
