Leader and spiritual head of the Dawoodi Bohra community Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin was awarded Pakistan's highest civilian award, the Nishan-e-Pakistan, making him the fourth Indian to receive this accolade. The award is given to people -Pakistanis or foreigners -who have excelled in global leadership while simultaneously carrying out charitable endeavours.
Indians who have received this honour earlier were former Prime Minister Morarji Desai in 1990, thespian Dilip Kumar in 1998 and Kashmiri leader Ali Shah Geelani in 2020. Prime Minister of Malaysia Mahathir Mohamad and the Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani are among the heads of states who have previously received this award.
The Syedna received the award from Pakistan President Arif Alvi at an investiture ceremony at the President’s House in Islamabad in the presence of governor of Sindh Kamran Tessori and foreign minister Jalil Abbas Jilani, among others.
A spokesperson for the Syedna’s office in Mumbai said: “His Holiness The Syedna received this prestigious award in recognition of his continued contribution to social services such as health, education and the environment, and for promoting global peace and harmony. During the award ceremony, Syedna was praised for his diverse initiatives for fostering socio-economic development in Pak.”
On November 20, the Syedna arrived in Karachi at the invitation of the local Dawoodi Bohra community and the Pakistani government. Syedna opened the Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin School of Law at Karachi University while he was there.
The school is a component of the Bohra community's efforts to advance education in Pakistan, where a substantial Bohra population resides. There is also a branch of the well-known Bohra institution Jamia-tus-Safiah in Karachi.