Iftikhar Ahmad (journalist)

Iftikhar Ahmad (افتخار احمد; born 4 November 1950) is a Pakistani research journalist and a political activist.

He started his career as a journalist in a Newspaper named Daily Aftab. He has worked for Jang group for almost 34 years. He introduced the concept of crisped learned interviews. He also presented JANG forum to depict current affairs of country in the form of program Awaam ki Adalat, Badal do, Aap ki Adalat, Zara Sochiye. He also introduced the method of gathering polling results along with further assembling and transmission. Moreover, he trained many young journalists who are now serving different big media platforms. He covered Afghan War for Sunday Magazine of JANG. This was the first time, this war was covered by an urdu newspaper. He introduced Pakistan’s one of a kind interview talk show ‘Jawab Deyh’ in which he documented many historical interviews and uncovered many important aspects of history. Along with this, he introduced personal life interviews of national leaders. His Programme "Great Debate" on National issues along with Hamid was one of the most high rated current affairs programme of the history. These programmes left a deep impact on Pakistani Politics. He interviewed many including Parvez Musharraf, Benazir Bhutto, Justice Naseem Hassan Shah and many others.

Iftikhar Ahmad has history of hustle with pharaohs of politics, he supported the notion ‘One man, one vote’ He had been captured under dictatorial regime from 1969-1970. He was one of the founding members of Pakistan People’s Party. He had been advisor of students and labors.

He believed in social justice, welfare of the common people under the slogan of democracy. He wanted to demolish university ordinance and wanted to put student unions back to their places.

Iftikhar Ahmad is a left wing political activist who is known for his blatant political analysis, his stances for citizens and the reforms and efforts he made for public welfare. He had thorough research on elections and been working on it for years now. Iftikhar is currently working as Director Special Project and Election Cell under SAMAA news network.

Early life and education
Born in 1950, Iftikhar Ahmad was educated in Lahore, West-Pakistan. He obtained his early education from Multan. He attended Central Model School, Lahore, MAO College, Lahore and the University of the Punjab.

Political activity
Since 1967, Iftikhar Ahmad has been a political activist as well. He participated in the movement against military dictator Yahya khan and Field Marshal Ayub Khan.

His political philosophy was very much in line with the socialist ideas and he was mesmerised by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Ahmad served multiple jail terms under the martial law governments for various violations of Legal Framework Order, 1970. He was sent to the Sibi Central Jail, Shahpur Central Jail, Camp Jail, Lahore and the Lahore Fort detention center. Iftikhar Ahmad has history of hustle with pharaohs of politics, he supported the notion ‘One man, one vote’ He had been captured under dictatorial regime from 1969-1970. He was one of the founding members of Pakistan People’s Party. He had been advisor of students and labors. . He argues that Pakistan may never see a leader better than Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, and a political slogan better than "Roti, Kapra aur Makan". With over 30 years of experience in journalism, Iftikhar Ahmad is known for his probing and aggressive style of journalism.

Career
Iftikhar Ahmad started his journalism career in 1982 from newspaper Subh-o Khair and worked for various publications including Daily Aftab and Daily Pakistan. He has been working for Daily Jang since 1986. In the 1980s, Ahmad introduced personal interviews of politicians; these were different in the way that for the first time politicians divulged private information as well. Ahmad through his interviews for Daily Jang set a new trend in Pakistani journalism.

Ahmad started Jang Group's Election Cell in 1988, and had covered more than five political elections and also Geo Election Cell in the General Elections of 2002, 2008 and 2013 in Pakistan.

Ahmad also worked closely with the Geo News Administration and a fellow friend and journalist Hamid Mir on the Zara Sochiye social awareness campaign on Geo News TV channel. A campaign which aimed to start a debate on issues that divide the Pakistani nation, after the broadcast of the debate on Hudood Ordinance, the National Assembly of Pakistan ratified the Hudood Ordinances.

Resignation in protest
It was reported on 17 November 2008 that he resigned from Geo TV in protest over its refusal to broadcast his interview with Shahid Masood. He alleged that he was earlier pressured to censor certain portions of the said interview, which he declined.

The Geo TV administration retracted from their position and the complete interview was broadcast the following week. After the program went on the air, Ahmad took back his resignation. He resigned from Dunya News on 14 October 2015 when Dunya News top men were putting pressure on him to announce fabricated results about NA-122 contest (an election district) while he took a stance that he would only announce figures of votes that were coming from reporters, instead of engineering a high figure of difference between two major candidates. According to sources, Ahmad was of the view that 'manipulation-of-election-results' difference between two major contestants before the actual results come in, was unprofessional and unethical.

Shows and Programmes List
Jawab Deyh

Meray Mutabiq

Awam ki Adalat

Jawab Dain

Great Debate

DNA (Anchor/Analyst)

Geo Special Election Transmission

Quotes

 * Ahmad stated in Hamid Mir's Capital Talk show on Geo TV: "Pakistan may never see a leader better than Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, and a political slogan better than "Roti, Kapra aur Makan (Food, Clothes, and Home)".