Portal:Biography/Selected biography government/5

Muhammad Ali Jinnah (Urdu: محمد علی جناح, born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 1876 – 11 September 1948) was a lawyer, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. He is revered in Pakistan as Quaid-i-Azam (Great Leader) and Baba-i-Qaum (Father of the Nation).

Jinnah rose to prominence in the Indian National Congress in the first two decades of the 20th century. In these early years of his political career, Jinnah advocated Hindu–Muslim unity. In 1920, however, Jinnah resigned from the Congress. By 1940, Jinnah had come to believe that Indian Muslims should have their own state. As head of the All-India Muslim League, he led the effort to pass the Lahore Resolution, demanding a separate nation. In the aftermath of World War II, the Indian National Congress and the Muslim League agreed to the creation of two separate states, a predominately Hindu India and a predominately Muslim Pakistan. Jinnah served as Pakistan's first Governor-General from independence until his death in 1948. He left a deep and respected legacy in Pakistan, and according to his biographer, Stanley Wolpert, he remains Pakistan's greatest leader.