| Maqbool Baqar | |
| Birth Date: | 5 April 1957 |
| Birth Place: | Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan |
| Term Start: | 17 August 2023 |
| Term End: | 27 February 2024 |
| Term Start2: | 20 September 2013 |
| Term End2: | 17 February 2015 |
| Predecessor2: | Mushir Alam |
| Successor2: | Faisal Arab |
| Term Start3: | 26 August 2002 |
| Term End3: | 17 February 2015 |
| Native Name: | مقبول باقر |
| Native Name Lang: | ur |
| Office2: | Chief Justice of the Sindh High Court |
| Office1: | Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan |
| Office3: | Justice of the Sindh High Court |
| Term End1: | 4 April 2022 |
| Term Start1: | 17 February 2015 |
| Office: | Chief Minister of Sindh |
| Predecessor: | Syed Murad Ali Shah |
| Alma Mater: | University of Karachi |
| Status: | Caretaker |
| Governor: | Kamran Tessori |
Maqbool Baqar (Urdu: {{nq|مقبول باقر) is a Pakistani jurist who has served as the Chief Justice of the Sindh High Court and as a justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. He is the former the Caretaker Chief Minister of Sindh who served in this position from 17 August 2023 till 27 February 2024.[1] [2] [3]
He was born on 5 April 1957 in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. He finished his LLB from the University of Karachi in 1979.[4]
He began his judicial career as an advocate in the Sindh High Court (SHC) in May 1981. He was elevated as an Additional Justice of the SHC on 26 August 2002 and was confirmed as a Justice of the SHC on 26 August 2003. He was appointed as the Chief Justice of the SHC on 20 September 2013 after the retirement of the previous Chief Justice, Mushir Alam. Due to his judgements in terrorism cases, Baqar was targeted by Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, a banned terrorist group, in a bomb explosion on 26 June 2013. Due to injuries suffered in the attack, he had to go through months of rehabilitative surgery. He was elevated to the Supreme Court of Pakistan on 17 February 2015.[5]
In the Supreme Court, Baqar wrote many important judgements. One of these judgements was the one for the case of Asif Ali Zardari vs. National Accountability Bureau (NAB), which held that NAB had exceeded its powers in its investigation of former President of Pakistan Asif Ali Zardari. He also wrote the dissenting note in the case of Qazi Faez Isa vs. Federation of Pakistan, where he held that the presidential reference against Justice Qazi Faez Isa was politically motivated.[6]
He retired from the Supreme Court on 4 April 2022 and became a visiting professor at the University of Karachi.
On 19 July 2024, his name was to be considered by the Judicial Commission of Pakistan for an appointment as an ad-hoc judge of the Supreme Court. However, on 18 July, he formally refused the offer, citing personal and domestic reasons.[7] [8]
On 14 August 2023, Murad Ali Shah, the outgoing Chief Minister of Sindh, and Rana Ansar, the outgoing Leader of the Opposition, both agreed to propose Baqar's name for the position of Caretaker Chief Minister of Sindh. He took oath on 17 August 2023.[9]