Fawad Chaudhry reveals he recommended Mehwish Hayat for Tamgha-e-Imtiaz

Science and Technology Minister Fawad Chaudhry has revealed that he recommended Pakistani actress Mehwish Hayat be awarded the coveted Tamgha-e-Imtiaz.

As the guest on Aik Din Geo Ke Saath's latest episode, Chaudhry, in a candid discussion with host Sohail Warraich, disclosed that he had suggested Hayat's name for the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, Pakistan's highest civilian honour.

"Mehwish Hayat is brilliant," he said, when asked about his favourite actress. "As minister, I recommended her name for Sitara-e-Imtiaz. I recently met her for the first time," he added. 

Read more: Mehwish Hayat hits back at trolls complaining about her Tamgha-e-Imtiaz

The federal minister said when he was minister, he took awards very seriously. He said he had recommended Hayat's name and had always wanted youngsters to be nominated for awards. 

"People ask for their names to be recommended for awards," Chaudhry explained , refuting a question on whether Hayat asked him to recommend her name for the award.

"So many people do it that there's no limit to it."

He said the Pakistani actress had been awarded for the business that her films did, which, he said, was more than any other actress. 

Read more: Mehwish Hayat dedicates Tamgha-e-Imtiaz to 'all the other girls in Pakistan who have a dream'

"We always wanted awards to be given to the toppers in every field," he said. "We enforced this on merit as well."

The Pakistani actress had received a lot of flak on social media when she received the award in March last year. Some were of the view that she had not done enough to deserve the away.

President Dr Arif Alvi had conferred the award on Hayat during a ceremony in Islamabad.