Minhas Zulfiqar (second from right) with Premier Barry O'Farrell, colleague Ajay Khanna and NSW MP David Elliott at an award ceremony at the Crowne Plaza Norwest Hotel. Photo: Supplied
He was a larger-than-life personality, a "pillar of the community" and a man who represented everything good about multicultural Australia.
From small organisations for the disabled to grand dinners for Pakistani dignitaries, there were few local charities that didn't benefit from Minhas Zulfiqar's support.
Politicians, businessman and close friends have paid tribute to the Sydney hotelier after his murder in Karachi this week.
Mr Zulfiqar, the managing director of the Crowne Plaza Norwest hotel in Baulkham Hills, was shot during a bungled robbery as a wave of gun violence swept over the Pakistani city on Wednesday, with at least nine people killed.
He was on holiday with his wife, Razia, to visit Mecca in Saudi Arabia and his two adult sons and grandson in Pakistan, and was driving back to his holiday accommodation after withdrawing money from a bank when several gunman on motorbikes opened fire, shooting him multiple times in the upper body. The bandits then robbed him, the Daily Times in Pakistan reported.
Mr Zulfiqar, 59, had hosted hundreds of charity events at his hotel including fundraisers for a local organisation for the disabled, Inala, to flood benefits for Pakistan and Queensland.
His last event on Sunday, while he was overseas, was a 300-person lunch for victims of sectarian violence.
"Minhas was a larger-than-life identity. I cannot recall a local event or charity that has not benefited from his generosity," said state member of parliament David Elliott, who celebrated his son's christening, his wife's 40th birthday and his preselection and election night party at Mr Zulfiqar's hotel.
"On every occasion Minhas was present making sure everyone had a memorable time. His support for me caused a stir at my preselection when he told party members that if I won he would open the hotel bar."
Federal MP Alex Hawke said Mr Zulfiqar was a "pillar of our community" and "a standard bearer for successful migration from Pakistan to Australia".
But despite his charitable works, the man described as a gentle giant and a humble perfectionist was never too busy for a fortnightly lunch with his closest mates, a small group including Pakistani businessman Kashif Amjad, who would come to his hotel to talk about life and shoot the breeze.
"We all worked in the area and it was just a good excuse to get out and talk about life and different things," Mr Amjad said. "He was a very warm, gentle, funny person. We're all shell-shocked and it's going to be a struggle to go back to the hotel again."
Colleagues will hold a memorial at the Crowne Plaza on Friday afternoon and one of Mr Zulfiqar's sons will return to Australia.
His wife, Razia, and second son are being assisted by consular officials in Karachi.
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