After resigning from the army in 1973, he joined the
National Awami Party (Wali) . When
National Awami Party was banned by
ZAB, Hoti joined the National Democratic Party (NDP). He subsequently went into exile and spent several years in
Afghanistan before finally returning in 1979 after
Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq announced a general
Amnesty for Pakhtun leaders. In 1986, he joined the
Awami National Party. He was a member of the
ANPs central and provincial executive committees and also led the Nangialai Pakhtun, the ANP's youth wing for many years. Azam Hoti was twice elected as an
MNA from Mardan in 1990 and 1997 on the ANP ticket from different constituencies. He was twice made the federal minister for communication in Prime Minister
Nawaz Sharif’s government in 1991 and 1997. In March 1994, he was elected as a member of the
Senate of Pakistan. He remained a member of various Standing Committees of the Senate.
Controversies Hoti claimed in 2013 that his sister Begum
Nasim Wali Khan and
Asfandyar Wali Khan had taken from the
US Government after their visit to the US following their success in the
2008 Pakistani general election to ignore the bloodshed of Pakhtuns.
Expulsion and reconciliation with ANP Serious differences arose between Azam Hoti and
Asfandyar Wali Khan when the
ANP suffered a humiliating defeat in the
2013 Pakistani general election. In several statements, he had demanded
Asfandyar to quit the party and held him responsible for ANP’s defeat in the polls. Afterwards, Azam Hoti was expelled from the ANP for issuing statements against the party leadership. The confrontation also led to a bitter relationship between him and his son
Ameer Haider Hoti, former
Chief Minister of KPK. Azam left his house and hometown
Mardan and moved to his Shami Road residence in
Peshawar. The local elders and leaders of the ANP in Mardan made efforts for reconciliation between the father and son. The efforts succeeded and the two reconciled. Azam Hoti went to his lavish residence in
Mardan after the reconciliation, but had to return to Peshawar due to his illness. ==Health==