In 1969, Sattar was appointed as the Chief Election Commissioner of Pakistan. He organised the first general election of Pakistan in 1970, in which the Awami League gained a historic parliamentary majority to form government. The League was denied the handover of power by the then military junta led by General Yahya Khan. As the Bangladesh Liberation War erupted with a genocide against Bengali civilians, Sattar was stranded in Islamabad, West Pakistan, removed from official positions and interned by the Pakistani government. In 1973, Sattar returned to independent Bangladesh as part of the repatriation of stranded Bengali officials. He enjoyed rising prominence in Dhaka, but lived a quiet life with his wife and had no children.