Yahya Khan

Yahya Khan

Yahya Khan was the president of Pakistan and chief of army staff from 1969 to 1971, following the resignation of Indo-Pakistani War of 1965.

Yahya Khan also dissolved the National Assembly and terminated the constitution. His two years as president were marked by strong tensions in East Pakistan, leading to the Bangladesh Liberation War and the eventual secession of Bangladesh in 1971.

Yahya was born in Chakwal on February 4, 1917, into a family of Persian origins, descended from the military elite. He attended Punjab University and graduated first in his class from the Indian Military Academy. Yahya joined the British army, and during World War II he served in Iraq, Italy, and North Africa.


After the partition of India, he became the youngest brigadier general in the Pakistani army, commander in chief of the army in 1966, and when President Ayub Khan resigned, he turned to his faithful aide Yahya Khan to maintain order in the country.

Yahya was resolute in his restoration of order in the country. To make this suspension of political and civil liberties more palatable, he also started a large-scale renovation of the country’s civil service personnel. He also announced restrictions on economic monopolies and a more equal distribution of wealth.

Yet Yahya’s reforms and his government were swept away by the conflict that erupted in 1971 between East and West Pakistan. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, leader of the Awami League, launched a campaign for the creation of a federation in which East Pakistan would enjoy great autonomy.

Nixon meets Yahya Khan and his team

The League performed extremely well in the 1970 election, winning 160 out of 162 seats in East Pakistan. However the party did not get a single seat in western constituencies, which overwhelmingly went to Zulfikar Bhutto’s Pakistan People’s Party.

Since neither Bhutto nor Mujibur would support the other as prime minister, Yahya decided to solve the political impasse by sending the army to East Pakistan to crush the Awami League. The acts of brutality committed by the army caused millions to flee to India for Indian intervention, forcing the West Pakistani army to surrender.

East Pakistan declared its independence, establishing the state of Bangladesh in 1972. Yahya Khan’s only option was to hand power to Zulfikar Bhutto, who put him under arrest. He spent his later years far from the political scene.

Tashkent Agreement

The Tashkent Agreement of 1966 brought a temporary end to the 1965 war between India and Pakistan and was important subsequently in regulating negotiations over the disputed territory of Kashmir.

The United Nations (UN) had organized a cease-fire in 1965 when it became clear that the fighting had the possibility of endangering large population centers. After 17 days of fighting, neither side wished to resume hostilities owing to the vulnerability of their people, the lack of ammunition and supplies, and the lack of war goals that could be held.

Arms suppliers in the United States and the United Kingdom as well as in China were unwilling to provide more weapons. Consequently, all parties were amenable to finding a means of diplomatically resolving the confrontation.


Soviet prime minister Alexei Nikolaevich Kosygin invited both sides to a conference at Tashkent in the southern Soviet Uzbek Republic. The subsequent agreement was signed by the president of Pakistan, Mohammad Ayub Khan, and the Indian prime minister, Lal Bahadur Shastri, on January 10, 1966. Unfortunately, Shastri died the following day of a heart attack.

The main provisions included the withdrawal of all troops to their prewar positions, the restoration of diplomatic relations, the promise not to intervene in the internal affairs of the other side, and the agreement to hold discussions concerning various social and economic issues.

The oversight of the withdrawal of forces was conducted by the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) and the United Nations India-Pakistan Observation Mission (UNIPOM). These missions were successfully concluded.

The permanent end to war and the renunciation of terrorist activities in Kashmir were not included in the jawaban treaty, and both India and Pakistan suffered from some measure of internal disorder. In the case of Pakistan, unrest forced the resignation of Ayub Khan, the head of a military government, in 1969.

Meanwhile, Shastri was succeeded by Indira Gandhi, whose administration was troubled by right-wing opposition. The two countries were at war again in 1971 as part of the secession of East Bengal from Pakistan and the creation of Bangladesh.

Pakistan People's Party

Flag of Pakistan People's Party

The Pakistan People’s Party was founded by Berkeley and Oxford-educated politician and lawyer Zulfikar Bhutto. During the presidency of General Ayub Khan, Bhutto served as a cabinet member and eventually as foreign minister.

Ayub went to war with India over Kashmir in 1965, and eventually, with the intervention of the Soviet Union, signed the Tashkent Agreement, which restored prewar boundaries and diplomatic relations between the two countries. Bhutto opposed Ayub’s signing of the Tashkent Agreement, resigned his post, and formed the Pakistan People’s Party in 1967.

The People’s Party championed the causes of socialism and democracy and denounced the Ayub regime as a dictatorship. Bhutto’s countrywide campaign against Ayub also drew support from businessmen, small factory owners, students, and rural dwellers.


Under the pressure of mounting public unrest, Ayub resigned in 1969 and handed over power to General Yahya Khan. When elections were held in 1970, the People’s Party captured a majority of votes in West Pakistan, whereas a clear majority was won in East Pakistan by the Awami League of Sheik Mujibur Rahman.

While the Awami League promoted greater autonomy for East Pakistan, the People’s Party argued for a strong centralized government. Differences between the two parties, and General Yahya’s inability to play a neutral role in the conflict, led to civil war. In 1971 East Pakistan seceded to become Bangladesh, and the People’s Party formed a government in Pakistan.

In power, the People’s Party stood for the nationalization of industry and education and for land reform. At the same time, Bhutto drafted the country’s fourth constitution, according to which he gave himself the title of prime minister, reduced the president to a figurehead, and granted himself powers that were as broad as those held by the military dictator whom he had opposed.

Factionalism within the People’s Party, accusations of preferential politics, a tribal uprising in Baluchistan over the exploitation of local resources such as natural gas, and underrepresentation of Baluchis in the structures of the state undermined Bhutto’s government.

The deaths of thousands in the uprising in Baluchistan, oppressive measures taken by Bhutto against political opponents, and accusations of having rigged the elections of 1977 led to a military coup by the army chief of staff General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq.

Bhutto was tried for orchestrating the murder of a political opponent, found guilty, and hanged on April 4, 1979. The leadership of the People’s Party was assumed by his daughter, Benazir Bhutto.

After General Zia-ul-Haq was killed in a plane crash, rumoured to be sabotage, the People’s Party came to power under Benazir Bhutto in the elections of 1988. However, her government was short-lived, she was arrested, and her government dissolved by Ghulam Ishaq Khan, the president at the time.

The People’s Party next came to power in 1993, but the government was again short-lived; violence between ethnic and linguistic groups erupted frequently in Karachi, the government lost control of the urban center, and a power struggle between Benazir Bhutto and her brother Mir Murtaza Bhutto led to divisions within the party. In 1996, during his sister’s tenure as prime minister, Murtaza Bhutto was shot dead outside his residence in a police encounter.

Opposition leaders accused the People’s Party of state terrorism against its political opponents, and the government was dismissed in 1996 again under charges of mismanagement and corruption. Benazir Bhutto continued to head the party in exile and upon her return to Pakistan in 2007. After her assassination on December 27, her husband and 19-year-old son were appointed party co-chairmen.

Pervez Musharraf - Pakistani Leader

Pervez Musharraf - Pakistani Leader

Born in Delhi on August 11, 1943, to an educated middle-class family, Pervez Musharraf immigrated with his family to Pakistan during the Indian partition later that decade. Musharraf’s education included enrollment at the Pakistan Military Academy, the Staff College in Quetta, and the National Defence College.

He rose very quickly through the Pakistani military ranks despite the fact that he and his family were not members of the Punjab upper class, which dominated the Pakistani officer corps. His military career began in 1964 with various commands that included artillery and infantry units and then leadership over commando units.

Musharraf graduated from the Royal College of Defence Studies in the United Kingdom before being named the director-general of the military by Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, and he participated in the Indo-Pakistani Wars of 1965 and 1971.


In 1998 Musharraf became the army chief two days after the resignation of General Jehangir Karamat, the first army chief of staff to ever step down. Some analysts suggested that the appointment of the non-Punjab Musharraf by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was designed to prevent him from becoming too powerful.

But Musharraf, along with other military officers, soon became frustrated with the prime minister’s diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis with India. A crisis that resulted would end Pakistan’s democratic experiment.

General Musharraf took over the government of Pakistan in a bloodless coup on October 12, 1999, and became the 12th president of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan on June 20, 2001. The coup began when Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif attempted to fire Musharraf and replace him with the director of the Pakistani Intelligence Services, or the ISI, Khwaja Ziauddin.

Out of the country when the crisis began, Musharraf immediately returned to Pakistan, and, with the support of senior military officials, Musharraf landed and assumed control of the government, ultimately exiling Sharif. He then suspended the national assembly.

In April 2002 Musharraf held a national referendum in order to legitimize his rule, which was extended for five years. The majority of Pakistani political parties, however, boycotted the election, and voter participation was believed to have been about 3 percent. In October 2002 general elections were held, and the pro-Musharraf PML-Q party won a number of seats.

On December 14, 2003, a bomb exploded just minutes after Musharraf’s motorcade crossed a bridge in Rawalpindi. Eleven days later another attempt to assassinate him resulted in the death of 16 people nearby. Musharraf temporarily broke the deadlock in December of 2004 in order to pass the Seventeenth Amendment, which legalized his 1999 coup.

In January 2004 another referendum extended his presidency until October 2007. Several significant issues marked Musharraf’s presidency. After the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States Musharraf allied with the United States in the War on Terrorism. Radicals within Pakistan continued to target him for assassination.

In November Musharraf declared emergency rule and dismissed the Supreme Court. He arrested opposition leaders and restricted media. In late November his new, personally appointed Supreme Court dropped all challenges to his legitimacy as president, and Musharraf renounced his military role.

On December 15, 2007, Musharraf ended the state of emergency, ahead of the scheduled January 8 elections. The December 27 assassination of Benazir Bhutto, however, intensified the opposition to Musharraf, and his party was soundly defeated in delayed parliamentary elections in February.

Pervez Musharraf - Pakistani Leader

Born in Delhi on August 11, 1943, to an educated middle-class family, Pervez Musharraf immigrated with his family to Pakistan during the Indian partition later that decade. Musharraf’s education included enrollment at the Pakistan Military Academy, the Staff College in Quetta, and the National Defence College.

Pervez Musharraf - Pakistani Leader

He rose very quickly through the Pakistani military ranks despite the fact that he and his family were not members of the Punjab upper class, which dominated the Pakistani officer corps. His military career began in 1964 with various commands that included artillery and infantry units and then leadership over commando units.

Musharraf graduated from the Royal College of Defence Studies in the United Kingdom before being named the director-general of the military by Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, and he participated in the Indo-Pakistani Wars of 1965 and 1971.

In 1998 Musharraf became the army chief two days after the resignation of General Jehangir Karamat, the first army chief of staff to ever step down. Some analysts suggested that the appointment of the non-Punjab Musharraf by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was designed to prevent him from becoming too powerful.

But Musharraf, along with other military officers, soon became frustrated with the prime minister’s diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis with India. A crisis that resulted would end Pakistan’s democratic experiment.

General Musharraf took over the government of Pakistan in a bloodless coup on October 12, 1999, and became the 12th president of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan on June 20, 2001. The coup began when Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif attempted to fire Musharraf and replace him with the director of the Pakistani Intelligence Services, or the ISI, Khwaja Ziauddin.

Out of the country when the crisis began, Musharraf immediately returned to Pakistan, and, with the support of senior military officials, Musharraf landed and assumed control of the government, ultimately exiling Sharif. He then suspended the national assembly.

In April 2002 Musharraf held a national referendum in order to legitimize his rule, which was extended for five years. The majority of Pakistani political parties, however, boycotted the election, and voter participation was believed to have been about 3 percent. In October 2002 general elections were held, and the pro-Musharraf PML-Q party won a number of seats.

On December 14, 2003, a bomb exploded just minutes after Musharraf’s motorcade crossed a bridge in Rawalpindi. Eleven days later another attempt to assassinate him resulted in the death of 16 people nearby. Musharraf temporarily broke the deadlock in December of 2004 in order to pass the Seventeenth Amendment, which legalized his 1999 coup.

In January 2004 another referendum extended his presidency until October 2007. Several significant issues marked Musharraf’s presidency. After the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States Musharraf allied with the United States in the War on Terrorism. Radicals within Pakistan continued to target him for assassination.

In November Musharraf declared emergency rule and dismissed the Supreme Court. He arrested opposition leaders and restricted media. In late November his new, personally appointed Supreme Court dropped all challenges to his legitimacy as president, and Musharraf renounced his military role.

On December 15, 2007, Musharraf ended the state of emergency, ahead of the scheduled January 8 elections. The December 27 assassination of Benazir Bhutto, however, intensified the opposition to Musharraf, and his party was soundly defeated in delayed parliamentary elections in February.

India-Pakistani Wars (Kashmir)

After the departure of the British in August 1947, India and Pakistan became successor states. The partition of the British Indian Empire into India and Pakistan left a legacy of mutual discord that is felt to the present day. India’s foreign policy after independence was centered around world issues; relations with India dominated Pakistan’s security concerns.

Indo-Pakistani Wars (Kashmir)

Kashmir remained the major bone of contention between the two countries. The state of Jammu and Kashmir was Muslim-dominated, with Hindus and others constituting about 48 percent of the population. It had boundaries with both India and Pakistan. The ruler, Maharaja Hari Singh, vacillated over whether to join India or Pakistan.

Pakistan sponsored an attack on the state on October 22, 1947, leading Hari Singh to sign the Instrument of Accession with the governor-general of independent India, Lord Mountbatten on October 26, 1947. The next day it was accepted by India.


The sovereignty of Kashmir became a source of conflict, as Pakistan did not recognize the merger of its state with India. India agreed to Hari Singh’s request for military assistance after accepting the Instrument of Accession, and thus the first war between India and Pakistan began.

India airlifted reinforcements and deployed the 161st Infantry Brigade into Kashmir. Pakistan had occupied about one-third of the state and named it Azad Kashmir (Free Kashmir). In late December the war turned in favor of Pakistan when it gained control of the Punch, Mirpur, and Jhanger regions. By 1948 a stalemate had developed.

Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru (1889–1964) of India took the matter to the United Nations (UN) despite some opposition in the cabinet, which saw Kashmir as an internal duduk perkara of India. The terms of the cease-fire outlined in the UN resolution of August 13, 1948, called for withdrawal of Pakistani troops and the holding of a plebiscite to determine the desire of the Kashmir people.

On December 31, 1948, a cease-fire was declared, and the demarcation line after the end of hostilities became the line of control (LOC) between the two countries. The Kashmir valley, Jammu, and Ladakh came under Indian control, and the state became the only Muslim majority province of secular India. Swat, Gilgat, Hunza, Nagar, and Baltistan constituted Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

Continuing Conflict

Neither India nor Pakistan adhered to the August resolutions, and the conflict over Kashmir continued. Pakistan insisted on a plebiscite, while India demanded Pakistan’s withdrawal from territory it controlled (Azad Kashmir). In February the Constituent Assembly of the state of Jammu and Kashmir ratified accession to India, and, after two years, the state became one of the provinces of the Indian Union.

Bombing by India air force

After a boundary agreement between China and Pakistan was negotiated in March 1963, the situation became still more complicated because China gained a large portion of the Trans-Karakoram Tract, ceded by Pakistan. The defeat of India in the 1962 October War by China encouraged Pakistan to enter another round of war.

It was widely believed that hawkish elements in Pakistan began the war so as to snatch an easy victory from a humiliated India after the Sino-Indian War. The second Indo-Pakistan conflict began after a series of border clashes starting in March 1965.

The border skirmishes, which began in the Rann of Kutch region of Gujarat, were contained in June after British mediation. A tribunal gave Pakistan 350 square miles of territory in 1968. The president, Muhammad Ayub Khan (1907–74), ordered Operation Gibraltar in August 1964 and sent infiltrators to Indian-held Kashmir.

The skirmishes between the forces of India and Pakistan began on August 6 and escalated into a large battle nine days later. The Indian army captured the strategic Haji Pir Pass inside Pakistan totalling 710 square miles of Pakistani territory, while Pakistan occupied 210 square miles of Indian territory. The UN Security Council called for a cease-fire on September 22 and the war ended the next day.

A meeting between the prime minister of India, Lal Bahadur Shastri, and Ayub Khan was arranged in the city of Tashkent by Soviet premier Alexey Kosygin. Under the Tashkent Agreement of January 10, the armies of both India and Pakistan went back to the positions they had held before August 5. Both agreed to resolve their disputes by peaceful means and not to interfere in each others’ internal affairs.

The Tashkent declaration proved to be a temporary respite in the deteriorating relationship between India and Pakistan. Ayub was blamed for Pakistan’s debacle and Pakistan’s foreign minister, Zulfikar Bhutto, resigned.

Internally, East Pakistan was simmering with discontent; its leader, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, criticized the government for neglecting the security of East Pakistan at the time of the 1965 war. When East Pakistan declared its independence, the Pakistani army retaliated with brutality against the people of East Pakistan.

Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi declared the support of her government of Bangladesh (the name for independent East Pakistan). Next, India signed a 20 year Treaty of Peace, Friendship, and Cooperation with the Soviet Union in August 1971 to checkmate either Chinese or U.S. interference in case of a war with Pakistan and gave support to Bangladesh’s revolt.

On December 3 the Pakistani air force began preemptive air strikes against eight airfields in East Pakistan. India retaliated and began an air, land, and sea attack on Pakistani forces in the east, marching toward Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. More than 1 million people in Bangladesh perished before Pakistan’s army surrendered in Dhaka.

Bhutto and Gandhi signed the Shimla Accords on July 2, 1972, by which both countries recognized the line of control (LOC) after the war of 1971. India and Pakistan resolved to refrain from the use of force against each other and to solve disputes bilaterally without third-party mediation.

Starting in the mid-1980s, a sizable number of the people of Kashmir expressed a desire for independence and received support from Pakistan. Human rights abuses by the terrorists and the Indian army drew international attention.

In 1998 both India and Pakistan conducted nuclear tests and their relations became more volatile. In spite of this, both prime ministers, Atal Bihari Vajpayee of India and Nawaz Sharif of Pakistan, signed the Lahore Declaration for solving the Kashmir dispute peacefully.

In February 1999 a war that would last for 73 days began on May 8 on the Kargil ridges, situated about 120 miles from Srinagar, the capital of Indian Kashmir. Both armies had to fight in the inhospitable terrain of the Kargil mountains. On July 14 both India and Pakistan ended military operations without boundary changes.