Iftikhar Hussain Mamdot | |
|---|---|
| افتخار حسین ممدوٹ | |
.png) Mamdot in 1940 | |
| 1stChief Minister of West Punjab | |
| In office 15 August 1947 – 25 January 1949 | |
| Governor | Sir Francis Mudie |
| Preceded by | Position Established |
| Succeeded by | Governor's rule (1949–51) Mumtaz Daultana (1951) |
| Leader of Opposition of Punjab | |
| In office 1946–1947 | |
| Preceded by | Bhim Sen Sachar |
| Succeeded by | Himself (1951) (inWest Punjab Gopal Singh Khalsa (1952)(inEast Punjab) |
| 6thGovernor of Sindh | |
| In office 24 June 1954 – 14 October 1955 | |
| Preceded by | Habib Rahimtoola |
| Succeeded by | Position abolished Succeeded byWest Pakistan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Iftikhar Hussain Khan 31 December 1906 |
| Died | 16 October 1969(1969-10-16) (aged 62) Lahore,West Pakistan |
| Cause of death | Influenza |
| Relations | Asma Mamdot (niece) |
| Alma mater | Government College, Lahore |
NawabIftikhar Hussain Khan Mamdot (31 December 1906 – 16 October 1969) was a Pakistani politician andindependence activist who served as the firstchief minister of West Punjab from 1947 to 1949, followingPakistan's independence. He also served as theGovernor of Sindh from 1954 to 1955.[1][2]
Mamdot was born inLahore in 1906 into aPunjabi Muslim family, as the son ofShahnawaz Khan Mamdot.[3][4][5][6] He was educated atGovernment College, Lahore, and thereafter joined the police service ofHyderabad State in theDeccan.[1]
On the death of his father in 1942, he succeeded him as theNawab of Mamdot and on inheriting his lands became the largest landowner in thePunjab.[4][7] He also succeeded his father in politics as President of thePunjab Muslim League between 1942 and 1944. He actively worked to encourage the wealthy landowners of the Punjab to drop their support for theUnionist Party and support thePakistan Movement.[2] In 1946, he was elected to thePunjab Legislative Assembly and became leader of the opposition.[8] Later that year, he was the only Muslim League leader in the Punjab who supportedMuhammad Ali Jinnah's call for the voluntary exchange of the populations within the Punjab.[9] During thePartition of India in 1947, he migrated toPakistan, abandoning his vast landholdings in eastern Punjab which became part of theRepublic of India.[4]
On 15 August 1947, he was appointed as the firstChief Minister of West Punjab in Pakistan.[4][1][10] Having foregone his constituency inFirozepur district and extensive estates inEast Punjab, Mamdot sought to rebuild his powerbase in Pakistan. Without official sanction, he created the Allotment Revising Committee to cultivate new followers amongst refugees, and allegedly siphoned off properties and cars to his followers and former tenants.[7] He became the largest claimant for agricultural land amongst the refugees.[2] He opposed his minister for refugee rehabilitationMian Iftikharuddin, whose reformist proposals advocated permanently settling refugees on evacuee property and excess land belonging to bigger landlords.[2] His stance, together with his refusal to cooperate with the centrally appointed Pakistan and West Punjab Refugee and Rehabilitation Council led to the resignation of Iftikharuddin, providing a free hand to Mamdot to allocate evacuee properties as he wished.[2]
Factionalism plagued Mamdot's ministry. Aside from conflict with Iftikharuddin andGhazanfar Ali Khan, head of the Refugee and Rehabilitation Council, he clashed withMumtaz Daultana andSir Francis Mudie. He labelled Mudie, the firstGovernor of West Punjab, a "foreigner", "pro-unionist" and "pro-Indian" and in turn, Mudie criticised him, alleging that he remained in power to get his hands on more property.[11][1]
Mamdot's ministry endured widespread accusations of corruption, being labelled "unbelievably corrupt" by one British official.[12] It was alleged he used public funds to personally acquire about 2,000 acres of prime agricultural land at nominal rates inMontgomery District, that he awarded to his brother several hundred acres of land in the same district that belonged toSir Khizar Hayat Tiwana and that he secretly deposited over 100,000 rupees from the Kashmir fund into his brother's account.[11] Rival politicians alleged that he diluted their power bases by relocating their supporters randomly across the province.[11] A spokesman for the Rajput refugee community criticised Mamdot for not settling refugees together in accordance with the districts they came from, and noted that one village had refugees from between 13/14 different East Punjab districts which resulted in clashes on a daily basis.[11] Mamdot resigned as Chief Minister in 1949 and an official enquiry was launched against him in relation tomaladministration.[13] As no one was able to form a new ministry, the Governor of West Punjab assumed direct control of the province.[14]
In 1950, he left the Muslim League to form a new party, theJinnah Muslim League, which contested the1951 elections against the Muslim League led by his arch-rivalMumtaz Daultana.[14] One consequence of the claims against Mamdot appeared following the result of the election, as representatives of refugees constituted just 5 per cent of thePunjab Assembly, despite refugees constituting about one-third of the total Punjabi population.[15]
He rejoined theMuslim League in 1953 and was appointedGovernor of Sind byMalik Ghulam Muhammad in 1954.[1][16] He resigned his post in 1955 following the departure of Malik Ghulam Muhammad from the political scene, and thereafter remained in the political wilderness.[16]
Mamdot died inLahore on 16 October 1969.[1][4][17]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Position Established | Chief Minister of Punjab 15 August 1947 – 25 January 1949 | Succeeded by Governor's rule |
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Italics indicate acting chief ministers | ||
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