Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi | |
|---|---|
امیر عبداللہ خان نیازی | |
 Official military portraitc. 1971 | |
| 15thGovernor of East Pakistan | |
| In office 14 December 1971 – 16 December 1971 | |
| President | Yahya Khan |
| Prime Minister | Nurul Amin |
| Preceded by | Abdul Motaleb Malik |
| Succeeded by | Position abolished (Sheikh Mujibur Rahman asPresident of Bangladesh) |
| 3rdCommander of Eastern Command | |
| In office 10 April 1971 – 16 December 1971 | |
| President | Yahya Khan |
| Prime Minister | Nurul Amin |
| Preceded by | Tikka Khan |
| Succeeded by | Position abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi c. 1915 Mianwali,Punjab Province, British India |
| Died | 1 February 2004(2004-02-01) (aged 88–89) Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan |
| Resting place | Military Cemetery, Lahore[citation needed] |
| Nationality | British Subject (1915 - 1947) Pakistani |
| Alma mater | Officers' Training School,Bangalore Command and Staff College,Quetta |
| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  British India Pakistan |
| Branch/service |  British Indian Army Pakistan Army |
| Years of service | 1942–1975 |
| Rank | Lieutenant-General (S/No. PA-477) |
| Unit | 4th Battalion,7th Rajput Regiment |
| Commands | Eastern Command GOC,10th Infantry Division GOC,8th Infantry Division 14th Para Brigade |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards |  Hilal-e-Jurat & Bar[a]_(1957-86).png) Sitara-e-Pakistan_(1957-86).png) Sitara-e-Kidmat Military Cross |
Amir Abdullah Khan NiaziHJ & BarSPk SKMC (1915 – 2004), commonly known asGeneral Niazi, was a Pakistani military officer. During theBangladesh War of Independence and theIndo-Pakistani War of 1971, he commanded thePakistani Eastern Command inEast Pakistan (nowBangladesh). He signed theinstrument of surrender as on 16 December 1971, his forces had to surrender to theIndian Army'sEastern Command's commander Lieutenant GeneralJagjit Singh Aurora by the order of the thenPresident of PakistanYahya Khan.[1]
Niazi'sarea of responsibility comprised the defense of East Pakistan from India during the war in 1971. His surrender in Dhaka effectively ended the war.[2] The result was an Indian victory as well as the independence of Bangladesh.
After beingheld as a prisoner of war by the Indian military, he was repatriated toPakistan on 30 April 1975 as part of theDelhi Agreement. He was dishonourably discharged from his military service at theWar Enquiry Commission led byHamoodur Rahman.[3] The Commission leveled accusations against him forhuman rights violations in East Pakistan and the supervision of smuggling efforts during the 1971 war; he was held responsible for Pakistan's military failure during the course of the conflict.[4][5][6] Niazi, however, rejected these allegations and sought amilitary court-martial while insisting that he had acted according to the orders of thePakistan Army GHQ inRawalpindi; the court-martial was never granted.[5]
After the war, he remained active inPakistani politics and supported anultra-conservative agenda under thePakistan National Alliance against the government ofZulfikar Ali Bhutto in the 1970s.[1] In 1998, he authored the bookThe Betrayal of East Pakistan.
Niazi died inLahore,Punjab, Pakistan on 1 February 2004.[7]
Khan was born inMianwali,British India, in 1915. He was aPashtun in Punjab, belonging to theNiazi tribe.[8] His village, Balo Khel, is located on the eastern bank of theIndus River.[9][self-published source?][10][11] After matriculating from a local high-school in Mianwali, he joined theBritish Indian Army as a "Y cadet" in 1941 as he was selected for an emergency commission in the army, before it he was an ordinary soldier.[9]
He received training in Officers Training School,Bangalore andFatehgarh'sRajput Regiment's training centre; he was commissioned as an Emergency Commissioned Officer (ECO) in the rank of second lieutenant during theWorld War II on 8 March 1942 (following a 6 months training) into the 4/7 Rajput Regiment (4th Battalion of the7th Rajput Regiment) which was then a part of the161st Indian Infantry Brigade led byBrigadier D.F.W. Warren.[9][12]
On 11 June 1942,Lt. Niazi was stationed in the Kekrim Hills located in regions ofAssam-Manipur to participate in theBurma front.[10] That spring, he was part of the14th Army of theBritish Indian Army commanded byGeneral William Slim.[10]
During this period, the 14th Army had halted the offensive against theImperial Japanese Army at theBattle of Imphal and elsewhere in bitterly fought battles along the Burma front.[10] General Slim described his gallantry in a lengthy report toGeneral Headquarters, India, about his judgment of the best course of action.[10] They agreed on Niazi's skill in completely surprising the enemy, his leadership, coolness under fire, and his ability to change tactics, create diversions, extricate his wounded men.[10] At theBurma front in 1944, Lt. Niazi impressed his superior officers when he commanded a platoon that initiated an offensive against the Imperial Japanese Army at the Bauthi-Daung tunnels.[10]
Lt. Niazi's gallantry had impressed his British commanders at GHQ India and they wanted to award him theDistinguished Service Order, but his rank was not high enough for such a decoration.[10] During the campaign, Brigadier D.F.W. Warren, commander of the 161st Indian Infantry Brigade of the British Army, gave Niazi the soubriquet "Tiger" for his part in a ferocious fight with the Japanese.[10] After the conflict, theBritish government decorated Lt. Niazi with theMilitary Cross for leadership, judgement, quick thinking and calmness under pressure in action along the border withBurma.[13][10][9]
After the end of World War II, in 1945, from an Emergency Commissioned Officer, Niazi was granted a regular commission of the British Indian Army, and he got his service number as IC0-906 (Indian Commissioned Officer-906);[9] he was promoted tocaptain and sent to attend theCommand and Staff College inQuetta which he graduated with astaff course degree under then-Lt. Col.Yahya Khan.[9]
In 1947, the United Kingdom through theIndian Independence Act 1947, announced their intention ofpartitioning British India amid the failure of the1946 Cabinet Mission to India. After the creation ofPakistan in August 1947, Major Niazi decided to opt forPakistani citizenship and joined the newly establishedPakistan Army where hisS/No was redesigned as PA–477 by theMinistry of Defence of Pakistan and he joined thePunjab Regiment.[9]
His career in the army progressed well. In the rank of Lt. Col. he served as commanding officer of two battalions in West Pakistan and one in East Pakistan.[14] In 1961, he was promoted asBrigadier and offered discussion oninfiltration tactics at the Command and Staff College.[12] Subsequently, he published an article on infiltration and promoted talks on military-supported local rebellion against the enemy.[12] He served as the commander of 51st Infantry Brigade inKarachi and was decorated with theSitara-i-Khidmat (lit. Service Star) for his contributions and service with the army. His leadership credentials had led him to be appointedmartial law administrator of both Karachi andLahore to maintain control of law in the cities ofWest Pakistan during this time.[15] Shortly after, he was appointed as the commandant of School of Infantry and Tactics in Quetta.
Brigadier Niazi went on to participate in theIndo-Pakistani War of 1965, the second war with India.[16] He was appointed as the commander of 14th Paratroopers Brigade under7th Infantry Division (then commanded by Maj. Gen. Yahya Khan), which later became part of the12th Infantry Division under Maj. Gen.Akhtar Hussain Malik; Niazi commanded the 1st Infantry Brigade inAzad Kashmir for a brief period but later was reappointed as the commander of 14th Para Brigade inZafarwal sector, he gained public notability when he participated in the famousBattle of Chawinda tank battle against the Indian Army which halted the Indian troops rotation.[17] His role in a tank battle led him to be decorated with theHilal-e-Jurat by thePresident of Pakistan.[17] After the war, he was again took command of the School of Infantry and Tactics.
On 18 October 1966, he was promoted asMajor-General and madeGeneral Officer Commanding (GOC) of the8th Infantry Division, stationed inSialkot, Punjab, Pakistan.[18] On 22 June 1969, Major-General Niazi was made GOC of 10th Infantry Division, stationed in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. On 2 April 1971, he was promoted toLieutenant General, and he was to take command of theEastern Command in East Pakistan.
Lieutenant-General Niazi volunteered for transfer to East Pakistan when Lieutenant-General Bahadur Sher declined the post.[1] There were two other generals who had also refused postings in the East. However, Niazi said "yes" without necessarily realizing the risks involved and how to counter them.[1]
After GeneralTikka Khan had initiated theOperation Searchlight military crackdown in March 1971, many officers had declined to be stationed in the East and Niazi arrived inDhaka on 4 April 1971 to assume the Eastern Command from Tikka Khan.[19] Furthermore, themass killing of Bengali intellectuals in 1971 at theUniversity of Dhaka had made the East Pakistani people hostile towards thePakistani military, which made it hard for Niazi to overcome the situation.[20] On 10/11 April 1971, he headed a meeting of his senior commanders to assess the situation but, according to eyewitnesses, he used abusive language aimed at the Bengali rebels.[19] From May through August 1971, theIndian Army trainedMukti Bahini ledOperation Jackpot, a series of counter guerrilla campaigns against the Eastern Command, and Niazi began taking countermeasures against the Bengali rebellion.[21] By June 1971, he sent reports on the rebellion and noted that 30,000 insurgents were hurriedly trained by India at theIndia-East Pakistan border.[21] In August 1971, Niazi formulated a plan to defend the borders from the advancing Indian Army based on a "fortress concept" which mean converting the border towns and villages into a stronghold.[22]
By September 1971, he was appointed the martial law administrator in order to provide his support to GovernorAbdul Motaleb Malik who appointeda civilian cabinet.[23] On the issue of the1971 East Pakistan genocide, Niazi had reportedly told his public relations officer andpress secretary, MajorSiddique Salik, that "we will have to account every single rape and killing when back in (West) Pakistan. God never spares the Tyrant."[24][25]
TheGovernment of East Pakistan appointed Niazi as commander of the Eastern Command, and Major-GeneralRao Farman Ali as their military adviser for theEast Pakistan Rifles andPakistan Marines.[23] In October 1971, he created and deployed two ad hoc divisions to strengthen the defence of the East from further infiltration.[22]
In November 1971, GeneralAbdul Hamid Khan, the Chief of Staff of the army, warned him of an imminent Indian attack on the East and advised him to redeploy the Eastern Command on a tactical and political base ground but this was not implemented due to shortage of time.[26] In a public message, Niazi was praised by Abdul Hamid Khan saying: "The whole nation is proud of you and you have their full support".[27]
No further orders or clarification was issued in regards to the orders as Niazi had been caught unawares when the Indian Army planned to launch a full assault on East Pakistan.[26] On 3 December 1971, thePakistan Air Force (PAF) launchedOperation Chengiz Khan, the pre-emptive PAF air-strikes on Indian Air Force bases that officially led to start of theIndo-Pakistani War of 1971, the third war with India.[26] According to Krishna Chandra Sagar, Niazi was surprisingly not aware of the attack and had no prior knowledge of the attack.[26]
Credibility of this claim is given by Niazi's press secretary and public relations officer, then-Major Siddique Salik, who wrote inWitness to Surrender, that Niazi's chief of staff BrigadierBaqir Siddiqi reportedly scolded him of not notifying Niazi and his staff of an aerial attack on India.[28]
When Indian Army soldiers crossed the borders and charged towards Dhaka, General Niazi panicked when he came to realise the real nature of the Indian strategy and became frantically nervous when the Indian Army successfully penetrated the defence of the East.[26] Niazi's military staff further regretted not heeding the intelligence warnings issued 20 years earlier in the 1952 Cable 1971 report compiled by MajorK. M. Arif, themilitary intelligence official on Niazi's staff.[29]
According to testimony by Major-General Rao Farman Ali to the War Enquiry Commission, Niazi's morale collapsed as early as 7 December. Niazi broke down in tears that day when meeting Governor Abdul Motaleb Malik to deliver a progress report on the war.[30] Niazi ultimately blamed Lieutenant-General Tikka Khan for the army's oppressive strategy.[31] Major accusations were also directed toward Lieutenant-GeneralYakob Ali Khan, AdmiralS. M. Ahsan and Major-General Ali for aggravating the crisis, but Niazi had to bear the most responsibility for all that happened in the East.[citation needed]
The Pakistani military combat units found themselves involved in aguerrilla war with the Mukti Bahini underM. A. G. Osmani.[32]
On 6 December, theIndian government extendeddiplomatic recognition toBangladesh.[33] This eventually led Governor Abdul Motaleb to resign from his post and he took refuge with his entire cabinet at the Red Cross shelter at theInter-Continental Dacca on 14 December.[14]
Niazi eventually took control of the civilian government and received a telegram on 16 December 1971 from President Yahya Khan: "You have fought a heroic battle against overwhelming odds. The nation is proud of you ... You have now reached a stage where further resistance is no longer humanly possible nor will it serve any useful purpose ... You should now take all necessary measures to stop the fighting and preserve the lives of armed forces personnel, all those from West Pakistan and all loyal elements".[9]
During this time, theSpecial Branch of theEast Pakistan Police notified Niazi of the joint Indo-Bengali siege of Dhaka as theEastern Command led by Lieutenant-GeneralJagjit Singh Aurora began encircling Dhaka.[34] Niazi then appealed for aconditional ceasefire to Lieutenant-General Jagjit Singh Aurora which called for transferring power to the elected government, but without the surrender of the Eastern Command led by Niazi.[34] This offer was rejected by Indian Army'sChief of Army Staff GeneralSam Manekshaw and he set a deadline for surrender, President Yahya Khan considered it as "illegitimate.[34] Niazi then once again appealed for a cease-fire, but Manekshaw set a deadline for surrender, failing which Dhaka would come under siege.
Subsequently, the Indian Army began encircling Dhaka and Lieutenant-General Jagjit Singh Aurora sent a message through Major-GeneralRafael Jacob that issued an ultimatum to surrender in a "30-minutes" time window on 16 December 1971.[35] Niazi agreed to surrender and sent a message to Manekshaw despite many army officers declined to obey, although they were legally bound.[36] The Indian Army commanders, Lieutenant GeneralSagat Singh, Lieutenant General J.S. Aurora, and Major-General Rafael Farj Jacob arrived at Dhaka via helicopter with the surrender documents.[35]
The surrender took place atRamna Race Course, in Dhaka at local time 16:31 on 16 December 1971. Niazi signed the Instrument of Surrender and handed over his personal weapon to J. S. Aurora in the presence of Indian and Bangladesh force commanders. With Niazi, nearly 90,000 personnel of the Eastern Command surrendered to the joint Indian and Bangladesh Army.[citation needed]
Niazi's personal weapon was gifted by J. S. Aurora to theIndian Military Academy for its golden jubilee celebration and preserved at National Museum in New Delhi.[37] The revolver was reportedly stolen from the National Museum in 2003.[38] Although it would come to light that the firearm stolen was not the real"pistol" handed over by Eastern Wing Commander A.A.K. Niazi, the real .38 BoreRevolver is currently in the safekeeping of the Indian Military Academy atDehradun.[39]
Niazi, who was repatriated to Pakistan, was handed over to Lieutenant-General Abdul Hameed, then corps commander of theIV Corps by the Indian Army from theWagha checkpoint inLahore District, Punjab, in April 1974, in a symbolic gesture of the last war prisoner held by India.[3] Upon arriving in Lahore, he refrained from speaking to news media correspondents and was taken under the custody of the Pakistan Army'sMilitary Police (MP) who shifted him via helicopter toLahore Cantonment where he was detained despite his strong protests.[9]
Subsequently, he was placed insolitary confinement for sometime, though he was later released.[40] Being the last to return supported his reputation as a "soldier's general", but did not shield him from the scorn he faced in Pakistan, where he was blamed for the surrender. Bhutto discharged Niazi after stripping him of his military rank and his military decorations.[citation needed] He was dismissed from the service in July 1975.[23] Niazi complained that he wasn't paid the military pension due to him.[41]
He was also denied his military pension and medical benefits, though he lodged a strong complaint against the revoking of his pension.[41] In the 1980s, the Ministry of Defence quietly changed the status of "dismissal" to "retirement" but did not restore his rank.[42] The change of order allowed Niazi to seek apension and the medical assistance benefits enjoyed by retired military personnel.[42]
Niazi remained active in national politics in the 1970s. He was a leader of thePakistan National Alliance[43] and supported their IslamistNizam-e-Mustafa movement against the rulingPakistan Peoples Party.[1] In April 1977, on the grounds that he had made objectionable speeches, he was arrested hours before Bhutto imposed martial law in the major cities of Karachi, Lahore and Hyderabad.[43]
In 1982, Niazi was summoned and confessed to theWar Enquiry Commission led by Chief JusticeHamoodur Rahman and theSupreme Court of Pakistan on the events involving the secession of East Pakistan in April 1975.[44] The War Commission leveled accusations against him of several kinds of ethical misconduct during his tenure in East Pakistan. It confirmed that he was engaged inpaan smuggling from East to West Pakistan.[45][46]
The Commission indicted him for corruption andmoral turpitude while noting his bullying of junior officers who opposed his orders.[47] Niazi tried placing the blame on the Yahya administration, his military adviser Maj. Gen.Farman Ali,Admiral S.M. Ahsan, Lieutenant-GeneralYakob Ali, and the military establishment. The Commission partially accepted his claims by critically noting that General Niazi was the Supreme Commander of the Eastern Command, and that he was responsible for everything that happened in the East.[citation needed] Though he showed no regrets, Niazi refused to accept responsibility for the Breakup of East Pakistan and squarely blamed President Yahya.[48] The Commission endorsed his claims that Yahya was to blame, but noted that Niazi was the Commander who lost the East.[48]
The commission recommended that Niazi be tried bycourt-martial for total military incompetence.[49] No such court-martial took place,[50] but nonetheless, he was politically maligned and indicted with the war crimes that took place in East Pakistan. Niazi did not accept the commission's inquiries and fact-findings, believing that the commission had no understanding of military matters.[51] Niazi claimed that a court-martial would have besmirched the names of those who later rose to great heights, and that he was being used as a scapegoat.[51]
In 1998, he authored a book,The Betrayal of East Pakistan, which describes his view of the events that led to 16 December 1971.[1]
Niazi died on 1 February 2004 in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan.[1]
Political commentators described Niazi's legacy as a mixture of the foolhardy, and the ruthless.[46]
A.R. Siddiqui wrote inDawn newspaper: "When I last met him on 30 September 1971, at his force headquarters inKurmitola, he was full of beans".[1]
From the mass of evidence coming before the War Enquiry Commission from witnesses, both civil and military, there is little doubt that Niazi came to acquire a bad reputation insex matters, and this reputation has been consistent during his postings in Sialkot, Lahore and East Pakistan.[52] The allegations regarding his indulgence in the export ofpaan by using or abusing his position in the Eastern Command and as commander of his command alsoprima facie appear to be well-founded.[53]
Niazi in his book revealed that he was very depressed at the time of surrender and that he signed the instrument of surrender with a "very heavy heart".
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| Hilal-e-Jurat& Bar[a] (Crescent of Courage) 1.1965 War 2.1971 War | Sitara-e-Pakistan (Star of Pakistan) (SPk) | ||
| Sitara-e-Khidmat (Star of Service) (SK) | Tamgha-e-Diffa (General Service Medal) 1.1965 War Clasp 2.1971 War Clasp | Sitara-e-Harb 1965 War (War Star 1965) | Sitara-e-Harb 1971 War (War Star 1971) |
| Tamgha-e-Jang 1965 War (War Medal 1965) | Tamgha-e-Jang 1971 War (War Medal 1971) | Pakistan Tamgha | Tamgha-e-Jamhuria (Republic Commemoration Medal) 1956 |
| Military Cross (MC)[13][54] (awarded forGALLANTRY inKohima 1944) | 1939-1945 Star | Africa Star | Burma Star |
| War Medal 1939-1945 (withMiD oak leaf) awarded in Java1945 | India Service Medal | General Service Medal (awarded in Java1946) | Queen Elizabeth II (1953) |
Lt Gen. Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi, the Eastern Commander, was also a Pathan born in Punjab.
Lieutenant General Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi who assumed the command of Eastern Command on April 11, 1971 whom I met as my GOC 8 Division in Sialkot in 1968.
| Military offices | ||
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| Preceded by Lieutenant GeneralTikka Khan | Commander ofEastern Command 7 April 1971 – 16 December 1971 | Succeeded by Office abolished |
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| Preceded by Abdul Motaleb Malik | Governor ofEast Pakistan 14 December 1971 – 16 December 1971 | Succeeded by Office abolished |
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