A Short History of Military Rules in Pakistan: -

Pakistan was carved out in desperate urgency. It came into existence on 14 August, 1947 with horrible
loss of life and property, and the migration of millions of dazed and destitute men, women, and children.
The cost was heavy in terms of human suffering. But what the Muslims wanted and what they achieved
was a homeland of their own. They now had the freedom to worship, practice their religious faith and
develop their culture. Moreover, independence had opened up a bright future for the Muslims, who hoped
for a better standard of living, economic development, prosperity and a fuller life.
But it seemed in those early years (1947-58) that the immense sacrifices might have been in vain for
Pakistan had been struggling from one major crisis to another, fighting to ward off the multiple problems.
In these problems political uncertainty was the main issue.
Here we will discuss only about the Military rules in the history of Pakistan.

In 1958 president Iskander Mirza, with the support of the army, suspends the 1956 constitution, imposes
martial law, and canceled the scheduled elections. The country is renamed Republic of Pakistan. He is
sent into exile by the army and Field Marshal Mohammad Ayub Khan assumes control of a military
dictatorship. General Ayyub Khan resigns in 1969 and hands over responsibility for governing to the
General Agha Mohammad Yahya Khan, who becomes president and chief martial law administrator.

With the support of India East Pakistan becomes independent in 1971 as Bangladesh. Yahya Khan resigns
and hands over leadership of the western part of Pakistan to Bhutto, who becomes president and the first
civilian chief martial law administrator.

When Bhutto proclaims his own victory in the 1977 elections, the opposition Pakistan National Alliance
(PNA) denounces the results as fraudulent and demands new elections. Bhutto resists and later arrests the
PNA leadership. With increasing anti-government unrest, the Army grows restive. Later that year the
military removes Bhutto from power and General Mohammad Zia ul-Haq seizes power. Announced
elections are annulled and Bhutto is convicted and sentenced to death for alleged conspiracy to murder a
political opponent. Zia assumes the presidency and banns political activity in 1979. Zia Ruled from 1977
to 1988. Zia dies later in 1988 in a flight accident.

In 1999, Nawaz Sharif attempted to replace General Pervez Musharraf as chief of Army staff which
failed. General Musharraf grabs power with the help of other generals and former Prime Minister Nawaz
Sharif. He becomes chief executive. In 2001 Tarar resigns and Musharraf becomes president. He resigned
from government in 2008.
General Sikandar Mirza (23 March 1956 – 27 October 1958)
Major-General Sahizada Sayyid Iskander Ali Mirza born on November 13, 1899 and died on
November 12, 1969. He was the last Governor-General of the Dominion of Pakistan (6 October 1955 to
23 March 1956) and the first President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan from 23 March, 1956 to
27 October, 1958.

Iskander Mirza Becomes Governor General [1955]:

In 1956, Pakistan established its first constitution, and the position of Governor-General was replaced by
that of President. The two were essentially the same, but Mirza was officially elected as President by the
Assembly. During his presidency, Pakistan was politically unstable; this was marked by four different
prime ministers in two years.
In August 1955, Major General Iskander Mirza took over as Governor General when Ghulam Muhammad
became too ill to continue. He was confirmed as the fourth Governor General of Pakistan on October 4,
1955.
Iskander Mirza was a civil servant and it is widely believed that he lacked the parliamentary spirit. He
was of the view that democratic institutions could not flourish in Pakistan due to lack of training in the
field of democracy and low literacy rate of the masses. He wanted a controlled democracy for Pakistan
with more powers for the civil bureaucracy. He thought that politicians should be given the power to make
policy but not allowed to interfere in administration. Iskander Mirza was also a great advocate of the One
Unit scheme and it was under his rule that all the four provinces and the states of West Pakistan were
merged into one unit in October 1955.
It was during his tenure that Chaudhry Muhammad Ali presented the 1956 Constitution and Iskander
Mirza was elected the first President of Pakistan. By 1958, realising that the 1956 Constitution was
contributing to political instability, Mirza declared martial law on 7 October with the view to introducing
a new constitution "more suited to the genius of the Pakistani people" in November.

Iskander Mirza Becomes President [1956]

Governor General Ghulam Muhammad's despotic and dictatorial policy led Iskander Mirza and his
collaborators to force him out of power. Although his removal was necessary, yet another despot, Iskander
Mirza, who was the fourth Governor General and then the first President of Pakistan, succeeded him. He
was sworn-in as the first President under the 1956 Constitution. During his regime not only was the first
Constitution of Pakistan finalized, but also all the provinces and princely states of West Pakistan were
knitted together to form One Unit of the West Pakistan Province.

1956-1958:

During his tenure from 1956 to 1958, President Iskander Mirza brought about various cabinet changes
and advocated a controlled democracy for Pakistan. Muhammad Ali Bogra was the first Prime Minster
under Iskander Mirza. Bogra could not stay at this position for long; he resigned and went back to the U.
S. A. where he was reinstated as the Ambassador of Pakistan. After Bogra, Chaudhry Muhammad Ali
became the next Prime Minster. It was under his premiership that the establishment of One Unit was given
practical shape and the Constitution of 1956 was introduced. Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, I. I.
Chundrigar and Malik Feroz Khan succeeded him as Prime Ministers under Iskander Mirza's rule.
For the first time after Jinnah's death, with the introduction of the Martial Law the government had
become united and they were working towards establishing Pakistan, but unfortunately the CIA and the
American's didn't want Pakistan to develop and Ayyub Khan was ordered to replace Iskander Mirza for
the best interest of the Americans, the documents are in a classified files in the British National Museum,
in London. Ayub Khan sent commanders about midnight to the Presidential House and Mirza was
threatened either to Resign or loose his life. The commanders seeing Mirza marrying Nahid and betraying
his family they thought Ayub Khan was right and he would betray the Army and people of Pakistan by
ordering Martial Law. Less than three weeks into martial law he was ushered out of the Presidential
Palace, first to Quetta and then to exile in London. He thus precipitated his departure from the Office of
President rather than prolong his tenure. Ayub Khan declared himself President on 27 October after a
bloodless coup d'état.

Declaration of Martial Law:

In collusion with the Commander-in-Chief, Muhammad Ayub Khan, Iskander Mirza abrogated the
Constitution on October 7, 1958 and declared Martial Law. Iskander Mirza and Ayub Khan began the new
era with apparent unanimity. Although the two were responsible for bringing about the change, they had
different views on dealing with the new situation. Share of power soon led to a struggle between the two,
which ended with Iskander Mirza being arrested and exiled to Britain. On
October 7, 1958, President Iskander Mirza abrogated the Constitution and declared Martial Law in the
country. General Muhammad Ayub Khan, the then Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, became the
Chief Martial Law Administrator.

Iskander Mirza and Ayub Khan had begun the new era with apparent unanimity, jointly describing it as a
two-man regime. However, although the two were responsible for bringing about the change, they had
different views on dealing with the new situation. Iskander Mirza had not envisaged any change in his
previous powers; he wanted to retain the ability to maneuver things according to his own whim. Things
however had changed. C. M. L. A. Ayub Khan knew that the real power rested with the army and he was
determined to assert himself. Within a week of the proclamation of Martial Law, Iskander Mirza realized
the delicate position he had gotten himself into. He regretted his decision and said, "I did not mean to do
it" while offering assurances that the Martial Law would be for the shortest possible duration.

Ouster of President Iskander Mirza – 1958:

The sharing of power soon led to the intensification of the power struggle between the two men. President
Mirza tried to balance the power structure by appointing Ayub Khan as Prime Minister on October 24,
1958. The Cabinet he set up consisted entirely of non-political members. This did not satisfy Ayub Khan
who had more powers as the Chief Martial Law Administrator. In order to secure himself, Iskander Mirza
tried to get the support of Ayub Khan's rivals within the army and air force. He was however unsuccessful
in this attempt.

With the consensus of his military generals, Ayub Khan arrested Iskander Mirza on October 27, 1958. He
was exiled to Britain where he later died. After the ouster of Iskander Mirza, General Ayub Khan became
the sole power in Pakistan.

Death

Mirza lived in exile in London till his death in 1969. He died of a heart-attack in London about 5:30 pm
just a day before his 70th birthday on 12 November 1969. After Yahya Khan's military government
refused to allow him to be buried in his own country, his body was flown to Tehran where the Shah of
Iran gave him a State Funeral befitting a Head of State.
General Ayyub Khan (27 October 1958 – 25 March 1969)
Muhammad Ayub Khan, (May 14, 1907 – April 19, 1974) was a Field Marshal during the mid-1960s, and
the President of Pakistan from 1958 to 1969. He became the Pakistan Army's first native Commander in
Chief in 1951, and was the youngest full General and self-appointed Field Marshal in Pakistan's military
history. He was also the first Pakistani military commander to seize power through a coup.
On October 7, 1958, President Iskander Mirza abrogated the Constitution and declared Martial Law in the
country. This was the first of many military regimes to mar Pakistan's history. With this step, the
Constitution of 1956 was abrogated, ministers were dismissed, Central and Provincial Assemblies were
dissolved and all political activities were banned. General Muhammad Ayub Khan, the then Commander-
in-Chief of the armed forces, became the Chief Martial Law Administrator. The parliamentary system in
Pakistan came to end. Within three weeks of assuming charge on October 27, 1958, Iskander Mirza was
ousted by General Ayub Khan, who then declared himself President.
General Ayub Khan gave himself the rank of Field Marshal. Corruption had become so widespread within
the national and civic systems of administration that Ayub Khan was welcomed as a national hero by the
people.

Steps took after coming to power:

Soon after coming to power, the new military government promised that they would carry out reforms in
the entire government structure and would cleanse the administration of the rampant corruption. A
through screening process of all government servants was conducted and service records were closely
scrutinized. Public servants were tried for misconduct by tribunals consisting of retired judges of the
Supreme Court or High Court. If charges were proven, disciplinary action such as dismissal or
compulsory retirement of the public servant could take place. A public servant could also be disqualified
from holding any public office for 15 years. About 3,000 officials were dismissed and many others were
reduced in rank as a result of these measures. The rest of the government servants were provided with an
incentive to working hard. Similarly, a law called the Elective Bodies Disqualification Order, popularly
known as E. B. D. O., was promulgated for the disqualification of politicians. Under this law, a person
could be disqualified from being a member of any elective body till December 31, 1966. Under this harsh
law, several politicians like Suhrawardy and Qayyum Khan were disqualified. The E. B. D. O.,
particularly its application, was severely criticized in the legal and political circles throughout Pakistan.

Improvement in Agriculture Sector:

After taking over, Ayub Khan focused on the long-standing question of land reforms in West Pakistan.
The land reforms included the reduction of land ceiling to 1,000 acres for non-irrigated land and 500 acres
for irrigated land and with ownership rights granted to the tenants. The land in excess of these limits was
taken over by the government to be distributed amongst the deserving persons.
Ayub Khan also introduced a comprehensive scheme of local government, popularly known as Basic
Democracies. This scheme was enforced through the Basic Democracies Order on October 27, 1959.
Basic Democracies was a pyramidal plan enabling the people to directly elect to Local Council men they
knew, who would in turn elect the upper tier of the administration. Altogether there were 80,000 Basic
Democrats elected. To lend legitimacy to his rule, Ayub Khan used the Basic Democrats as an electoral
college, holding a referendum to seek a mandate to continue in office as President and to have the
authority to frame the future Constitution of Pakistan.
The referendum held on February 14, 1960, asked the voters "if they had confidence in President Field
Marshal Muhammad Ayub Khan, Hilal-i-Jurat?" With the results of the referendum, Ayub Khan was
elected not only as President of Pakistan for five years, but also got the mandate to give Pakistan a
Constitution of his choice. Ayub
Khan set up a Constitution Commission which was not only given the responsibility to make
recommendations on the future Constitution, but was also to examine the causes of failure of
parliamentary government in Pakistan. The report of the Constitution Commission was presented to Ayub
Khan on May 6, 1961. Ayub Khan was not satisfied by the findings. The 1962 Constitution was very
different from the recommendation of the Constitution Commission, as Ayub Khan favored a presidential
form of government. The 1962 Constitution was promulgated on March 1. This ended the three-and-a-
half-year Martial Law regime of Ayub Khan. A civilian constitutional government under Ayub Khan
replaced his previous military regime.

Legal reforms: -
Ayub Khan introduced the Muslim Family Laws through an Ordinance on March 2, 1961 under which
unmitigated polygamy was abolished, consent of the current wife was made mandatory for a second
marriage, brakes were also placed on the practice of instant divorce where men pronounced it irrevocably
by pronouncing talaq thrice in one go. The Arbitration Councils set up under the law in the urban and
rural areas were to deal with cases of

(a) Grant of sanction to a person to contract a second marriage during the subsistence of a marriage.
(b) Reconciliation of a dispute between a husband and a wife.
(c) Grant maintenance to the wife and children.

Presidential Elections: -
In 1964, Ayub confident in his apparent popularity and seeing deep divisions within the political
opposition, called for Presidential elections. He was however taken by surprise when despite a brief
disagreement between the five main opposition parties ( a preference for a former close associate of Ayub
Khan General Azam Khan as candidate was dropped), the joint opposition agreed on supporting the
respected and popular Fatima Jinnah, the sister of the founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah.Despite
Jinnah's considerable popularity and public disaffection with Ayub's government, Ayub won with 64% of
the vote in a bitterly contested election on January 2, 1965. The election did not conform to international
standards and journalists. It is widely held, as subsequent historians and analysts, almost uniformly say,
that the elections were rigged in favor of Ayub Khan.

Foreign policy: -

As President, Ayub Khan allied Pakistan with the global U.S. military alliance against the Soviet Union.
This in turn led to major economic aid from the U.S. and European nations, and the industrial sector of
Pakistan grew very rapidly, improving the economy, but the consequences of cartelization included
increased inequality in the distribution of wealth. It was under Ayub Khan that the capital was moved
from Karachi to Rawalpindi, in anticipation of the construction of a new capital: Islamabad. In 1960,
Khan's government signed the Indus Waters Treaty with archrival India to resolve disputes regarding the
sharing of the waters of the six rivers in the Punjab Doab that flow between the two countries. Khan's
administration also built a major network of irrigation canals, high-water dams and thermal and
hydroelectric power stations.
Despite the Indus Waters Treaty, Ayub maintained icy relations with India. He established close political
and military ties with Communist China, exploiting its differences with Soviet Russia and its 1962 war
with India. To this day, China remains a strong economic, political and military ally of Pakistan.
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965: -

The turning point in his rule was the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, Despite many repulsed Indian attacks,
the war adversely affected Pakistan's then rapidly developing economy and it ended in a settlement
reached by Ayub at Tashkent, called the Tashkent Declaration. The settlement was perceived negatively by
many Pakistanis and led Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto to resign his post and take up opposition to Khan. According
to Morrice James, "For them [Pakistanis] Ayub had betrayed the nation and had inexcusably lost face
before the Indians."The war also increased opposition in East Pakistan [Now Bangladesh] where the
Awami League headed by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman sought more autonomy for the province.

Criticisms: -
Government corruption and nepotism, in addition to an environment of repression of free speech and
political freedoms increased unrest. Criticisms of his sons and family's personal wealth increased,
especially his son's actions after his father's election in the allegedly rigged 1964 Presidential elections
against Fatima Jinnah is a subject of criticism by many writers. Gohar Ayub, it is said led a victory parade
right into the heartland of Opposition territory in Karachi, in a blatantly provocative move and the civil
administrations failure to stop the rally led to a fierce clashes between opposing groups with many locals
being killed. Gohar Ayub also faced criticisms during that time on questions of family corruption and
cronyism through his business links with his father-in-law retired Lt. General Habibullah Khan Khattak.
One Western commentator in 1969 estimated Gohar Ayub's personal wealth at the time at $4 million
dollars, while his family's wealth was put in the range of $10–$20 million dollars. Ayub began to lose both
power and popularity. On one occasion, while visiting East Pakistan, there was a failed attempt to
assassinate him, though this was not reported in the press of the day. Ayub was persuaded by underlings
to award himself the Nishan-e-Pakistan, Pakistan's highest civil award, on the grounds that to award it to
other heads of state he should have it himself and also promoted himself to the rank of Field Marshal. He
was to be Pakistan's second Field Marshal, if the first is regarded as Field Marshal Sir Claude Auchinleck
(1884-1981), supreme commander of military forces in India and Pakistan in the lead-up to independence
in 1947. Aggravating an already bad situation, with increasing economic disparity in the country under
his rule, hoarding and manipulation by major sugar manufacturers resulted in the controlled price of 1 kg
sugar to be increased by 1 rupee and the whole population took to the streets. As Ayub's popularity
plummeted, he decided to give up rule.

Death: -
He died in 1974 in Pakistan. 19 April 1974 (aged 66) Islamabad, Pakistan
General Yahya Khan (25 March 1969 – 20 December 1971)
President of Pakistan:

Ayub Khan was President of Pakistan for most of the 1960s, but by the end of the decade, popular
resentment had boiled over against him. Pakistan had fallen into a state of disarray, and he handed over
power to Yahya Khan, who immediately imposed martial law. Once Ayub handed over power to Yahya
Khan on 25 March 1969 Yahya inherited a two-decade constitutional problem of inter-provincial ethnic
rivalry between the Punjabi-Pashtun-Mohajir dominated West Pakistan province and the ethnically
Bengali Muslim East Pakistan province. In addition Yahya also inherited an 11 year old problem of
transforming an essentially one man ruled country to a democratic country, which was the ideological
basis of the anti-Ayub movement of 1968-69. Herein lies the key to Yahya’s dilemma. As an Army Chief
Yahya had all the capabilities, qualifications and potential. But Yahya inherited an extremely complex
problem and was forced to perform the multiple roles of caretaker head of the country, drafter of a
provisional constitution, resolving the One Unit question, satisfying the frustrations and the sense of
exploitation and discrimination successively created in the East Wing by a series of government policies
since 1948. All these were complex problems and the seeds of Pakistan Army’s defeat and humiliation in
December 1971 lay in the fact that Yahya Khan blundered unwittingly into the thankless task of fixing the
problems of Pakistan’s political and administrative system which had been accumulating for 20 years and
had their actual origins in the pre-1947 British policies towards the Bengali Muslims. He was responsible
for killing, raping and looting in Bangaldesh during 1971 war. He is known as "The Greatest Butcher of
all time".

Attempt to solve constitutional problems:

Yahya Khan attempted to solve Pakistan’s constitutional and inter-provincial/regional rivalry problems
once he took over power from Ayub Khan in March 1969. The tragedy of the whole affair was the fact
that all actions that Yahya took, although correct in principle, were too late in timing, and served only to
further intensify the political polarisation between the East and West wings.

• He dissolved the one unit restoring the pre-1955 provinces of West Pakistan
• Promised free direct, one man one vote, fair elections on adult franchise, a basic human right
which had been denied to the Pakistani people since the pre-independence 1946 elections by
political inefficiency, double play and intrigue, by civilian governments, from 1947 to 1958 and by
Ayub’s one man rule from 1958 to 1969.

However dissolution of one unit did not lead to the positive results that it might have led to in case "One
Unit" was dissolved earlier. Yahya also made an attempt to accommodate the East Pakistanis by
abolishing the principle of parity, thereby hoping that greater share in the assembly would redress their
wounded ethnic regional pride and ensure the integrity of Pakistan. Instead of satisfying the Bengalis it
intensified their separatism, since they felt that the west wing had politically suppressed them since 1958.
Thus the rise of anti West Wing sentiment in the East Wing.

Legal Framework Order [1970]

After the abrogation of the Constitution of 1962, Yahya Khan needed a legal framework to hold elections.
In April and July 1969, he held discussions with prominent political party leaders to learn their point of
view. Most of them asked for the revival of the Constitution of 1956 on the ground that its abrogation had
been unlawful, and the country should return to the constitutional position prevailing on the eve of the
1958 coup. Yahya Khan initially agreed with this opinion, but had to change his stance due to opposition
from the Awami League.

Not being well versed in constitutional affairs, he appointed a team to draft a new constitutional formula.
He voiced his ideas about the constitutional issues in his broadcast address to the nation on November 28,
1969. The formula was officially issued on March 30, 1970, and is known as the Legal Framework Order
of 1970. According to this order, One Unit was dissolved in West Pakistan and direct ballot replaced the
principle of parity.

The National Assembly was to consist of 313 seats, including 13 seats reserved for women. Women were
also allowed to contest the elections from general seats. The distribution of seats was to be as follows:

East Pakistan: 162 general and 7 reserved seats

Punjab: 82 general and 3 reserved seats

Sindh: 27 general and 1 reserved seat

N. W. F. P.: 18 general and 1 reserved seat

Baluchistan: 4 general and 1 reserved seat

Centrally Administered Tribal Areas: 7 general seats

The L. F. O. also defined the qualifications of people who would be allowed to contest in the elections.
The Constituent Assembly was to stand dissolved if it was unable to frame the Constitution within 120
days. Actually, the Legal Framework Order was to act as an interim Constitution.

The primary function of the L. F. O. was to provide a setup on which elections could be conducted. It was
then the duty of the elected Constituent Assembly to draft the Constitution of Pakistan. However, the L. F.
O. defined the directive principles of State policy and made it clear that the future Constitution should not
violate these basic principles. The directive principles demanded an Islamic way of life, observation of
Islamic moral standards, and teaching of the Quran and Sunnah to the Muslims.

The Legal Framework Order also urged the Constituent Assembly to frame a Constitution in which
Pakistan was to be a Federal Republic and should be named Islamic Republic of Pakistan. It also called
for the preservation of Islamic Ideology and democratic values. The Constituent Assembly was also
supposed to frame a Constitution in which all citizens of Pakistan were to enjoy fundamental human
rights. Judiciary should remain independent from the Executive and provincial autonomy is protected.

The President was given the power to reject any Constitution framed by the Constituent Assembly if the
document did not fulfill the above-mentioned requirements. The President also had the power to interpret
and amend the Constitution, and his decision could not be challenged in a court of law.

General Elections 1970:

The political history of Pakistan from 1947 to 1970 witnessed no general elections. Thus, when Yahya's
Regime decided to hold the first general elections on the basis of adult franchise at national level, they
were not only required to make a new mechanism but were also required to set up a permanent election
machinery. A three-member Election Commission was set up and Justice Abdus Sattar was appointed as
the first Chief Election Commissioner of Pakistan.

The first task before the Election Commission was to enroll as voters all citizens of Pakistan who were at
least 21-years old on October 1, 1969. The electoral rolls were put before the masses for corrections on
January 16, 1970, and after necessary amendments, the final list was published on March 17. The total
registered voters in the country were 56,941,500 out of which 31,211,220 were from the Eastern Wing,
while 25,730,280 from the Western Wing. The Election Commission also marked the constituencies, in
accordance with the seats allocated for the National and Provincial Assemblies under Legal Framework
Order, 1970. One hundred and ninety nine Returning Officers were appointed for the National Assembly
and 285 Returning Officers were appointed for the Provincial Assemblies.

Twenty four political parties participated in the elections. They were allowed to begin their election
campaigns from January 1, 1970. The public meetings of Awami League in Bengal and Pakistan Peoples
Party in the Punjab and Sindh attracted huge crowds. Awami League mobilized support on the basis of its
Six-Points Program, which was the main attraction in the party's manifesto. While Z. A. Bhutto's
personality, his socialistic ideas and his slogan of "Rotti, Kapra aur Makan", meaning food, clothing and
shelter, were the factors that contributed to the popularity of Pakistan Peoples Party. The rightist parties
raised the religious slogans, while the leftists raised slogans based on regional and communistic ideas.

The last days of united Pakistan:

Yahya announced in his broadcast to the nation on 28 July 1969, his firm intention to redress Bengali
grievances, the first major step in this direction being, the doubling of Bengali quota in the defence
services. It may be noted that at this time there were just Seven infantry battalions of the East Pakistanis.
Yahya’s announcement was late by about twenty years. Yahya’s intention to raise more pure Bengali
battalions was opposed by Major General Khadim Hussain Raja, the General Officer Commanding 14
Division in East Pakistan suggesting that the Bengalis were "too meek".
Within a year he had set up a framework for elections that were held in December 1970. The results of the
elections saw Pakistan split into its Eastern and Western halves. In East Pakistan, the Awami League (led
by Mujibur Rahman) held almost all of the seats, but none in West Pakistan. In West Pakistan, the
Pakistan Peoples Party (led by Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto) won the lion's share of the seats, but none in East
Pakistan. Though AL had 162 seats in the National Assembly against 88 of PPP, this led to a situation
where one of the leaders of the two parties would have to give up power and allow the other to be Prime
Minister of Pakistan. The situation also increased agitation, especially in East Pakistan as it became
apparent that Sheikh Mujib was being denied of his legitimate claim to be the Prime Minister of Pakistan.
Yahya Khan could not reach a compromise, and instead cracked down on the political agitation in East
Pakistan with a massive campaign of genocide named by "Operation Searchlight" which began on 25
March, 1971, targeting, among others, Muslims, Hindus, Bengali intellectuals, students and political
activists. 3 million people in the east Pakistan were killed in the next few months along with another 0.4
million women were raped. Khan also arrested Sheikh Mujibur Rahman upon Bhutto's insistence and
appointed Brigadier Rahimuddin Khan (later General) to preside over a special tribunal dealing with
Mujib's case. Rahimuddin awarded Mujib the death sentence, and President Yahya put the verdict into
abeyance. Yahya's crackdown, however, had led to a civil war within Pakistan, and eventually drew India
into what would extend into the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. The end result was the establishment of
Bangladesh as an independent republic, and this was to lead Khan to step down. After Pakistan was
defeated in 1971, most of the blame was heaped on Yahya.

As President Khan helped to establish the communication channel between the United States and the
People's Republic of China, which would be used to set up the Nixon trip in 1972.

"INSTRUMENT OF SURRENDER"

The PAKISTAN Eastern Command agree to surrender all PAKISTAN Armed Forces in BANGLA DESH
to Lieutenant-General JAGJIT SINGH AURORA, General Officer Commanding in Chief of the Indian
and BANGLA DESH forces in the Eastern Theatre. This surrender includes all PAKISTAN land, air and
naval forces as also all para-military forces and civil armed forces. These forces will lay down their arms
and surrender at the places where they are currently located to the nearest regular troops under the
command of Lieutenant- General JAGJIT SINGH AURORA.

The PAKISTAN Eastern Command shall come under the orders of Lieutenant-General JAGJIT SINGH
AURORA as soon as this instrument has been signed. Disobedience of orders will be regarded as a breach
of the surrender terms and will be dealt with in accordance with the accepted laws and usages of war. The
decision of Lieutenant-General JAGJIT SINGH AURORA will be final, should any doubt arise as to the
meaning or interpretation of the surrender terms.

Lieutenant- General JAGJIT SINGH AURORA gives a solemn assurance that personnel who surrender
will be treated with dignity and respect that soldiers are entitled to in accordance with the provisions of
the GENEVA Convention and guarantees the safety and well-being of all PAKISTAN military and para-
military forces who surrender. Protection will be provided to foreign nationals, ethnic minorities and
personnel of WEST PAKISTAN origin by the forces under the command of Lieutenant- General JAGJIT
SINGH AURORA.

Fall from power:

Later overwhelming public anger over Pakistan's defeat by Bangladesh and the division of Pakistan into
two parts boiled into street demonstrations throughout Pakistan, rumours of an impending coup d'état by
younger army officers against the government of President Mohammed Agha Yahya Khan swept the
country. Yahya became the highest-ranking casualty of the war: to forestall further unrest, on December
20, 1971 he hastily surrendered his powers to Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, age 43, the ambitious leader of West
Pakistan's powerful People's Party.
Shortly after Yahya stepped down, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto released Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and saw him off
to London. Pakistani President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, in a supreme irony, ordered the house arrest of his
predecessor, Agha Mohammed Yahya Khan, the man who imprisoned Mujib in the first place. Both
actions produced headlines round the world.

Death:

Yahya Khan died in August 1980, in [Rawalpindi].

General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq (September 16, 1978 – August 17, 1988)
Short history of General Zia Life:

General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq was born in August 12, 1924 and died on August 17, 1988. He was the
President and military ruler of Pakistan from July 1977 to his death in August 1988. Distinguished by his
role in the Black September in Jordan military operation in 1970, he was appointed Chief of Army Staff in
1976. General Zia came to power after he overthrew ruling Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in a
military action on July 5, 1977 and became the state's third ruler to impose martial law. He initially ruled
as Chief Martial Law Administrator, but later assumed the post of President of Pakistan in September
1978. he died in a plane crash in 1988.

Elections of 1977:

Elections were held on March 7, 1977. The Pakistan Peoples Party won these elections, but was accused
by their opponents, Pakistan National Alliance, of rigging the elections. On March 14, 1977, the Alliance
started a series of nationwide protests. Talks between the Alliance and Bhutto government were held in
June 1977 and an agreement was reached, but it could not be implemented.
Fresh elections were announced for October 15, 1977. But on July 5, 1977, the Chief of Army Staff,
General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, imposed Martial Law and the elections were postponed. General Zia-ul-
Haq announced holding of elections within 90 days.
conference of political leaders was held in February 1978, but a year later, in 1979, General Zia-ul-Haq
declared political parties to be defunct and certain political leaders were disqualified.

Country under Martial Law:

On February 6, 1981, Movement for Restoration of Democracy was established to return democracy to
Pakistan. A provisional Constitution was enforced on March 23, 1981, as the Constitution of 1973 had
been suspended with the imposition of Martial Law.
Under General Zia's Martial Law, there was steady economic growth favoring the private sector, and
efforts were made to Islamize the political, legal and economic structures. Pakistan gained the status of
Most Favored Nation from the United States following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in December
1979. Vast amounts of military equipment and aid were donated to Pakistan to help the four million
Afghan refugees who crossed into Baluchistan and North West Frontier Province.

Finally, after the nomination of Muhammad Khan Junejo as Prime Minister of Pakistan on March 20,
1985, Junejo fulfilled his promise of lifting the Martial Law and the restoration of the fundamental rights,
but at the price of enforcement of the Eighth Amendment and the validation of the Revival of the
Constitutional Order.

Referendum of 1984:

General Zia wanted to establish a pseudo-democracy in Pakistan, with a continuation of him as President
under a civilian setup. Zia took a number of steps in this direction; the first was the establishment of the
Majlis-i-Shoora. The Majlis-i-Shoora was to take the place of the National Assembly, but was to be
without any legislative powers. General Zia's second step was to ask the public to endorse his rule. This
appeal was in the form of a referendum, which was so worded that a "Yes" meant that Zia himself would
be further endorsed, even though the referendum did not refer to this directly. The Referendum Order
1984 put forward a complex question to the citizens, but in essence, seeking endorsement of the process
of Islamization initiated by General Zia.
The referendum was held on December 19, 1984. The Movement for the Restoration of Democracy
boycotted the elections. The results of this referendum showed the people voted in favor of Zia, though
the M. R. D. claimed that a very small percentage of people actually showed up to vote. Zia rejected this
claim and declared that he had been given public support to continue as President of Pakistan for the next
five years. referendum, the Chief Martial Law Administrator General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq became the
President of Pakistan. After the referendum, General Zia announced that the elections for the National and
Provincial Assemblies would be held in February 1985, on a non-party basis.

General Elections, February 1985:

After the 1984 referendum, General Zia announced elections of the National and Provincial Assemblies in
February 1985. The elections were to be held on a non-party basis, which was legalized through an
amendment to the 1973 Constitution. Each candidate had to be supported by at least 50 people to be able
to contest in the elections. In a nationwide speech on January 12, 1985, General Zia also announced
various other conditions for the elections. Amendments were made in the Political Parties Act of 1962.
These amendments affected all political parties. The opposition parties, M. R. D., boycotted the elections,
as their demands for party-based elections and restoration of the 1973 Constitution were not met.

The elections for the National and Provincial Assemblies were held in 1985 on February 25 and 28,
respectively. The successful boycott of the 1984 referendum caused the M. R. D. to miscalculate their
next step. Being confident of public opinion, they boycotted these elections as well. Contrary to
expectations, the voters turned to the polls in large numbers. Surprisingly, many political leaders,
including former Members of National and Provincial Assemblies, and Advisors, who had seemed
popular in their appeals, could not win from their constituencies. The people elected many new faces. The
M. R. D. soon realized that it had miscalculated badly, that it should have fought the elections on Zia's
terms. An alternative leadership was in place with many of the old political leaders routed out.

Islamization under General Zia-ul-Haq:

When General Zia-ul-Haq took over as the Chief Martial Law Administrator on July 5, 1977, Islamization
was given a new boost. General Zia-ul-Haq was a practicing Muslim who raised the slogan of Islam. The
Islamic sentiment has always been fully alive in Pakistan. Various governments have used this to their
benefit. There are people who doubt Zia's reasons for raising the Islamic slogan; whether it was for
political purposes to counter balance Bhutto's appeal or was it to enforce Islam in its true sense.

The Government of Zia-ul-Haq took a number of steps to eradicate non-Islamic practices from the country.
He introduced the Zakat, Ushr, Islamic Hadood and Penal Code in the country. The Government invited
eminent scholars to compile laws about Islamic financing. The Zakat and Ushr Ordinance to Islamize the
economic system was promulgated on June 20, 1980. It covered only Islamic organizations, associations
and institutions. Zakat was to be deducted from bank accounts of Muslims at the rate of 2.5 percent
annually above the balance of Rupees 3,000. Ushr was levied on the yield of agricultural land in cash or
kind at the rate of 10 percent of the agricultural yield, annually.
Formation of Majlis-i-Shoora:

Zia-ul-Haq selected his Majlis-i-Shoora in 1980. It was to be the Islamic Parliament and act as the
Parliament of Pakistan in place of the National Assembly. Most of the members of the Shoora were
intellectuals, scholars, ulema, journalists, economists and professionals belonging to different fields of
life. The Shoora was to act as a board of advisors for the President.

A number of other Islamization programs were carried out including the teaching of Islamic Studies and
Arabic, which were made compulsory. Pakistan Studies and Islamic Studies were made compulsorily for
B. A., B. Sc., Engineering, M. B. B. S., Commerce, Law and Nursing students. For professional studies,
extra marks were given to people who were Hafiz-e-Quran. The first Ombudsman was appointed to
rectify the misadministration of the Federal Government, officials and agencies.

Making of a Shariah Council:

A Shariah Council consisting of ulema was established to look into the constitutional and legal matters of
the State in order to bring them in line with Islamic thought. Since Islam does not allow interest, On
January 1, 1980, Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq introduced a "Profit and Loss Sharing System" according to
which an account holder was to share the loss and profit of the bank. The media was also targeted.
Television especially was brought under the Islamization campaign, news in Arabic were to be read on
both television and radio, female anchor persons were required to cover their heads, the Azan was relayed
regularly on radio and television to announce time for prayers.

As the government grew further in its Islamic leanings, the numbers of mosques were increased.
Ordinance for the sanctity of Ramazan was introduced to pay reverence to the holy month of Ramazan.
The Ordinance forbade public drinking and eating during the holy month of Ramazan. A three months
imprisonment and a fine of Rupees 500 were imposed for violating the Ordinance. A program to ensure
the regularity of prayers called the Nizam-i-Salaat was launched by General Zia himself.

Introduction of Hadood Ordinance:

Zia's Government introduced the Hadood Ordinance for the first time in Pakistan, which meant the
punishments ordained by the Holy Quran or Sunnah on the use of liquor, theft, adultery and qazf. Under
this Ordinance, a culprit could be sentenced to lashing, life imprisonment and in some cases, death by
stoning.

The Afghan War Settlement:

In 1979, Russian forces invaded Afghanistan. Communism came to the threshold of Pakistan when forces
led by Babrak Karmel overthrew the Government of Afghanistan. Some 120,000 Russian troops entered
Afghanistan .The Afghan people organized a resistance force against this blatant aggression. The Soviet
forces suffered greatly in terms of manpower and material, and the Afghan War proved expensive even for
a world power like the Soviet Union.

It has always been said about Afghanistan that it can be invaded and occupied easily but it is very difficult
to hold and control it. Afghans have a history of resisting foreign invaders. The British imperial power
failed in all three attempts to occupy and control Afghanistan. The Soviets were to learn the same lesson.
In the beginning, the Soviet army was successful in occupying and controlling Afghanistan.
General Zia stood against the spread of communism. He reiterated his solution to the Afghanistan crisis in
1983 in New Delhi. He said that Pakistan has given political asylum to millions of Afghans. He demanded
the expulsion of Russian forces from Afghanistan. America responded to the call of Pakistan and flooded
Pakistan with monetary help to finance the anti-communist regime in Afghanistan and to equip the
freedom fighters. The freedom fighters, the mujahideen, put forward a strong resistance to the Russian
invasion. Although the Afghans suffered enormous causalities in the beginning of the war but the turning
point in the war came when the U. S. supplied them with surface-to-air Stinger missiles.

General Zia's gamble in resisting the Russian invasion in Afghanistan paid him huge dividends. On the
domestic front his policy of Islamization became more relevant as it was seen that in the neighboring
Afghanistan, Islam was in danger. As Pakistan was a frontline state, huge amounts of money, military
equipment and aid arrived in Pakistan. The huge amounts of aid that poured in propped up Zia's
government. With the Afghan problem, a new phase of modernization of the military began. The arms
provided to Afghanistan freedom fighters were also provided to the Pakistan Army. As a result the
Pakistan Army became better equipped.

Other than the problems faced due to the Afghan War efforts, the Soviet Empire was breaking apart at the
seams. This led the Soviets to seek peace in Afghanistan. Negotiations on Afghanistan were carried out
under Zia's Government, and the Geneva Accord was signed on April 14, 1988, under which the Soviet
Union agreed to withdraw its forces in two installments .The Soviet Government lived up to its
commitment of withdrawal of forces according to the agreed timetable.

The victory in Afghanistan was achieved at a great cost to Pakistan. It had to look after and feed more
than three million Afghan refugees that had crossed over to Pakistan. The refugees were a great economic
burden on Pakistan. Not only this but, they also caused the problem of drugs and gunrunning in the
country.

Muhammad Khan Junejo Becomes Prime Minister [1985-88]:

After the Presidential referendum of December 1984, elections for the National and Provincial Assemblies
were held in February 1985 on a non-party basis. President Zia-ul-Haq nominated Muhammad Khan
Junejo as the Prime Minister of Pakistan on March 20, 1985.

On being nominated, Muhammad Khan Junejo promised the nation that he would lift the Martial Law and
restore a civilian government as soon as possible. Junejo's position was weak and vulnerable under the
constitutional amendments made by Zia, which made the position of the President paramount and that of
the Prime Minister subordinate. Despite his weak position, Junejo, after being sworn in as the Prime
Minister, carried out his promise of lifting the Martial Law and the restoration of fundamental rights, but
at the price of the Eight Amendment and validating the Revival of the Constitutional Order.

Muhammad Khan Junejo introduced a five-point program in December 1985. The program was
multidimensional in nature. The main objectives were to induct a new and progressive civilian order,
establish institutions of social justice, introduce an egalitarian economy, increase employment
opportunities, strike hard at corruption and other social evils, liberate at least 50 percent of the people
from illiteracy, and to start socio-economic development of the country.

After the lifting of Martial Law, Junejo tried to take a course independent of Zia. He annoyed military
generals by withdrawing big staff cars from them and replacing them with small cars. He tried to conduct
an independent foreign policy, particularly on Afghanistan, by taking into confidence and consulting
leaders of political parties, including Benazir Bhutto, the leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party. His
government even tried to probe into the military fiasco at the Ojheri Camp near Islamabad on April 10,
1988, which resulted in the death and serious injuries to a large number of civilians. This probe perhaps
became the immediate cause for the dismissal of his government.

Junejo's regime met its sudden and unexpected end while he was returning from a visit to South Korea on
May 29, 1988. General Zia dismissed Junejo's Government using the controversial rule under Article
58(2) b of the Constitution. According to General Zia, Junejo's Government had been dismissed because
the law and order situation had broken down to an alarming extent and the government could not be run in
accordance with the Constitution. Not only were the Junejo Government dismissed, but also were the
Federal and Provincial Assemblies and the Provincial Cabinets and their Chief Ministers. General Zia
installed a new caretaker government in the Center and Provinces. Fresh elections were promised after 90
days but were eventually held on November 16, 1988, three months after Zia's death in a plane crash.

Although Junejo had no claim to power on his own, as Zia had appointed him Prime Minister, but his
performance was commendable. With limited options, he did what was possible for him. He restored the
fundamental rights of citizens under the Constitution that had been denied to them for a very long time.
He tried to put the country on the course of development and some progress was made, particularly in the
area of construction of roads in rural areas and the electrification of villages. He was honest, polite and
had a low-key political personality, traits which are not easy to find in political leaders of today.

Historic 8th Amendment is passed [1985]:

The 1973 Constitution of Pakistan envisaged a Parliamentary System of government, with the balance of
power tilted towards the Prime Minister. The President could not exercise his powers without the
concurrence of the Prime Minister. The Eight Constitutional Amendment, however, altered the form of the
Constitution drastically. Passed by the Senate on November 14, 1985, the Eight Amendment affected
almost 19 clauses of the Constitution and brought the office of the President of Pakistan almost at par with
that of the Prime Minister.
The President was given the right to nominate the Prime Minister, Governors of the provinces, and Judges
of the High Court and Supreme Court, including the Chief Justice. Democratically elected Prime Minister
thus became subservient to the President.

Death of General Zia-ul-Haq:

General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq was killed in an air crash on August 17, 1988. He had gone to Bhawalpur
to see a demonstration of tanks where he was accompanied by a number of Generals, including the
Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Chief of General Staff, high-ranking Military Attaches, as well
as the U. S. Ambassador to Pakistan. On his return journey, his military transport aircraft, a C-130,
exploded in mid-air a few minutes after takeoff from Bahawalpur airport, killing all passengers aboard
including the President. This tragic air disaster was the worst in Pakistan's history and was unprecedented
in the history of military aircraft. General Zia's remains were buried on the grounds of Faisal Mosque in
Islamabad. With the death of General Zia, the 11-year military rule came to an end. The country now was
set forth on the road to democracy.
General Pervaiz Musharaf (20 June 2001 – 18 August 2008)

Military Comes to Power Again [Oct 12, 1999]

On October 12, 1999, the Pakistan Army once again ousted the Civilian Government. At that time Prime
Minister Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif headed the Government. The coup immediately followed the
premier’s attempt to replace the Army Chief while he was on a tour to Sri Lanka. After two days of
chilling uncertainty, Chief of Army Staff General Pervez Musharraf assumed the title of Chief Executive.
Although the use of the term "Martial Law" was avoided, Pakistan once again came under military rule. It
was claimed that the Army was forced to take this step to save the country from "turmoil and uncertainty".

The Supreme Court, in a ruling on May 12, 2000, accepted that a constitutional deviation had taken place
in pursuit of rather noble objectives, such as economic reforms and bringing to book the corrupt
politicians, bureaucrats and businessmen. The 12 judges based their ruling on the principle of "salus po
puli ex supreme lex", meaning that the welfare of the people is the supreme law of any land. The court
took the view that there was no other way to remove a corrupt Government except through the
intervention of the armed forces. The Supreme Court also directed General Musharraf to hold general
elections within three years.

After the military takeover, the former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Shahbaz Sharif (his brother and
former Chief Minister of Punjab) and five other officials were booked on charges of hijacking, kidnapping
and attempted murder in the "Plane Conspiracy" case. The prosecution's case was based on a police report
filed by an Army Colonel. Nawaz Sharif, in his capacity as Prime Minster, was accused of giving orders
to the Civil Aviation Authority to prevent a Colombo-Karachi Pakistan International Airlines commercial
flight, with Musharraf on board, from landing at Karachi or anywhere else in Pakistan. He was to face a
charge of attempted murder endangering the lives of General Pervez Musharraf and 200 other passengers
on board by disallowing the plane to land when its fuel was at a low level. The case was tried by an anti-
terrorism court in Karachi, ironically established by Nawaz Sharif himself, which sentenced him to life
imprisonment. In their appeal to the High Court, Mr. Sharif's lawyers maintained that no charge of
corruption was proved against the former Prime Minister, and that it was the Prime Minster's
constitutional right to remove the Army Chief.

Later on, Mr. Nawaz Sharif was, however, pardoned and exiled by the military government to Saudi
Arabia on conditions that he would forfeit Rupees 500 million (equivalent to roughly US$ 8 million) in
property and stay out of politics for the next 21 years.

Pervez Musharraf Becomes President [June, 2001]:

General Pervez Musharraf while he was also Chief Executive took over the office of the President of
Pakistan on June 20, 2001, under the Provincial Constitutional Order (PCO) by removing Rafiq Tarar
before he was allowed to complete his five-years tenure. With immediate effect he dissolved the
suspended Senate, National and Provincial Assemblies and dismissed the Chairman of the Senate and the
Speaker of the National Assembly. After assuming the new office as President, General Pervez Musharraf
announced, "The change will augur well for the future of Pakistan"; and said, "I think I have a role to
play; I have a job to do here; I cannot and will not let this nation down". He gave three reasons for taking
over as the President of Pakistan: constitutional, political, and economic.

The critical moment in General Musharraf's presidency was 9/11, when Washington suddenly and direly
needed his support the international antiterrorism campaign and to crush the Taliban in Afghanistan. Thus
he became a pivotal player on the world stage and a close ally welcomed in Washington and London alike
as a statesman of international standing. General Musharraf did his best to highlight the core issue of
Kashmir at every international forum. In July 2001, he held his first summit meeting with Indian Prime
Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee at Agra but couldn’t make much headway in solving the Kashmir problem.
Due to his consecutive efforts, however, a lot of tension between the two neighboring countries with
nuclear-armed rivalry has been eased as they have restored diplomatic relations and started to build up
warming ties mutually by means of confidence building measures. General Musharraf has given a new
formula for solving the protracted dispute of Kashmir. After the Taliban were ousted, he offered all
possible help to the new government.

President General Musharraf kept his word to restore democracy and hold elections in October 2002 as
mandated by the Supreme Court. He gratified the nation when after general elections, Pakistan's National
Assembly and Senate in November 2002 met for the first time since the coup three years earlier. He also
relinquished the post of Chief Executive when Zafaullah Khan Jamali became Prime Minister of Pakistan
in November 2002. President Musharraf, however, continues to hold the offices of Chief of Army Staff,
and Chief of the Staff Committee. The opposition parties refused to accept Framework Order (LFO) 2002
as it empowered the President to sack the prime minister, dissolve parliament and also recognize him as
both head of the army and head of the state. According to the opposition the provisions of the LFO were
unconstitutional and illegal, and against the sovereignty of the Parliament. As a result, the business of
parliament remained in deadlock for a year. In December, 2003 as part of a deal with MMA (Muttahida
Majlis-e-Amal) to end the stand-off, General Musharraf agreed that he would step down as military head
of the country on December 31, 2004 and also give up some of the powers he assumed after the coup
while on January 1,2004. After getting vote of confidence from parliament and the four provincial
assemblies, President Pervez Musharraf would now serve full five-year term as President till 2007 under
the constitutional provisions after the seventeenth amendment was passed by a two-third majority of the
Parliament. He secured 658 votes (56.23 per cent) with simple majority from a total of 1,170 members of
parliament and the four assemblies amid MMA abstention and opposition boycott.

Local Government System:

In order to establish democracy at grassroots level, the regime of General Pervez Musharaf, introduced
the Local Government System. This was not a new experiment in Pakistan. Ayub Khan had undertaken a
similar effort in this direction by introducing the Basic Democracy System.

This new system of Local Government was installed on August 14, 2001, after holding of elections.
Direct elections on non-party basis were held in five phases for members of Union Councils, Union
Nazims, and Naib Union Nazims during 2000 thru to 2001. On the basis of these direct elections, indirect
elections were held in July-August 2001 for Zila Nazims and Naib Zila Nazims and also for Tehsil-Town
Nazims and Naib Nazims. In order to attract people towards electoral politics, the minimum age for local
government elections was lowered from 21 to 18 years. One-third seats were reserved for women.

The main purpose of introducing the Local Government System was to empower the people at the
grassroots level and to transfer power from the elite to the masses. This system of grassroots democracy
envisaged yielding new political leaders. It was also anticipated to solve people's problems at local level,
allow public participation in decision-making and ensure the provision of speedy justice. The essence of
this system was that the Local Governments would be accountable to the citizens for all their decisions. It
would enable the proactive elements of society to participate in community work, development related
activities and would remove rural-urban divide. The new Local Government plan was an effort on the part
of the Military Government to lay the foundations of an authentic and enduring democracy.

The new System provided a three-tier Local Government structure:

1. The District Government

2. The Tehsil Government

3. The Union Administration

The District Government

The District Government consisted of the Zila Nazim and District Administration. The District
Administration consisted of district offices including sub-offices at Tehsil level, who were to be
responsible to the District Nazim assisted by the District Coordination Officer. The District Coordination
Officer was appointed by the Provincial Government and was the coordinating head of the District
Administration. The Zila Nazim was accountable to the people through the elected members of the Zila
Council. A Zila Council consisted of all Union Nazims in the District, which consisted of members
elected on the reserved seats. These seats were reserved for women, peasants, workers, and minority
community. The Zila Council had its Secretariat under the Naib Zila Nazim and had a separate budget
allocation. Adequate checks and balances were introduced in the System.

The new System also efficiently addressed the specific needs and problems of large cities. The District
Government was responsible to the people and the Provincial Government for improvement of
governance and delivery of services.

Tehsil Administration
The middle tier, the Tehsil, had Tehsil Municipal Administration headed by the Tehsil Nazim. Tehsil
Municipal Administration consisted of a Tehsil Nazim, Tehsil Municipal Officer, Tehsil Officers, Chief
Officers and other officials of the Local Council Service and officials of the offices entrusted to the Tehsil
Municipal Administration. The Tehsil Municipal Administration was entrusted with the functions of
administration, finances, and management of the offices of Local Government and Rural Development,
and numerous other subjects at the regional, Divisional, District, Tehsil and lower levels.

Union Administration
The lowest tier, the Union Administration was a corporate body covering the rural as well as urban areas
across the whole District. It consisted of Union Nazim, Naib Union Nazim and three Union Secretaries
and other auxiliary staff. The Union Nazim was the head of the Union Administration and the Naib Union
Nazim acted as deputy to the Union Nazim during his temporary absence. The Union Secretaries
coordinated and facilitated in community development, functioning of the Union Committees and
delivery of municipal services under the supervision of Union Nazim.

The Government allocated Rupees 32 billion to the Local Government in 2002. The funds were deposited
in the account of the District Government. The District Government further distributed these funds to
Tehsil and Unions. In addition to the fiscal transfers from the Province, the Local Governments were
authorized to generate money from their own sources by levying certain taxes, fees, user charges, etc.
Referendum 2002:

After General Pervez Musharraf sacked the civilian Government headed by Prime Minister Mian
Muhammad Nawaz Sharif on October 12, 1999, he had assumed the title of Chief Executive. It was
claimed that the Army was forced to take this step to save the country from "turmoil and uncertainty". The
General later on also ousted President Rafiq Tarar and himself became the President of Pakistan. After
becoming the President, he reiterated his stance of holding elections as prescheduled by his Government
in October 2002. But before the general elections, a referendum was held on April 30, 2002 for General
Pervez Musharraf to be elected as the President of Pakistan for another five years.

The basic reason for holding the referendum was that the General wanted to abide by democratic
principles and establish legitimacy for his rule though in the Constitution there was no provision to
become President through referendum.

Seventeenth Amendment:

Seventeenth Amendment is basically the Legal Framework Order 2002 that has been accepted as part of
the Constitution with minor modifications and may be, therefore, termed as an LFO-amended
Constitution. After a surprise deal between PML(Q) and MMA (Mutahida Majlis-e-Amal), the 17th
Amendment has now become part of the 1973 Constitution after the formal approval of President General
Pervez Musharraf.

The seventeenth amendment now allows the provision for "vote of confidence for further affirmation of
the president in office by majority of the members present and voting, by division or any other method as
prescribed in the rules made by the federal government under clause (9), of the electoral college
consisting of members of both Houses of Parliament and the provincial assemblies". Accordingly a vote
of confidence was passed in favor of the President on January 1, 2004 by members of both National
Assembly and the Senate. Despite the fact the MMA abstained from giving the vote of confidence to the
President, it has indirectly accepted him as elected president by allowing vote of confidence from both
houses of parliament and provincial assemblies.

Article 58(2) (b):

Under the Article 58(2)(b), "the President in case of dissolution of the National Assembly shall, within
fifteen days of the dissolution, refer the matter to the Supreme Court and the Supreme Court shall decide
the reference within thirty days whose decision shall be final".

Resigning of President Musharaf:

On 7 August 2008, the Pakistan Peoples Party and the Pakistan Muslim League (N) agreed to force
Musharraf to step down and begin his impeachment. Asif Ali Zardari and Nawaz Sharif announced
sending a formal request or joint charge sheet that he step down, and impeach him through parliamentary
process upon refusal. Musharraf, however, said: “I will defeat those who try to push me to the wall. If
they use their right to oust me, I have the right to defend myself." Musharraf, accordingly delayed his
departure for the Beijing Olympics, by a day.
On Monday, 18 August 2008, in a speech defending his record, Musharraf announced that he had
resigned.