North South University

Assignment cover page

Department of History
HIS103

Student Name: Md. Ahanaf Thamid

ID- 1912802630

Sec - 23

Course name and code : HIS103

Course Instructor- Abdus Samad (ABS3)

Date of submission: 15 AUG 2020

Title of the assignment topic:

Pakistan Politics in 1960s and the Emergence of Bangladesh You have to

critically analyze the role of politics in East Pakistan in particular in the decade
of 1960s behind the emergence of Bangladesh.
The role of politics in East Pakistan in particular in the decade of 1960s behind the emergence of

Bangladesh.
Introduction:
East Pakistan was the eastern rural part of Pakistan between 1947 and 1971, covering the section
of the new country Bangladesh. Its land boundaries were with India and Burma, with a coastline
on the Bay of Bengal. East Pakistanis were commonly known as "Pakistani Bengalis"; to
discover this region from India's state West Bengal (which is also known as "Indian Bengal"),
East Pakistan was known as "Pakistani Bengal". East Pakistan was renamed from East Bengal by
the One Unit scheme of Pakistani Prime Minister Mohammad Ali of Bogra. The Constitution of
Pakistan of 1956 followed the British monarchy with an Islamic republic. Bengali politician H.
S. Suhrawardy obeyed as the Prime Minister of Pakistan between 1956 and 1957 and a Bengali
bureaucrat Iskandar Mirza became the first President of Pakistan. The 1958 Pakistani coup d'état
carried General Ayub Khan to power. Khan replaced Mirza as president and launched a
crackdown against pro-democracy heads. Khan enacted the Constitution of Pakistan of 1962
which ended universal suffrage. By 1966, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman emerged as the dominant
opposition leader in Pakistan and launched the
six-point movement for autonomy and
democracy. The 1969 revolution in East Pakistan
contributed to Ayub Khan's overthrow. Another
general, Yahya Khan, usurped the presidency
and enacted martial law. in 1970, Yahya Khan
organized Pakistan's first federal general
election. The Awami League emerged as the
single largest party, followed by the Pakistan
Peoples Party. The military junta stalled in taking
the results, leading to civil disobedience, the
Bangladesh Liberation War and the 1971
Bangladesh genocide. East Pakistan seceded with
the help of India. The East Pakistan Provincial
Assembly was the legislative body of the territory. Due to the strategic value of East Pakistan,
the Pakistani union was a member of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization. The economy of
East Pakistan began at an average of 2.6% between 1960 and 1965. The federal government
invested more funds and foreign aid in West Pakistan, even though East Pakistan generated a
major share of exports. However, President Ayub Khan did implement significant
industrialization in East Pakistan. The Kaptai Dam was built in 1965. The Eastern Refinery was
established in Chittagong. Dacca was declared as the second capital of Pakistan and created as
the home of the national parliament. The party hired American architect Louis Kahn to design
the national assembly complex in Dacca..
Pakistan Politics In 1960s &The Emergence Of Bangladesh

Pakistan Politics In 1960s &The Emergence Of Bangladesh Pakistan politics in 1960s:

February 1960, an eleven-member constitutional commission was established. The

commission's recommendations for direct elections, vital legislative and judicial organs, free
political parties, and defined limitations on presidential authority went against Ayub Khan's
government, so he ordered other committees to make revisions. The 1962 Constitution retained
some aspects of the Republic's Islamic nature but omitted the word Islamic in its original
version; amid protests, Ayub Khan added that word later. The President would be a Muslim, and
the Advisory Council of Islamic Ideology and the Islamic Research Institute were established to
assist the government in reconciling all legislation with the Quran's tenets and the sunna. Since
their functions were advisory and the President appointed their members, the Ulama had no real
power base. Ayub Khan sought to retain certain aspects of his dominant authority in the 1962
Constitution, which ended the martial law period. The document created a presidential system in
which he remained contemptuous of lawyer-politicians and handed over power to his fellow
army officers. Ayub Khan used two main approaches to governing in his first few years. He
concentrated on consolidating power and intimidating the opposition. He also aimed to establish
the groundwork for future stability by altering the economic, legal, and constitutional
institutions. Efforts were made to popularize the regime while the opposition was muzzled. Ayub
Khan maintained a high public profile, often taking trips expressly to 'meet the people.' He was
also aware of the need to address some of the acute grievances of East Pakistan. To the extent
possible, only Bengali members of the civil service were posted in the East Wing; previously,
many of the officers had been from the West Wing and knew neither the region nor the language.
Dhaka was designated the legislative capital of Pakistan, while the newly created Islamabad
became the administrative capital. Central government bodies, such as the Planning Commission,
were now instructed to hold regular Dhaka sessions. Public investment in East Pakistan
increased, although private investment remained heavily skewed in favor of West Pakistan. The
Ayub Khan regime was so highly centralized, however, in the absence of democratic institutions,
the development that took place during his regime remained more or less a West Pakistan affair.
The emergence of Bangladesh:

In February 1966, a national conference was held in Lahore, where all the opposition parties
convened to discuss their differences and shared interests. The central issue discussed was the
Tashkent Declaration. Most significant was the noticeable under-representation from East
Pakistan. About 700 persons attended the conference, but only twenty-one were from the East
Wing. They were led by sheik mujibur Rahman of the Awami League, who presented his famous
six-point program for the autonomy of East Pakistan. The Six-Points consisted of the demands
that the government is federal and parliamentary, its members elected by universal adult suffrage
with legislative representation based on the distribution
of the population; that the federal government has
principal responsibility for foreign affairs and defense
only; that each wing has its currency and separate fiscal
accounts; that taxation occurs at the provincial level,
with a federal government funded by constitutionally
guaranteed grants; that each federal unit controls its
earnings of foreign exchange; and that each unit raises its
militia or paramilitary forces. Ayub Khan reacted to the
Six-Point Programme by alternating conciliation and
repression. Disorder spread. The army moved into Dhaka
and Khulna to restore order. In rural areas of East
Pakistan, a curfew was ineffective; local officials sensed
government control ebbing and began retreating from the
incipient rural revolt. In February, Ayub Khan released
political prisoners, invited the Democratic Action Committee and others to meet him in
Rawalpindi, promised a new constitution, and assured that he would not stand for re-election in
1970. On 25 March 1969, martial law was again proclaimed; General aga Mohammad Yahya
khan, the chief's army commander, was designated chief martial law administrator (CMLA). The
1962 Constitution was abrogated, Ayub Khan announced his resignation, and Yahya Khan
assumed the presidency. Yahya Khan soon promised elections based on adult franchise to the
National Assembly, which would draw up a new constitution. He also entered into discussions
with leaders of political parties.
The new administration formed a committee of deputy and provincial martial law administrators
that functioned above government civil machinery. The generals held power and were no longer
the supporting arm of the civilians, elected or bureaucratic, as they had been throughout much of
the country's history. In the past, every significant change of government had relied, in large part,
on the allegiance of the military. However, Yahya Khan and his military advisers proved no
more capable of overcoming their problems than their predecessors. The attempt to establish a
military hierarchy running parallel to and supplanting the civilian administration's authority
inevitably ruptured the bureaucratic-military alliance, on which efficiency and stability
depended. Little effort was made to promote a national program. These weaknesses were not
immediately apparent but became so as events moved quickly toward a crisis in East Pakistan.
On 28 November 1969, Yahya Khan made a nationwide broadcast announcing his proposals to
return to constitutional government. General elections for the National Assembly were set for 5
October 1970 but were postponed to December due to a severe cyclone that hit the coast of East
Pakistan. The National Assembly was obliged within 120 days to draw up a new constitution,
which would permit maximum provincial autonomy. However, Yahya Khan made it clear that
the federal government would require powers of taxation well beyond those contemplated by the
Six-Points of the Awami League. He also reserved the right to 'authenticate' the constitution. On
1 July 1970, the One-Unit Plan was dissolved into the four original provinces. Yahya Khan also
determined that representation to national assembly would be based on population. This
arrangement gave East Pakistan 162 seats (plus seven reserved for women) versus 138 seats
(plus six for women) for the West Wing provinces. The first general election conducted in
Pakistan based on one person, one vote, was held on 7 December 1970; elections to provincial
legislative assemblies followed three days later. The voting was heavy. Yahya Khan kept his
promise of free and fair elections. The Awami League won a massive victory in East Pakistan,
for it was directly elected to 160 of the 162 seats and thus gained a majority in the National
Assembly. The Pakistan People's Party won a large majority in the West Wing, especially in
Punjab and Sindh, but no seats in the East Wing. In the North-West Frontier Province and
Baluchistan, the National Awami Party won a plurality of the seats. The Muslim League and the
Islamic parties did poorly in the west and were not represented in the east. Any constitutional
agreement depended on the consent of three persons: Sheikh Mujib, accredited leader of East
Pakistan, Bhutto of West Pakistan, and Yahya Khan, as the ultimate authenticator representing
the military government. As an intermediary and head of state, Yahya Khan tried to persuade
Bhutto and Mujib to come to some accommodation. This effort proved unsuccessful as Mujib
insisted on his right as the majority's leader to form a government, a stand at variance with
Bhutto, who claimed 'two majorities' in Pakistan. Bhutto declared that his party would not attend
the inaugural session of the assembly, thereby making the establishment of civilian government
difficult.

On 1 March 1971, Yahya Khan, who earlier had referred to Mujib as the 'future prime minister
of Pakistan,' dissolved his civilian cabinet and declared an indefinite postponement of the
National Assembly. In East Pakistan, the reaction was immediate. Strikes, demonstrations, and
civil disobedience increased in tempo until there was open revolt. Directed by Sheikh Mujib,
Bangalis declared that they would pay no taxes and ignore martial law regulations on press and
radio censorship. The writ of the central government all but ceased to exist in East Pakistan. As a
reaction to Yahya's act, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declared virtual independence of East Pakistan
at a mammoth gathering at the Ramna Racecourse (now Suhrawardy Udyan) on 7 March 1971.
A successful civil disobedience movement was launched from the following day. However,
Mujib, Bhutto, and Yahya Khan held negotiations in Dhaka in late March in a last-ditch attempt
to defuse the growing crisis; simultaneously, General tikka khan, who commanded the Pakistani
forces in East Pakistan, prepared a contingency plan for a military takeover and called for troop
reinforcements to be flown in via Sri Lanka. In an atmosphere of distrust and suspicion, the talks
broke down, and on 25 March, Yahya Khan and Bhutto flew back to West Pakistan. Tikka
Khan's emergency plan went into operation. Roadblocks and barriers appeared all over Dhaka.
Sheikh Mujib was taken into custody and flown to the West Wing to stand trial for treason. A
genocide regime was launched on 25 March by attacking universities and other resistance places
and killing teachers, students, and political workers indiscriminately. The tempo of violence of
the military crackdown during these first days soon developed into a full-blown war of
liberation, resulting in the emergence of independent sovereign Bangladesh.

Review of Nurul Islam’s 'India Pakistan Bangladesh: A Primer on

Political History'  
Nurul Islam is one of Bangladesh’s pre-eminent economists. His theories and analyses, entwined
as they are with politics and history, have guided us through the turbulent 1960s and towards a
pro-people economic policy in post-independence Bangladesh. In his illustrious career as an
economist, he’s worked with many nationally and internationally acclaimed organizations.
Currently, he is a Research Fellow Emeritus at the International Food Policy Research Institute
(IFRPI). He was the Director of the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, and the
Chairman of the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS). He was part of the first
government of independent Bangladesh as the Deputy Chairman of the first Planning
Commission.

Nurul Islam has written twenty five books. His latest, India Pakistan Bangladesh: A Primer
on Political History, published in 2019 by Prothoma Prokashon, has attracted our attention
because it seems to be more about history than economics. 

A primer is referred to as any book that presents the most basic elements of a subject. This book
is a brief but very well written history of Bangladesh. In only ninety-two pages, Nurul Islam
successfully describes the political factors behind the emergence of Bangladesh, starting from
the factors that had led to the partition of India in 1947. 

The book is mainly divided into four sections: Toward the Partition of India, The Creation of
Pakistan, End of Pakistan and Emergence of Pakistan. The circumstances and political issues that
led to India’s partition and later the issues that led to the division of Pakistan are discussed. At
the end of the book, Islam reflects on the challenges that were faced by the newly independent
state of Bangladesh as well as how the government and the state responded to these challenges.

In this book, Nurul Islam tries to understand whether partition was inevitable, and consequently,
whether it was inevitable that East and West Pakistan be divided as well—issues both of which
continue to be widely debated by historians till today. In his crisp language, he discusses how the
partition of India was caused by the fact that the Hindu majority and the Muslim minority of
India could not agree on a constitutional agreement about power-sharing. Resultantly, Pakistan
became a theocratic state created on the basis of religion. It was also a state that was divided into
its Eastern and Western wings, despite significant cultural and language differences, not to
mention the huge geographical distance between them. In fact, the only thing that united the two
was religion, which was simply not enough, especially when the income gap between the Eastern
and Western wings kept widening. 

Then he moves on to how the West Pakistani ruling clique tried to impose Urdu as the state
language when only a small portion of erstwhile East Pakistan spoke it. As the autocratic
government refused to accept Sheikh Mujib’s six-point demand, the breaking up of Pakistan’s
two wings was inevitable. 

In his preface, Nurul Islam explains that this book aims to cater to the younger generations.
However, this primer is a must read not only for young people but also for anyone whose area of
expertise is not the political history of Bangladesh.
One Unit and Islamic Republic:
East Pakistan was a key part of SEATO Suhrawardy (middle) with US President Dwight D.
Eisenhower and Secretary of State John Foster Dulles In 1955, Prime Minister Mohammad Ali
Bogra implemented the One Unit scheme which merged the four western provinces into a single
unit called West Pakistan while East Bengal was renamed as East Pakistan. Pakistan ended its
dominion status and adopted a republican constitution in 1956, which proclaimed an Islamic
republic. The populist leader H. S. Suhrawardy of East Pakistan was appointed prime minister of
Pakistan. As soon as he became the prime minister, Suhrawardy initiated a legal work reviving
the joint electorate system. There was a strong opposition and resentment to the joint electorate
system in West Pakistan. The Muslim League had taken the cause to the public and began calling
for implementation of the separate electorate system. In contrast to West Pakistan, the joint
electorate was highly popular in East Pakistan. The tug of war with the Muslim League to
establish the appropriate electorate caused problems for his government. The constitutionally
obliged National Finance Commission Program (NFC Program) was immediately suspended by
Prime Minister Suhrawardy despite the reserves of the four provinces of the West Pakistan in
1956. Suhrawardy advocated for the USSR-based Five-Year Plans to centralize the national
economy. In this view, East Pakistan's economy was quickly centralized and all major economic
planning shifted to West Pakistan. Efforts leading to centralizing the economy was met with
great resistance in West Pakistan when the elite monopolist and the business community angrily
refused to oblige to his policies. The business community in Karachi began its political struggle
to undermine any attempts of financial distribution of the US$10 million ICA aid to the better
part of the East Pakistan and to set up a consolidated national shipping corporation. In the
financial cities of West Pakistan, such as Karachi, Lahore, Quetta, and Peshawar, there were
series of major labour strikes against the economic policies of Suhrawardy supported by the elite
business community and the private sector. Furthermore, in order to divert attention from the
controversial One Unit Program, Prime Minister Suhrawardy tried to end the crises by calling a
small group of investors to set up a small business in the country. Despite many initiatives and
holding off the NFC Award Program, Suhrawardy's political position and image deteriorated in
the four provinces in West Pakistan. Many nationalist leaders and activists of the Muslim League
were dismayed with the suspension of the constitutionally obliged NFC Program. His critics and
Muslim League leaders observed that with the suspension of NFC Award Program, Suhrawardy
tried to give more financial allocations, aids, grants, and opportunity to East-Pakistan than West
Pakistan, including West Pakistan's four provinces. During the last days of his Prime ministerial
years, Suhrawardy tried to remove the economic disparity between the Eastern and Western
wings of the country but to no avail. He also tried unsuccessfully to alleviate the food shortage in
the country. Suhrawardy strengthened relations with the United States by reinforcing Pakistani
membership in the Central Treaty Organization and Southeast Asia Treaty Organization.
Suhrawardy also promoted relations with the People’s Republic of China. His contribution in
formulating the 1956 constitution of Pakistan was substantial as he played a vital role in
incorporating provisions for civil liberties and universal adult franchise in line with his
adherence to parliamentary form of liberal democracy.

Time of Ayub Khan

Elizabeth II, seen here visiting Chittagong in 1961, was Pakistan's queen until 1956.

In 1958, President Iskandar Mirza enacted martial law as part of a military coup by the Pakistan
Army's chief Ayub Khan. Roughly after two weeks, President Mirza's relations with Pakistan
Armed Forces deteriorated leading Army Commander General Ayub Khan relieving the
president from his presidency and forcefully exiling President Mirza to the United Kingdom.
General Ayub Khan justified his actions after appearing on national radio declaring that: "the
armed forces and the people demanded a clean break
with the past...". Until 1962, the martial law continued
while Field Marshal Ayub Khan purged a number of
politicians and civil servants from the government and
replaced them with military officers. Ayub called his
regime a "revolution to clean up the mess of black
marketing and corruption". Khan replaced Mirza as
president and became the country’s strongman for
eleven years. Martial law continued until 1962 when
the government of Field Marshal Ayub Khan
commissioned a constitutional bench under Chief
Justice of Pakistan Muhammad Shahabuddin,
composed of ten senior justices, each five from East
Pakistan and five from West Pakistan. On 6 May 1961,
the commission sent its draft to President Ayub Khan. He thoroughly examined the draft while
consulting with his cabinet.

In January 1962, the cabinet finally approved the text of the new constitution, promulgated by
President Ayub Khan on 1 March 1962, which came into effect on 8 June 1962. Under the 1962
constitution, Pakistan became a presidential republic. Universal suffrage was abolished in favour
of a system dubbed 'Basic Democracy'. Under the system, an electoral college would be
responsible for electing the president and national assembly. The 1962 constitution created a
gubernatorial system in West and East Pakistan. Each provinces ran their own separate
provincial gubernatorial governments. The constitution defined a division of powers between the
central government and the provinces. Fatima Jinnah received strong support in East Pakistan
during her failed bid to unseat Ayub Khan in the 1965 presidential election.
Dacca was declared as the second capital of Pakistan in 1962. It was designated as the legislative
capital and Louis Kahn was tasked with designing a national assembly complex. Dacca's
population increased in the 1960s. Seven natural gas fields were tapped in the province. The
petroleum industry developed as the Eastern Refinery was established in the port city of
Chittagon.

Six Points

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman announcing the Six Points

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman announcing the Six Points

In 1966, Awami League leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman announced the six-point movement in
Lahore. The movement demanded greater provincial autonomy and the restoration of democracy
in Pakistan. Rahman was indicted for treason during the Agartala Conspiracy Case after
launching the six-point movement. He was released in the 1969 uprising in East Pakistan, which
ousted Ayub Khan from the presidency. Below includes the historical six points:-
  The Constitution should provide for a Federation of Pakistan in its true sense based on
the Lahore Resolution, and the parliamentary form of government with supremacy of a
Legislature directly elected on the basis of universal adult franchise.
 The federal government should deal with only two subjects: Defence and Foreign Affairs,
and all other residual subjects should be vested in the federating states.
 Two separate, but freely convertible currencies for two wings should be introduced; or if
this is not feasible, there should be one currency for the whole country, but effective
constitutional provisions should be introduced to stop the flight of capital from East to
West Pakistan. Furthermore, a separate Banking Reserve should be established and
separate fiscal and monetary policy be adopted for East Pakistan.
 The power of taxation and revenue collection should be vested in the federating units and
the federal center would have no such power. The federation would be entitled to a share
in the state taxes to meet its expenditures.
 There should be two separate accounts for the foreign exchange earnings of the two
wings; the foreign exchange requirements of the federal government should be met by the
two wings equally or in a ratio to be fixed; indigenous products should move free of duty
between the two wings, and the constitution should empower the units to establish trade
links with foreign countries.
 East Pakistan should have a separate military or paramilitary force, and Navy
headquarters should be in East Pakistan.

Ayub Khan was replaced by General Yahya Khan who became the Chief Martial Law
Administrator. Khan organized the 1970 Pakistani general election. The 1970 Bhola cyclone was
one of the deadliest natural disasters of the 20th century. The cyclone claimed half a million
lives. The disastrous effects of the cyclone caused huge resentment against the federal
government. After a decade of military rule, East Pakistan was a hotbed of Bengali nationalism.
There were open calls for self-determination.When the federal general election was held, the
Awami League emerged as the single largest party in the Pakistani parliament. The League won
167 out of 169 seats in East Pakistan, thereby crossing the halfway mark of 150 in the 300-seat
National Assembly of Pakistan. In theory, this gave the League the right to form a government
under the Westminster tradition. But the League failed to win a single seat in West Pakistan,
where the Pakistan Peoples Party emerged as the single largest party with 81 seats. The military
junta stalled the transfer of power and conducted prolonged negotiations with the League. A civil
disobedience movement erupted across East Pakistan demanding the convening of parliament.
Rahman announced a struggle for independence from Pakistan during a speech on 7 March 1971.
Between 7–26 March, East Pakistan was virtually under the popular control of the Awami
League. On Pakistan's Republic Day on 23 March 1971, the first flag of Bangladesh was hoisted
in many East Pakistani households. The Pakistan Army launched a crackdown on 26 March,
including Operation Searchlight and the 1971 Dhaka University massacre. This led to the
Bangladeshi Declaration of Independence.As the Bangladesh Liberation War and the 1971
Bangladesh genocide continued for nine months, East Pakistani military units like the East
Bengal Regiment and the East Pakistan Rifles defected to form the Bangladesh Forces. The
Provisional Government of Bangladesh allied with neighbouring India which intervened in the
final two weeks of the war and secured the surrender of Pakistan.