Daily Times

I remember going to Dhaka as member of Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s entourage in June 1974 on his first official visit after recognition of Bangladesh. It was an unprecedented experience clouded by confusion and unpredictable apprehensions. When we landed at Dhaka airport the atmosphere was eerie. We were rushed into separate cars in a group of three. Myself, Hillal-e- Pakistan’s editor Sirajul Haq Memon and Urdu colmnist Ibrahim Jalees were in one car.

We were so scared of the propaganda against Bhutto sahib that we feared some harm would come to our motorcade. Despite having put perhaps all their security forces we were extremely vulnerable to any mischief since engines of our cars conked off due to extraordinary heat and humidity. Soon we realised that the driver had switched off the engine and the car was being pushed by millions of people that had gathered in the streets of Dhaka to welcome Bhutto sahib.

Their passions were surfeit with love. Three of us shook hands with hundreds of Bengalis, some offering fruits and others welcoming drinks in that humid weather. Despite the huge multitude raising cheerful slogans, there was no untoward incident, not a single flower pot was damaged nor did people hanging by tree branches fall off. Sheikh Mujib was so sacred that on return he imposed curfew on the route to the airport.

It’s a long story of crimes and follies of our military leaders, judicial and civilian bureaucratic power troika wanting to make Pakistan a security state rather than MAJ’s social welfare state

Our stay in Dhaka was around 56 hours. Bhutto sahib had meetings with Prime Minister MujiburRehman, laid wreath at the Shaheed Minar and graves of leaders like Husseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy. He initially discussed with Sheikh Sahib the idea of a confederation between the two countries. Looking at the deplorable economic conditions and the plight of the masses, Bhutto Sahib was confident that he would succeed in bringing Sheikh Sahib to the idea of a confederation.

Indeed in our meetings with politicians and journalists like KG Mustafa, editors like Salam Sahib of Pakistan Observer, Salahuddin of Holiday, ANP’s Masih Ur Rehman (Jadu Mian), Mizanur Rehman (brother of coup leader General Ziaur Rehman)– among others revealed their hidden anti-Indian feelings. They were of the view that India was using Bangladesh as a dumping ground for its low quality goods. Many of our Bengali friends welcomed most affectionately gifts for them taken by us. They looked forward to seeking brotherly relations between the two countries. Their cultural show of dance and music, performance by artistes like Shahnaz Begum, Fidousi Begum, Runa Laila and others was definitely nostalgic and reminded one of good old days in Karachi when these singers used to enthral large audiences for hours with lilting renditions.

As usual this year too I have come across references being made to Bhutto Sahib’s alleged slogan of “udhar tum idhar hum” wrongly attributed to him. In this context,it would be apt to bring on record, the genesis of the break up, as revealed by former Chief Justice of Pakistan and later President Ayub Khan’s Federal Law Minister Justice Munir in his book ‘Jinnah To Zia’ proscribed in Pakistan by President General Zia ul Haq as it spilled “truth, nothing but the whole truth”.

Justice Munir as Law Minister visited East Pakistan in 1962 and submitted to Ayub Khan a report that stated that federation between two wings was artificial and that it would not last long. According to him Bengali Muslims were influenced by Hindu culture and life style. He advised by Ayub look into the possibility of separation. Ayub agreed with his thesis and asked to broach the subject of separation with the senior Bengali minister in his cabinet to find a bloodless path to separation. Munir did broach the subject with Moizuddin Ahmed, Senoir Minister in Ayub’s cabinet, who bluntly asked him- ‘was he suggestion separation?’, Munir to him said ‘sort of’ on which the Benglali Minister responded that ‘East Pakistan was in majority, if the smaller provinces wanted to separate, they are welcome.’

Defencelessness of East Pakistan in the 1965 war with India dawned on the Bengali leadership the idea of maximum provincial autonomy as much as promised to the federating units by the Quaid who had declared that provinces in Pakistan shall have more autonomy then the states in the United States. One of Pakistan’s top civil bureaucrats-Altaf Gauhar  who shared Ayub and Munir’s idea, used his friendship of his SDO days in Mujib’s district. He sold him the idea of Bangladesh. It is a recorded fact that Altaf Guhar as Information Secretary and head of National Bureau of Integration invited Mujib to Lahore in 1966 as NBI’s guest to announce his famous Six Points at a press conference.

Mujib ignited a prairie fire of resentment. To damage control Altaf Gauhar directed his Ministry to instruct newspapers not to criticise 6 points and were told to be positive in their comments. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was the only minister in Ayub’s cabinet who challenged Mujib. By this time he was out of favour due to his opposition to Tashkent Declaration and when he announced that he was ready to debate six points with Mujib in a public meeting in Dhaka’s Paltan Maidan, Ayub did not allow him to go there.

It was after all a conspiracy of the West Pakistani power troika of generals, judges and bureaucrats to make a security state rather than Quaid-e-Azam’s social welfare state. I was at Nishtar Park where Bhutto Sahib made his alleged ‘Idhar hum, udhr tum speech’.  Such a statement should have been in shrieking headlines in newspapers next day. None except one paper in Lahore distorted that portion of Bhutto Sahib’s speech. It was Daily Azad edited by Abbas Athar who confessed to me when he came to UK for cancer treatment that distortion of Bhutto Sahib’s speech was deliberate to malign him.

Bhutto Sahib’s critics also blabber too much about his alleged threat to break the legs of West Pakistani Parliamentarians thinking of going to Dhaka to attend its inaugural session called by President General Yahya.  Remember we must that Mujib’sAwami League had absolute majority with around 150 members from East Pakistan while Bhutto Sahib had only 82 mostly from Punjab. There were other parties opposing Mujib, Why did Gen Yahya listen to Bhutto only? Why didn’t he listen to Asghar Khan and Wali Khan who were insisting on transfer of power to Mujib. General Yahya’s brother Agha Mohammad Ali Qazilbash who was Intelligencce Bureau chief claimed in a TV interview that there were intelligence reports that a resolution of secession by Awami League would be passed during the session.

I agree with the view that PPP should have supported the holding of the session, but did not as such it played into the chicanery of the military rulers.  However, given the sentiments of the establishment, PPP perhaps went along not wanting to rock the boat. However, the onus of cancellation of the NA session was entirely on Yahya. He was in absolute power, strong enough to take genocidal military action to deny legitimate transfer of power to the majority party and not mighty enough to tame one of the many opposition parties opposed to the session.  In short, it’s a long story of crimes and follies of our military leaders, judicial and civilian bureaucratic power troika wanting to make Pakistan a security state rather than MAJ’s social welfare state.

Author is the former High Commissioner of Pakistan to UK and a veteran journalist

Published in Daily Times, December 26^th 2018.