LAHORE:
A retired soldier does not want you to know his name. He is not ashamed of what he did for the Pakistan Army in what is now Bangladesh in 1971. Rather, he knows that, forty years on, this period of history is as strained and fraught as ever – and he fears the military might not be pleased that he wants to set down his version of the truth.
He just wants you to hear his tale of discrimination, confrontation and misunderstanding that led to the events of December 16, 1971. This is a day, the retired major says, he does not want to remember.
“We were surrounded by the Indian army for a week, and would have continued fighting till our last breath,” says the Pakistan major, who was posted in Comilla, a town a few kilometers from the Indian border, when war broke out in 1971.
With all communication cut off, supplies running short and having to defend the cantonment area with bare-bones resources, the situation was dire. “But on December 16, the Indians intercepted our radio communication efforts and told us that General Niazi had surrendered in Dhaka and there was no use in continuing fighting,” he says.
None of them believed it could be true, but confirmation came via the ever-reliable BBC radio. His commanding officer, a brigadier who was leading the battalion of some 4,000 men, agreed to surrender.
The major, who had been attacking the Indians from nearby hills with 1,000 men under his command, also retreated after the orders came. He was taken by the Indian military as a prisoner of war and spent two years in India before being set free.
When asked if he ever thought he would be surrendering in a country he thought of as his own, he says he never knew things could get so bad, but also claims the cracks in the system had started to show long before 1971.
The retired major, who is a third generation military officer, says that when he was young, he used to visit his father who was also posted in Chittagong, Bangladesh. “The civil service, military and other high ranking government positions were all occupied by West Pakistanis, who considered Bengalis an inferior race,” he says. Many times he saw Bengalis openly humiliated and treated like ‘untouchables’.
He saw the discrimination up close when he himself was posted to Bangladesh. “In 1970 I was sent to the same city where my father served – Chittagong. I made many close friends who were Bengalis there.”
He adds with a sigh that he lost all these friends, as they started avoiding him after the rifts that followed the elections of December 1970; some even became military enemies.
“The Bengalis had obviously won the majority, and wanted the first assembly session in Dhaka, but the army chief Yahya Khan, who headed the government then, refused. When talks failed in March 1971 a military crackdown against them was ordered,” the retired officer says.
“As a repercussion, the Bengalis started attacking back, and one of the largest orchestrated attacks which formed the basis of the independence movement for Bengalis was on March 26th 1971.”
“But not everyone defected from the military. One of my friends, who is a Bengali by origin, remained loyal till the end and retired as a brigadier and is now living in Rawalpindi,” he says, adding that many of his brigadier friend’s family members were killed because of his loyalty towards Pakistan.
“If the civilian government and the army of West Pakistan had realized that a military solution was not the answer, things would have been different. But the problem is that officers like me were discouraged from sharing our opinions on politics, so we kept quiet and followed orders,” he says.
For the officer, Pakistan’s own weakness in failing to make Bengalis feel a part of Pakistan led to the nine months of war and the break-up of the country. “We have not learnt much from the war. If we had, we would not be doing the same in Balochistan, where we are again depriving people economically. The government must act before it’s too late.”
Published in The Express Tribune, December 16th, 2011.
COMMENTS (64)
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The retired Indian Army officer's account may very well be correct. Things are classified and therefore he has decided not to provide his name. When he says he carved out a nation that cannot identify itself through ideology, he is talking about West Pakistan (modern day Pakistan), not Bangladesh. Not everything is known to the public eye - there are probably government organizations within India that are not publicly identifiable, though they may recruit from branches of the Indian military. One of my distant relatives worked for a branch of the Indian intelligence and was shot down in an aircraft while on a secret mission to save Mujibur Rahman's life. The shot came from an jet based in Myanmar and was not controlled by the Burmese nor the Pakistanis. The Indian govt told our family to keep it under wraps. These stories need to be told at some point.
As far as the retired Indian Army officer's account - he shouldn't feel sorry, as there would never have been a status quo had India decided not to intervene in East Pakistan. Pakistani intelligence were on a mission to acquire both Kashmir and Assam. This is one of the reasons OBL mentions Assam in one of his videos - guess where he heard about it from and who was hiding him? India did the right thing of intervening in East Pakistan and there is no reason to feel sorry about it. Otherwise, India today would have lost both Kashmir and Assam. It would have been a grave situation.
@A Retired Indian Army Officer: Dear Colonel, It would be interesting to know which formation you belonged to during our 1971 operation. I was myself a Lt. Colonel at that time and was commandeering Rajputana Rifles along the Comilla-Khulna-Chittagong axis. To my knowledge of that time, and even later when I was the COC-Western Command, our regular army was never directly involved in training or arming of the Muktis. Who did that is classified, but certainly not any regular army unit(s). It is strange that a Colonel of the Indian Army should suffer pangs of his conscious because he trained mercenaries and because he was a pawn in the hands of his masters. Dear Colonel, I would give my right hand to know which academy you passed out from and in which year. Regards, Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Asit Ghosh, Mumbai
@A Retired Indian Army Officer:
"We were guilty in stabbing in our neighbor’s back" "i feel deeply sad for atrocities committed by out mercenaries and somehow feel directly responsible for it" "We were pawns in hands of our masters" "We carved out a nation who still cannot identify itself through its ideology"
The highlighted words in the above sentences are not native to an Indian... Nice try bro...
Greatly written.. It sets the record straight that bengalese were treated as an inferior race and this led to the ultimate consequence.. creation of Bangladesh... The key pharase in this article is "If we had, we would not be doing the same in Balochistan, where we are again depriving people economically"
Mistakes should not be repeated in order to prevent such disaster from happening in future...
@sam: According to a lot of "experts" it might already be too late.
@A Retired Indian Army Officer: Sir, your courage is much appreciated!
@A Retired Indian Army Officer: Your post would have been credible if you had given your name and unit like Lt Gen Asit Ghosh above.
@Anjum; You think raping of 3,000 women, and killing 30,000 of their own people by their own army is less? Please read history books again. Your count of WW II deaths is also far from correct. No wonder- though, we know the school history text books of Pakistan do not teach the truth.
@Yuri Kondratyuk: People without a past are people without an identity and without a future. One needs a credible identity to respect the other. With invented identities one cannot respect the other but only boast about oneself
Its good that that someone from Pakistan Army came up and confessed their sins. Well i am a retired colonel from indian army and i have something to confess too. In 1971 my unit was involved in training the deadly Mukti Bahni well before things heated up in east Pakistan. As things have been classified since long but i feel that now time has come that we come up with truth. We were guilty in stabbing in our neighbor's back. Time has passed i feel deeply sad for atrocities committed by out mercenaries and somehow feel directly responsible for it. We were pawns in hands of our masters and didn't realize the gravity of our sins. We carved out a nation who still cannot identify itself through its ideology. I am deeply sorry to all the families who lost their deer ones in a conflict which always meant to be a revenge on our part.
@Moderator You seem to have edited the article which you published yesterday. Why? Do not see many published comments too. how did this houdini act happen?
Pertinent and true. We lived in a make believe world then, and we continue to live in it now. The leadership t all levels, in all fields, simply failed to assess the situation. The people lacked honesty of motive and neither the vision nor the competency was there to forestall the crisis. In fact, Yahya was singularly inept, Ayub was under delusion when he cheated Miss Fatima Jinnah and Bengalis were sure that we meant to keep them deprived of their genuine rights. We were culprits then, we are culprits now. idrees
@AK: "2. India never wanted two anti India Muslim states around it and it was in it’s strategic interest from days one, 1947 to dismember East Pakistan " By "dismembering" East Pakistan, didn't India do exactly what you say India never wanted - to create two Muslim states around it. Do you think you missed something here? The fact is that India could not continue to host millions disgorged by Pakistani Army from East Pakistan by imposing an open-ended conflict on its own people. Of course, we felt bad that Bengali human beings were being butchered but would not have intervened independently of the world if the conflict would not have spilled over into India. Even then before taking military action, PM Indira Gandhi went around the world capitals seeking redressal of the situation. No one helped! @Anjum: to Observer "THINK: it is physical impossible for 45000 Pak soldiers to rape 30000 women, kill 3million people and waging war at the same in a 6months period." News reports at the time described how Pakistani soldiers surrendered along with their Bengali maidens from their bunkers. Doubtless, it probably was not a widespread practice. However, this would point to disaffection of Pakistani soldiers for their superiors even. Apparently, East Pakistan was as much in chaos as (West) Pakistan is in today.
@ anjum you are dead wrong with ur facts. Ww2 claimed some 60 million people over six years. The oft quoted 6 million figure is the no. Of jews alone killed in the period. Both nazis and pakistani army thus have an element in common: feeling of racial superiority.
@Abid: SO, you say that "ET at its best….spreading only one side of story.. As a basic rule i dont believe in anonymous stories"!
If you wish to criticize the authors' narrative of his part in this history, then please tell us the OTHER side of the story of these events that you refer to! (ALSO, please tell us where you served in this campaign since you were there, weren't you?)
@Anjum: What is there to enjoy in that? Wake up please! It's not too late even now!! How can Bengalis be an inferior race? Although I am nowhere near being a Bengali. I am maharashtrian. And Raakhi, Sharmila Tagore [Seif's mother and Nawab Pataudi's wife], Rabindranth Tagore, Amartya Sen [both nobel laureates], the most handsome film star of Bollywood Biswajeet, Oscar winner Satyajit Ray etc etc are all Bengalis. The mumbaiyites think they are posh, but if they were to look down upon others, people would not have migrated and settled there. I think the society has to change! And change is permanent. But people seldom accept change!!
Thanks for publishing such an article. Pakistanis should learn the truth,- how their army started a war against their own people, - killing some millions. I was a witness to that. I am a Bangalee, and in 1971 , I was 18 years old. The atrocities pakistan army committed was really beyond any description. Thank God we have saved ourselves. I expect some more articles on the events of 1971 on Dawn. Thanks anyway.
For the people who still blames Sardars and Nawabs for Balochistan's situation. Makran belt has no sardars but the Independence movement has grown it's roots over there you cannot find any Baloch kid who will say that he is a Pakistani. All the sardars are with government except two i.e. Mengal and Marri. Blaming sardars or India won't solve the critical problem of Balochistan. For me the last hope of solve the problem within Pakistan is change of mindset of ISI and other State forces then only there is a little ray of hope otherwise it will be the same as in 1970s.
History repeats itselfI think its already too late to settle things in Balochistan where hoisting of Pakistani flag and singing Pakistani national anthem is banned. If you talk about Pakistan you are considered as members of ISI, FC etc. The situation has gone beyond control, we are receiving the dead bodies of our youth on daily basis with torture marks and all. If patriotic Pakistani still think that we can forget 1000s of sacrifices by our loved ones then its their biggest mistake.
Mah Ahd o Kasam Paimaan aa kanan Azaad "Balochistan" aa kanan ~Balochi Translation We swear to our motherland "Balochistan" that we are gonna make you independent.@Observer: You are observing but not contemplating. Pls. Fokus on the matter in hand. I get more and more convinced that you and the Bengalis are yourself victims of a lie that you have been cornered by and difficult to get out of. THINK: it is physical impossible for 45000 Pak soldiers to rape 30000 women, kill 3million people and waging war at the same in a 6months period. 6 million people died in WW II in 6years. Until then you and your like accept facts you will alienate yourself from us pakistanis. Period.
It made me cry and still it makes me cry too. A black day in our history. alas we could learn from it and prepared ourselves to revenge the defeat, may be in Indian Punjab. i leave rest to ingenuity of readers.
Pakistan has learned nothing and continues the ethnic cleansing of minorities. Only consolation is these activities will continue resulting in implosion of land of pure when no one is deemed pure enough.
Civil leadership should take the responsibility. Military opertaion was only ordered for once the civilians failed to give the due right to Bangalis. Mr. Bhutto you cheated us !!!!
@Another old soldier:
I salute you for your very wise comments and the great vision for humanity, peace and prosperity.
@grinz 09:
"@Observer: The ordinary Baloch are very simple and patriotic people. It’s the Sardar’s and Nawab’s who have private armies and prisons, who want absolute power."
That is exactly the same lines that the Pakistani establishment said about the situation in East Pakistan just before 1971. They said that the disturbance in East Pakistan was the creation of just a few Hindus. You know the history now.
@Abid: I totally agree: here is something more with facts: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-13417170 . Pls. enjoy.
It is a great tragic aspect of subcontinent that it has been a place of intrigues and mischievous plots for power and dominance over simple and poor people of this region by cunning crafty relentless, ruthless and shrewd so called rulers and politicians who played havoc with it by staging heinous massacre through wars and communal riots.The history of subcontinent is full of such incidents and Bangladesh is no exception to this. Alas! the sufferer are always the poor innocent inhabitants of this region irrespective of creed and religion.
@Truth: Very right we have a long way to go we all have to become more tolerant and learn to to respect one another.
I can corroborate the major's article because I too have seen Bengalis humiliated by West Pakistanis in the most sub-human way and I am sorry for it. I too proudly served my country through this conflict but remember this: Bengalis were also very proud Pakistanis. Hussain Shaheed Surawardy, Mohammad Ali Bogra et al the list goes on. All I can do now is to request the next generation of Pakistanis to please pause before making any hasty decisions. What sort of Pakistan do you want to leave behind for your loved ones? Look at the progress Europe has made in bringing their own kind together. Is it not time we forged a new path for our country and region? Is is not time we too embraced our Hindu Brothers in India, Our Bengali brothers in Bangladesh and lead this region out of the gutter into a new era of hope? STAND TOGETHER is what I say. The times demand it. Let us turn over a new leaf, take the first step. Blessed are the Peacemakers as Hazrat Esa (RE) said
Even today there is discrimination in Pakistan. If you are not landlord or wadera or belong to some upper class you are a nobody and will always be looked down upon.
Only two factors lead to 1971 partition; 1. our internal weaknesses which come up when we dont give the right to people from difference backgrounds, thank god now there is some betterment in our overall ruling system and 2. India never wanted two anti India Muslim states around it and it was in it's strategic interest from days one, 1947 to dismember East Pakistan and unfortunately the freedom fighters in East Pakistan were trained for India's own interest but i would blame our weakness for all this
@ProudPakistani:
Funny that you were the very same person who said "You cannot forget how Pakistan(a seven times smaller army) let u down in 1948,1965 & 1999…"
Have some standards dude..
@Observer: The ordinary Baloch are very simple and patriotic people. It's the Sardar's and Nawab's who have private armies and prisons, who want absolute power.
To my fellow Indians, it is way too early to be satisfied with what we have in India. Yes, tolerance levels may be a little better in India, especially in a few 'cosmopolitan' cities, but we have a long way to go before we rub out the divides between castes and totally eradicate the Hindu-Muslim divide. Also, we may be shrinking the north south divide, but the east-west divide concerns me.
Dear Major,
By the way, I was commanding 7 Raj Rifles at Comilla-Khulna sector that night. I wish you gave some comments/thoughts on your stay at our camp after the surrender.
Injustice was done long before and we paid the heaviest price a nation. Although i wasn't born then but stills feel the immense pain to seperation of our brotherly state.
Corruption shouldn't be tolerated as this is the greatest cause of injustice. Be it moral or monetary. To acknowledge our mistake is the rightous way to lessen the pain. May we do Justice from now on in each aspect of our life.
Thank you very much, Retired Major , for writing such an empirical, unbiased and factual article about 1971 war.
A suggestion to Pakistan Highoffs:
Please give the whole development budget of one year to Baluchistan (share of Punjab, sindh and KPK) to bring them in pace with the other Pakistani; Please its necessary to save pakistan
I see two comments on Imran. There is a near messainic expectation about him even though he is completely untested in the field of statecraft - more like a Sarah Palin. Hope he delivers (and there are doubts - many view him as a creature of the establishment) otherwise the national despondency, which is already high, will skyrocket.
Very well ssaid Dear Major. Yes we all say so that we haven't get lesson from out own history and again doing the same mistakes in in our own Balochistan. I live in Karachi, but I equally feel pain for plight of people of Balochistan. But I also say that what the people who murdering the non-balochies (residing in Balochistan for decades even Professors) are not doing the things that favours their cause.
@Yuri Kondratyuk: - Hi Yuri - in fact in india even the previous north/south divide is rapidly vanishing !
If we think about the country; then why not for the people of the country. Any how voices to be raised constantly to help the deprived ones of the country.; PEOPLES LIVE COUNTRIES SURVIVE.
Military is not the solution That is what Imran Khan is saying from decades...I hope one day we all will understand him..
Responsibility of breaking Pakistan into two parts lies on the shoulders who were sitting at that time at the helm of the affairs.
Unfortunately, we did not learned any lesson from our past and still the same blame game is going on.
Now if some thing will happen to the remaining Pakistan of Quaid-e-Azam, the responsibility will again be on the shoulders of those people who are now sitting at the helm of the affairs.
I am very grieved and probably may die taking the pain in my chest of breaking Pakistan time and again.
Usman from Bangladesh Doctor in Norway It seams Pakistan has learned NOTHING from past. I was astonished when Pak sent Army to tribal areas and to Blochistan and expected the different results :( Imran Khan is exception though, "I'll NEVER ever use my Army against my OWN people" Imran Khan. I wish we just just ONE imran in Bangla :)
@S:
"Miltary is not the solution, we need to develop Balochistan economically and create solutions through dialouge."
Just as was the case with East Pakistan, the day for economic solutions and dialog are long gone. Just like the East Pakistanis, Baloch now want the right of self-determination. How can Pakistan deny that to the Baloch while harping on it for the Kashmiris? It looks like Pakistani establishment hasn't learned any lessons from the loss of E. Pakistan.
a very heartfelt story indeed.
True, Bengalies played a vital in in independence movement from British empire, hoe come they started to think break-up of Pakistan. That is the terrible chapter of history and once again it can be observed in tribal areas and baluchistan. Thouasands of people have been killed by drones in past few years but reaction observed only against the killing of 26 uniformed people.
@SKD:
Havent you figured it out yet? The one thing responsible for pakistans defeat in 1971 was its attitude towards the Bangladeshis. Everything else followed from that.
In Pakistan every ethnicity thinks of themselves superior to the other. Its inbred in our culture and will take decades to wipe this idiotic thinking clean but by then I fear it will be too late. from 4 provinces we will have 5 countries.
An incident that we should not forget, but learn from it.
will someone please start saying how much Z.A Bhutto is responsible for fall of Dhaka?
It means pak army (chief Yahya Khan) is play its major role in the partition...!!!!
I really feel pain for my Baloch brothers and sisters, please forgive us.
Miltary is not the solution, we need to develop Balochistan economically and create solutions through dialouge.
Pakistan Zindabad! May ALLAH help us overcome our problems.
Yeah darkest day of Pakistan's History but worst thing is that we do not learn from this. We even could not find who was really responsible for this defeat it was army, civil Govt or people of Pakistan
It has taken us almost 40 years to start speaking of the 1971 tragedy.
"the govt must act before its too late" Message of the day.