THE HISTORY OF PAKISTAN i ADVISORY BOARD John T. Alexander Professor of History and Russian and European Studies, University of Kansas Robert A. Divine George W. Littlefield Professor in American History Emeritus, University of Texas at Austin John V. Lombardi Professor of History, University of Florida ii THE HISTORY OF PAKISTAN Iftikhar H. Malik The Greenwood Histories of the Modern Nations Frank W. Thackeray and John E. Findling, Series Editors Greenwood Press Westport, Connecticut • London iii Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Malik, Iftikhar Haider, 1949– The history of Pakistan / Iftikhar H. Malik. p. cm. — (The Greenwood histories of the modern nations, ISSN 1096–2905) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978–0–313–34137–3 (alk. paper) 1. Pakistan—History. 2. India—History. 3. Indus civilization. I. Title. II. Series. DS384.M2716 2008 954.91—dc22 2008012989 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available. Copyright © 2008 by Iftikhar H. Malik All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, by any process or technique, without the express written consent of the publisher. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2008012989 ISBN-13: 978–0–313–34137–3 ISSN: 1096–2905 First published in 2008 Greenwood Press, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881 An imprint of Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. www.greenwood.com Printed in the United States of America The paper used in this book complies with the Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National Information Standards Organization (Z39.48–1984). 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 iv “In the company of friends, death is a feast.” —Attributed to Zahir-ud-Din Babur, the Founder of Mughal Empire in India v Contents Series Foreword ix Frank W. Thackeray and John E. Findling Preface xi Acronyms xiii Timeline of Historical Events xv 1 The Indus Heartland and Karakoram Country 1 2 The Indus Valley Civilization: Dravidians to Aryans 23 3 Islam in South Asia: The Indus and Delhi Sultanates 49 4 The Great Mughals and the Golden Era in Indo-Islamic Civilization, 1526–1707 65 5 The British Rule and the Independence Movements 89 6 Muslims in South Asia and the Making of Pakistan 111 vii viii Contents 7 Pakistan: Establishing the State, 1947–1958 129 8 Military Takeover and the Separation of East Pakistan, 1958–1971 143 9 Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Pakistan People’s Party, and the Military Regime of General Zia-ul-Haq, 1972–1988 159 10 Democratic Decade, 1988–1999: Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif 175 11 General Pervez Musharraf and Pakistan in the Twenty-First Century 195 Notable People in the History of Pakistan 211 Glossary 217 Bibliography 221 Index 229 Series Foreword The Greenwood Histories of the Modern Nations series is intended to provide students and interested laypeople with up-to-date, concise, and analytical his- tories of many of the nations of the contemporary world. Not since the 1960s has there been a systematic attempt to publish a series of national histories, and, as editors, we believe that this series will prove to be a valuable contribution to our understanding of other countries in our increasingly interdependent world. Over thirty years ago, at the end of the 1960s, the Cold War was an ac- cepted reality of global politics, the process of decolonization was still in progress, the idea of a unified Europe with a single currency was unheard of, the United States was mired in a war in Vietnam, and the economic boom of Asia was still years in the future. Richard Nixon was president of the United States, Mao Tse-tung (not yet Mao Zedong) ruled China, Leonid Brezhnev guided the Soviet Union, and Harold Wilson was prime minister of the United Kingdom. Authoritarian dictators still ruled most of Latin America, the Middle East was reeling in the wake of the Six-Day War, and Shah Reza Pahlavi was at the height of his power in Iran. Clearly, the past 30 years have been witness to a great deal of historical change, and it is to this change that this series is primarily addressed. With the help of a distinguished advisory board, we have selected nations whose political, economic, and social affairs mark them as among the most ix x Series Foreword important in the waning years of the twentieth century, and for each nation we have found an author who is recognized as a specialist in the history of that nation. These authors have worked most cooperatively with us and with Greenwood Press to produce volumes that reflect current research on their nations and that are interesting and informative to their prospective readers. The importance of a series such as this cannot be underestimated. As a superpower whose influence is felt all over the world, the United States can claim a “special” relationship with almost every other nation. Yet many Americans know very little about the histories of the nations with which the United States relates. How did they get to be the way they are? What kind of political systems have evolved there? What kind of influence do they have in their own region? What are the dominant political, religious, and cultural forces that move their leaders? These and many other questions are answered in the volumes of this series. The authors who have contributed to this series have written comprehensive histories of their nations, dating back to prehistoric times in some cases. Each of them, however, has devoted a significant portion of the book to events of the last thirty years, because the modern era has contributed the most to contemporary issues that have an impact on U.S. policy. Authors have made an effort to be as up-to-date as possible so that readers can benefit from the most recent scholarship and a narrative that includes very recent events. In addition to the historical narrative, each volume in this series contains an introductory overview of the country’s geography, political institutions, economic structure, and cultural attributes. This is designed to give readers a picture of the nation as it exists in the contemporary world. Each volume also contains additional chapters that add interesting and useful detail to the his- torical narrative. One chapter is a thorough chronology of important historical events, making it easy for readers to follow the flow of a particular nation’s history. Another chapter features biographical sketches of the nation’s most important figures in order to humanize some of the individuals who have contributed to the historical development of their nation. Each volume also contains a comprehensive bibliography, so that those readers whose interest has been sparked may find out more about the nation and its history. Finally, there is a carefully prepared topic and person index. Readers of these volumes will find them fascinating to read and useful in understanding the contemporary world and the nations that comprise it. As series editors, it is our hope that this series will contribute to a heightened sense of global understanding as we embark on a new century. Frank W. Thackeray and John E. Findling Indiana University Southeast Preface Pakistan may be a new name but Pakistanis comprise an ancient society whose ancestors lived in the historic Indus Valley and interacted with the conquerors, scholars, visitors, preachers, Sufis, and immigrants from western and central Asia. Featuring some of the tallest mountains, vast alluvial plains, and arid deserts, this predominantly Muslim country lies at the crossroads of history and shares several characteristics with its neighbours. Our study of this coun- try begins with a lesser known Dravidian past, when the valley experienced the development of agriculture under the priest kings, until the advent of the Aryans, when Brahmanism and Hinduism evolved as two powerful religious forces. Buddhism, Jainism, and Zoroastrianism flourished in ancient Pakistan, which, for a time, was an important part of the Persian Empire that Alexander was able to conquer after extensive military campaigns. The revival of Hindu empires, advent of early Christian communities in the historic city of Taxila, and a series of invasions from the northwest featured in this early history until the arrival of Islam through Sufis and invading Arab armies. Evolution of the Turkic Muslim dynasties, also known as the Delhi Sultanate, ushered in the era of a splendid Indo-Islamic culture, with Persian assuming center stage in the entire subcontinent. The Mughal Era is well known for its political, eco- nomic, and cultural contributions at a time when Europeans began to reach Indian coastal towns. Evolution of the British rule from the mid-eighteenth xi xii Preface century coincided with the Mughal decline, and after the Rebellion of 1857, divergent responses characterized south Asian Muslim interaction in a plural- istic subcontinent. This book describes the formation of Pakistan in 1947, fol- lowing a protracted political movement, and efforts to establish a consensual national ethos. It is hoped that the volume will be equally helpful to a student and a lay person in coming to grips with the realities of this rich and pluralis- tic historical heritage. Several institutions including the British Library, Bodleian Library, Bath Spa University, Wolfson College, and numerous individuals across Pakistan, the subcontinent, and North Atlantic regions have helped me form my views on this vast subject. Sustained interaction with colleagues, students, and friends in Oxford, Bath, and London kept me on the right path, and my family provided energy and humor when I needed them the most. Nighat, Sidra, Kiran, and Farooq merit special thanks; I hope that millions of capable and well-meaning Pakistanis like them will be able to take this country to its deserved place.