The Rawalpindi conspiracy was an attempted coup to overthrow Liaquat Ali Khan, the first Prime Minister of Pakistan, in March 1951. It was the first of many subsequent coup attempts against governments in the history of Pakistan. The coup was notably planned by military general Akbar Khan, poet Faiz Ahmad Faiz, and writer Sajjad Zaheer, along with 12 others.
Causes
According to writer Hasan Zaheer, there were three main causes of the Rawalpindi conspiracy. First, general discontent of Pakistani army officers with the performance of the Liaquat Ali Khan government, which they thought of as corrupt and incompetent. Second, the view of many Pakistani officers that the continuing presence of British officers in the Pakistan army was a security threat. Third, and most immediately, discontent with the government's handling of the Kashmir war with India (1947–1948). Army officers thought the government's acceptance of UN mediation and ceasefire was weak and squandered an opportunity to capture the whole of Kashmir.
Participants
Eleven military officers and four civilians were involved in the conspiracy. The main person responsible for planning the coup was Maj. Gen. Akbar Khan, the chief of general staff of the Pakistani army. On 23 February 1951, a secret meeting was held at General Akbar's home, attended by other communist officers and communist party members, including Marxist Sajjad Zaheer and communist Faiz. General Akbar assured Faiz and Zaheer that the communist party would be allowed to function as a legitimate political party like any other party and to take part in the elections. But, according to communist Zafar Poshni, who maintained, in 2011, that "no agreement was reached, the plan was disapproved, the communists weren't ready to accept General's words and the participants dispersed without meeting again". However, the next morning, the plot was foiled when one of the communist officers defected to the ISI, revealing the motives behind the plot. When the news reached the prime minister, orders for massive arrests were given to the military police by the prime minister. Before the coup could be initiated, General Akbar among other communists were arrested, including Faiz.
Exposure and trial
The conspiracy was foiled after the government was informed of the coup attempt by one of the confidantes of Akbar Khan. Government forces immediately arrested Maj. Gen. Akbar Khan and the other conspirators, including Faiz Ahmed Faiz. The army commander-in-chief, General Ayub Khan, and the defence secretary, Maj. Gen. Iskander Mirza, had both remained loyal to the government. Ayub Khan immediately ordered the army troops to surround and take control of the army headquarters, where Maj. Gen. Akbar Khan was based. Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan announced the foiling of the coup on 9 March 1951. The government passed the Rawalpindi Conspiracy (Special Tribunal) Act to set up a special tribunal to investigate the conspiracy.
After an 18-month trial conducted in secrecy, Maj. Gen. Khan and Faiz Ahmed Faiz were both convicted and sentenced to long terms of imprisonment. Their defence lawyer was the notable Bengali Muslim politician Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy. Faiz continued to publish many works of poetry, and was appointed to the National Council for Arts by the Bhutto government.
References
Further reading
- Dryland, Estelle. "Faiz Ahmed Faiz and the Rawalpindi Conspiracy Case." Journal of South Asian Literature 27.2 (1992): 175–185. Online