Ayub Khan

Q) Why were there so many governments between 1951 and 1958? [7]
 Jinnah died in 1948 and Liaquat Ali Khan was assassinated in 1951. The country was
struggling to establish itself without these two experienced figures as most of the other
politicians were inexperienced and had difficulty in running the country. As a result, there
was a lack of stability in governance and this led to many governments being formed during
these years.
 The formation of East Pakistan brought with it its own problems relating to the capital being
located in West Pakistan, and the refusal to have Bengali as the main language as these were
a source of discontent and conflict which not only delayed the constitution but also caused
serious political problems to run the country.
 Another reason was the lust of power of Malik Ghulam Muhammad and Iskandar Mirza, the
two Heads of State between 1951-58. They frequently changed PMs just to maintain their
authority as they were always looking for their yes men e.g. Malik Ghulam Muhammad
dismissed Khawaja Nazimuddin in 1953 and Iskandar Mirza removed 3 PMs in a year that is
between 1957 and 58 i.e. I.I. Chundrigar, Hussein Shaheed Suhrawardy and Feroze khan
Noon.
Such changes caused many administrative, economic and political problems and led to a
further change in government as Ayub Khan, the Commander in Chief, felt that the only
solution left to bring stability was to impose martial law.
Q) Why was martial law imposed in 1958? [7]
 There was a rapid change in governments and 3 PMs were changed in a year i.e. Chundrigar,
Hussain Suhrawardy and Feroze khan Noon. This change caused many administrative
problems and Ayub Khan felt that no other solution besides Martial law remained.
 Another reason was the lust for power in Mirza. When he came to know that Suhrawardy
had united the political leaders of Punjab and Bengal against him he turned to the military to
retain his power and position as President of Pakistan.
 Malik Ghulam Muhammad's case of dissolving the 1st Constituent Assembly in 1954 was
challenged in the Federal Court, the court decided that the governor-general had the right to
dismiss the assembly as the situation demanded it. This paved the way for Mirza and Ayub
Khan to impose martial law by considering it legal for the safety of national interest.
How successful was Ayub Khan as the President of Pakistan? [14]
Social Reforms:
Ayub Khan tried to control the population growth and set up family planning program, largely
funded by American Loans. The program was not particularly successful because of the negative
attitude of the ulema, as they considered it un-Islamic. However, it shows government's efforts to
make Pakistan, a welfare state.
Ayub’s social reforms also aimed at raising the status of women. Major step in this regard was
Family Laws 1961, which introduced the registration of marriage and divorce. The laws also said
that a man had to take permission of his first wife for a second marriage. Though, they were
criticized for being un-Islamic, but in reality, they helped women in getting some rights in a male
dominated society. There was also an attempt to deal with shelter less people. A large number of refugees from India
had still not been able to find permanent homes. Ayub khan appointed General Azam Khan as the
Rehabilitation Minister and he settled 75 thousand refugees in newly built dwellings near Karachi
and so the problem was resolved to some extent.
Ayub Khan also introduced educational reforms. He gave new curriculum for schools and suggested
new books to be published. These reforms sounded fair as level of education was raised and modern
education was promoted.
Industrial Reforms
In 1962, an oil refinery was established in Karachi. As a result Pakistan's economy stabilized and
foreign exchange was saved as it reduced the import of refined oil.
During Ayub regime, the average annual economic growth was 7%, which was three times than that
of India. It was believed that Pakistan had found a way out of poverty which highlights the success
of his economic policies. However, later it was revealed that just 22 families, controlled most of
Pakistan’s industrial and banking assets. This meant that Ayub's policies created economic
inequality and benefited only elite class. Ayub’s policies also gave rise to regional disparity as most
of these 22 families were from West Pakistan which annoyed East Pakistanis and made Ayub highly
unpopular.
Agricultural reforms
Ayub introduced land reforms in 1959 in which minimum land owned was to be 12.5/ twelve point
five acres and the maximum land owned was to be 500 acres irrigated and thousand acres non
irrigated. This was to replace large poorly run farms with relatively smaller smartly run farms which
was a success as agricultural output increased. However, most of the land reforms remained on
paper as Ayub underestimated the power of landlords who passed their surplus land to their
relatives and easily escaped the law.
To boost the economy of Pakistan Ayub was also able to bring in Green Revolution in which farmers
were encouraged to use modern machinery, high-yielding varieties seeds etc. These reforms
revitalized agriculture and output was raised, which was exported and proved to be a source of
foreign exchange earnings.
However, most of the benefits of Green Revolution were enjoyed by wealthy landowners and
mechanization in agriculture led to unemployment of many poor tenants. Thus, these reforms
made the rich richer and the poor poorer.
Constitutional Reforms
The first step of a Ayub Khan’s constitutional reforms came with the introduction of basic
democracies. This was a four tier structure in which ordinary people elected Union Council
Members who in turn elected district, and divisional Council members. This was a system which
people could understand and work with. It helped to put the nation on the path of national
reconstruction, development and progress as everyday problems of common people could be
addressed at grass root level without any delay.
Ayub Khan was successful in drafting the Constitution which was prominent among his reforms. The
constitution of 1962 introduced presidential form of government. It concentrated a lot of power in
the hands of President e.g. choosing and dismissing the cabinet. In reality, it reflected Ayub’s own
liking/vision of political setup of Pakistan, which was named as democracy with discipline. It also meant that if there would be
any problem in future, President would be blamed for them and it
happened in 1968-69 when there were mass demonstrations against Ayub Khan and he was forced
to resign.
The Constitution also had many successes and many steps were taken to satisfy the people of East
Pakistan. For example, both Urdu and Bengali were declared as the national languages. National
Assembly session were to be held both in Dhaka and Islamabad. To disqualify their claim that the
government of Pakistan was controlled by West Pakistan. It was said that if President was from
West Pakistan the speaker would be from East Pakistan and vice versa. These steps helped to
reduce the tensions between the two wings of Pakistan and promoted Unity.
Foreign Policy
Government under Ayub Khan’s leadership was able to find a solution of the canal water dispute. In
1960, an agreement between India and Pakistan was concluded. According to this agreement (Indus
water treaty) India was allowed to use the water of Ravi, Sutlej and Beas and Pakistan’s right was
accepted over the waters of rivers Chenab, Jhelum and the Indus. This improved relations with India
as both countries showed signs of cooperation.
Tashkent Accord of 1966, which was arranged by Soviet Union improved Pakistan’s relations with
India. As according to the accord, a ceasefire of 1965 war was arranged and both the sides agree to
solve the dispute peacefully.
Regional cooperation for development or RCD was signed between Pakistan, Iran and Turkey in
July 1964. Work was done on the RCD Highway and railway track. Many agreements were signed to
promote trade and cultural relations. However, Afghanistan refused to join the RCD. Though most
of the Afghans supported Pakistan in the 1965 war, the Afghan government remained neutral.
__________________________________________
Successes: Constitutional Reforms
 Ayub Khan introduced Basic Democracies. This was a four-tier system in which the people
directly elected Union Council member who in turn elected sub district, district and
divisional council members. This was a system that allowed the redressing of common
people's problem at grass root level without delay
 Ayub Khan was successful in drafting a constitution in 1962. The constitution had many
successes and many steps were taken to satisfy the East Pakistanis e.g. both Bengali and
Urdu were made the national language. This pleased the East Pakistanis as now their
cultural rights were being respected.
 Also, National Assembly sessions were now to be held in Islamabad and Dhaka in turn wise
manner. This pleased the East Pakistanis as now Dhaka was seen as the second capital of
Pakistan.
 Also, the second constitution stated that if President of Pakistan was a West Pakistani then
speaker would be from East Pakistan this pleased the East Pakistanis as they now believed
that West Pakistan was beginning to give them their due rights which promote unity and
friendship which replaced the prevalent feeling of unrest and hatred.
Failures Ayub Khan 1962 Constitution marked the beginning of a presidential form of govt. It
conceived a lot of powers in the hands of the president e.g. choosing and dismissing cabinet
members etc.
Q) Why was the One Unit Scheme unpopular? [7]
 East Pakistanis seriously criticized One Unit Scheme. They saw this move as an act by the
West Pakistanis to take away the majority representation right of the East Pakistanis in the
National Assembly as after unification of all the provinces of West Pakistan the seats in the
assembly were equally divided between the West and East Pakistan although the population
of East Pakistan remained slightly in majority.
 One Unit Scheme was also unpopular among he the smaller units of West Pakistan because
they saw it as a threat to their separate cultural identity and feared that Punjab would
dominate them in West Pakistan as it was the most populous and developed country.
 They also did not like the fact that their resources should be used by other units which was
possible in the unified province of West Pakistan. Thus, they opposed the One Unit Scheme
to stop the exploitation of their resources as this could hinder their (own) development.
Q) Which of the following was the most important reform of Ayub Khan:
Domestic Reforms
1) Constitutional Reforms
- Basic Democracy
- Constitution of 1962
2) Economic Reforms
- Agricultural >>> Land Reforms and Green Revolution
- Industrial
3) Social Reforms
- Family Planning Program
- Family laws
- Resettlement of refugees
- Education
Foreign Policy
- Indus Water Treaty
- Tashkent Agreement
- RCD
Explain your answer with reference to all of the above. [14]
Q) "Domestic Policies of Ayub Khan were more important than his foreign policies?" Do
you agree?
1 st Side
Foreign Policy
2 nd Side
Domestic Policy
Q) "Constitutional policies of Ayub Khan were the most important of his domestic
reforms." Do you agree? Give reasons. [14]
Map below was illegible. :Commented [OS1]Q) Which of the following was the most important domestic reform of Ayub Khan?
1) Constitutional
2) Agricultural
3) Social
Explain your answer with reference to all 3 of the above.
Q) Why did Ayub Khan make Islamabad the new capital? [7]
 It was felt that government officials should be moved well away from the commercial
districts of Karachi that might have some unwanted influence on them. Therefore, Islamabad
was made the new capital so that the civil servants should fully concentrate on their official
duties without any corrupt financial distraction.
 It was also seen as an appropriate movement of power base from the industrially and
commercially developed South (Karachi) to the underdeveloped Punjab region in the North
(Islamabad).
 Ayub Khan wanted to be closer to the army's command headquarters to the North
Rawalpindi which he saw as vital in time of martial law to strengthen his political position.
 Karachi had a very hot and humid climate and as a port it wasn't felt that it represented the
needs of a capita city as the existing buildings were not adequate in number or up to the
standards required by a modern capital.
 Also, with its position on the coast it was considered vulnerable to Indian attacks from the
Arabian Sea. Therefore, it was moved to a relatively safer inland area, Islamabad.
Q) Why did Ayub Khan fall from power in 1969? [7]
 In January, 1965, Presidential elections were held in the country between Ayub Khan and
Fatimah Jinnah, sister of Quaid. Although Ayub won the elections, there were serious
allegations against him for rigging the elections especially in East Pakistan and Karachi.
Therefore, the opposition parties launched large-scale protests against him. He thus became
highly unpopular and was forced to resign.
 Another reason was the Tashkent Agreement. Due to this, Pakistan had to return all the
areas of India captured in the War of 1965 without any settlement on Kashmir. This was
unacceptable to the general public who were told that Pakistan had won the war. As a
result, Ayub's support declined and his fall seemed inevitable.
 After the Tashkent Accord, Ayub forced his foreign minister, Bhutto, to resign as he felt that
Bhutto did not arrange enough foreign support in the war of 1965. Bhutto then became a
focal point against Ayub. He mobilized the masses and politicians against him and put
together a firm opposition which Ayub couldn't resist.
 Another reason was the resignation of the Basic Democrats in large numbers during 1968-
69. As they had been the major support of Ayub Khan, their resignation meant a drastic
decrease of support for his government. Hence, he became politically weak and was forced
to resign.