The Early Years 1947-58

This handout covers the governments of Pakistan from independence to the first martial law: Liaquat Ali Khan, Khwaja Nazimuddin, Ghulam Muhammad and Iskander Mirza, the One Unit scheme, the 1956 constitution and the reasons for political instability. It belongs to Section 3 of the syllabus, nationhood 1947-99.

Key dates

Date	Event
September 1948	Death of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah; Khwaja Nazimuddin becomes Governor-General
12 March 1949	The Constituent Assembly passes the Objectives Resolution
April 1950	The Liaquat-Nehru Pact on minorities
16 October 1951	Liaquat Ali Khan is assassinated in Rawalpindi
February 1952	Language riots in Dhaka
April 1953	Ghulam Muhammad dismisses Nazimuddin
October 1954	Ghulam Muhammad dissolves the Constituent Assembly
October 1955	The One Unit scheme comes into force; West Pakistan becomes a single province
23 March 1956	The first constitution comes into force; Iskander Mirza becomes President
7 October 1958	Mirza abolishes the constitution and declares martial law
27 October 1958	General Ayub Khan removes Mirza and becomes President

Liaquat Ali Khan, Prime Minister 1947-51

Liaquat Ali Khan was Pakistan's first Prime Minister. After Jinnah's death in 1948 he was the country's real leader.

The Objectives Resolution 1949

This was the first step towards a constitution. It set out the principles on which the constitution would be based:

• Sovereignty over the universe belongs to Allah, and the authority of the state is a trust to be used through the chosen representatives of the people.
• The principles of democracy, freedom, equality, tolerance and social justice, as set out by Islam, would be followed.
• Muslims would be enabled to live their lives according to the teachings of Islam.
• Minorities would be free to follow and practise their religions and develop their cultures.
• Fundamental rights would be guaranteed and the judiciary would be independent.

Some non-Muslim members opposed the Resolution. A Basic Principles Committee was then asked to draft the constitution. Its first report in 1950 was criticised, especially in East Pakistan, which objected to having no more seats than West Pakistan despite its larger population and to Urdu as the only national language. The report was withdrawn.

The Liaquat-Nehru Pact 1950

Violence against minorities in East and West Bengal in 1950 caused a new wave of migration and brought the two countries close to war. Liaquat met Nehru in Delhi in April 1950. They agreed that each government was responsible for protecting the lives, property and rights of its minorities, that refugees could return to deal with their property, and that minority commissions would be set up. The pact reduced tension and slowed migration.

Other events and assassination

In 1949 Liaquat's government passed a law known as PRODA, which allowed politicians to be tried and disqualified for misconduct. In January 1951 Ayub Khan became the first Pakistani Commander-in-Chief of the army. On 16 October 1951 Liaquat was shot dead while addressing a public meeting in Rawalpindi.

Khwaja Nazimuddin, Prime Minister 1951-53

Nazimuddin, a Bengali, stepped down as Governor-General to become Prime Minister. Ghulam Muhammad, the former Finance Minister, became Governor-General. Nazimuddin faced serious difficulties:

• In February 1952 students in Dhaka protested against Urdu as the only national language. Several were killed when police opened fire, and anger in East Pakistan grew.
• A second report of the Basic Principles Committee in 1952 was also criticised and no constitution was agreed.
• There were food shortages in 1952-53.
• In 1953 religious groups led riots in Punjab demanding that Ahmadis be declared non-Muslims. Martial law had to be imposed in Lahore to restore order.

In April 1953 Ghulam Muhammad dismissed Nazimuddin, although he still had the support of the Assembly.

Ghulam Muhammad, Governor-General 1951-55

Ghulam Muhammad, a former civil servant, chose Muhammad Ali Bogra, Pakistan's ambassador to the United States, as Prime Minister. Under Bogra, Pakistan received American aid and joined the alliances SEATO (1954) and the Baghdad Pact (1955).

In 1954 the Muslim League was heavily defeated in the East Pakistan provincial election by the United Front. Later that year the Constituent Assembly tried to pass laws limiting the Governor-General's powers. Ghulam Muhammad responded in October 1954 by dissolving the Assembly and appointing a new cabinet that included General Ayub Khan and Iskander Mirza. The Speaker, Maulvi Tamizuddin Khan, challenged the dissolution in court. The Sindh court ruled in his favour, but the Federal Court decided for the Governor-General. A new Constituent Assembly was elected in 1955.

Iskander Mirza and the One Unit scheme 1955

Iskander Mirza, a former army officer and senior civil servant, became Governor-General in 1955. Chaudhry Muhammad Ali became Prime Minister. In October 1955 the provinces and princely states of the western wing were merged into a single province, West Pakistan. East Bengal was renamed East Pakistan.

Why One Unit was introduced

1. Efficiency. The government said that one administration instead of several would cost less and make planning and development easier.
2. Parity with East Pakistan. East Pakistan had the larger population. With the west as one province, the two wings could be given equal seats in the assembly, which prevented East Pakistan from having a majority.
3. National unity. It was claimed that removing provincial boundaries would reduce provincial rivalries in the west.

The scheme was unpopular. The smaller western provinces feared domination by Punjab, and East Pakistanis saw it as a device to cancel their majority.

The 1956 constitution

After nine years, the second Constituent Assembly produced a constitution, which came into force on 23 March 1956.

• Pakistan became the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The Governor-General was replaced by a President, who had to be a Muslim.
• The system was parliamentary, with a Prime Minister and cabinet answerable to a National Assembly of one house.
• East and West Pakistan had equal seats in the Assembly.
• Urdu and Bengali were both national languages.
• The President could choose the Prime Minister and had emergency powers.

Mirza became the first President. No general election was ever held under this constitution. Between 1956 and 1958 four Prime Ministers held office in turn: Chaudhry Muhammad Ali, H. S. Suhrawardy, I. I. Chundrigar and Feroz Khan Noon.

Why was there political instability, and why was martial law declared in 1958?

1. Loss of leaders. Jinnah died in 1948 and Liaquat was killed in 1951. No later politician had the authority to hold the country together.
2. Weak parties. The Muslim League lost its unity and its support, above all in East Pakistan after 1954. Governments rested on unstable coalitions.
3. Delay over the constitution. The quarrels over the place of Islam, the share of power between the wings and the national language took nine years to settle.
4. Powerful heads of state. Ghulam Muhammad and Mirza, both former officials, dismissed Prime Ministers and an Assembly. Power moved from elected politicians to the civil service and the army.
5. East-West tension. Disputes over language, parity and One Unit left East Pakistan feeling that it was being ruled from the west.
6. The events of 1958. Disorder in the East Pakistan assembly led to the death of its Deputy Speaker. A general election was due, and Mirza had reason to fear that it would end his power. On 7 October 1958 he abolished the constitution, dismissed the government and declared martial law with Ayub Khan as Chief Martial Law Administrator. On 27 October Ayub forced Mirza to resign and took power himself.

How to judge it: how successful were the governments of 1947-58?

Successes. The state survived the loss of its founder. The Objectives Resolution set lasting principles. A constitution was finally agreed in 1956 and gave Bengali equal status.

Failures. There were seven Prime Ministers in eleven years. The constitution took nine years and lasted less than three. Elected governments were dismissed by unelected heads of state. East Pakistan's grievances grew. No national election was held.

Judgement. The early governments kept Pakistan in being, which was an achievement given the problems of 1947. However, they did not build stable democratic institutions. The best single explanation is the early loss of Jinnah and Liaquat, because it left weak parties facing strong officials and generals, and this led to the events of 1958.

Key terms and people

• PRODA: the 1949 law allowing politicians to be disqualified for misconduct.
• Parity: equal seats for East and West Pakistan regardless of population.
• One Unit: the merger of the western provinces into West Pakistan in 1955.
• Maulvi Tamizuddin Khan: Speaker who challenged the dissolution of the Assembly in 1954.
• Martial law: rule by the armed forces in place of the normal civilian government.

Exam practice

1. Describe the Objectives Resolution of 1949. [4]
2. Why was the One Unit scheme introduced in 1955? [7]
3. "The delay in making a constitution was the most important reason for political instability in Pakistan between 1947 and 1958." How far do you agree? Explain your answer. [14]

Outline answers

1. Passed by the Constituent Assembly in March 1949 under Liaquat Ali Khan. Sovereignty belongs to Allah and is exercised through the people's representatives. Democracy, equality and social justice as set out by Islam. Muslims to be able to live by Islam; minorities free to practise their religions. Fundamental rights and an independent judiciary.

2. Three explained reasons: (i) the government argued that a single administration in the west would be cheaper and more efficient; (ii) it allowed the two wings to be treated as equal units, so that East Pakistan's larger population would not give it a majority in the assembly; (iii) it was said to reduce provincial feeling in the west and so strengthen national unity.

3. Agree: nine years without agreed rules; no elections; disputes over Islam, language and representation divided politicians and the wings. Other reasons: the deaths of Jinnah and Liaquat; the weakness of the Muslim League and frequent changes of Prime Minister; the actions of Ghulam Muhammad and Mirza; East-West tension; economic problems. Judgement: for example, the delay was itself a result of weak leadership after 1951, so the loss of the founding leaders can be argued to be the deeper cause.