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Zulfikar Ali Bhutto
4th President and 9th Prime Minister of Pakistan (1928–1979)
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto NPk HPk (5 January 1928 – 4 April 1979) was a Pakistani barrister, and statesman who served as the fourth president of Pakistan from 1971 to 1973, and as the ninth prime minister of Pakistan from 1973 until his overthrow in 1977. He was the founder and first chairman of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) from 1967 until his execution in 1979.2
From Wikipedia’s article on Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Born Jan 5, 1928, died Apr 4, 1979.1
About
Born in Sindh and educated at the University of Southern California, University of California, Berkeley and the University of Oxford, Bhutto trained as a barrister at Lincoln's Inn before entering politics. He was a cabinet member during president Iskandar Mirza's tenure, holding various ministries during president Ayub Khan's military rule from 1958 and considered General Burki as a mentor. Bhutto became the foreign minister in 1963, advocating for Operation Gibraltar in Kashmir, leading to the 1965 war with India. Following the Tashkent Declaration, he was dismissed from the government. Bhutto established the Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) in 1967, focusing on a left-wing and socialist agenda, and contested the 1970 general election, arising as the largest political party in Western Pakistan with a landslide victory in Punjab and Sindh. The Awami League, victorious with a landslide in East Pakistan, and the PPP were unable to agree on power transfer, leading to civil unrest in the east — further intensified by military action under Yahya Khan's military government — followed by a civil war and a war with India, resulting in the creation of Bangladesh. After Pakistan's loss in the east, Yahya resigned amidst a military revolt against him and Bhutto assumed the presidency in December 1971, imposing emergency rule and securing a ceasefire on the western front.
Bhutto secured the release of 93,000 prisoners of war through the Delhi Agreement, a trilateral accord signed between India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh on 28 August 1973, and ratified only by India and Pakistan. He also reclaimed five thousand square miles (13,000 km2) of Indian-held territory through the Simla Agreement, signed between India and Pakistan in July 1972. He strengthened diplomatic ties with other Muslim countries, as well as China; and recognised Bangladesh in 1974 while hosting the historic Islamic Summit in Lahore — attended by leaders from 37 Muslim countries — marking the largest gathering of top Muslim leaders in modern history. After declaring a state of emergency in Balochistan in 1973, he dismissed Ataullah Mengal's government and imposed 'governor's rule', appointing Akbar Bugti as governor and ordering a military operation to suppress insurgency in the province. In collaboration with the parliamentary opposition, Bhutto's government drafted and promulgated Pakistan's current constitution in 1973, with the approval of 97 percent of the parliament — bringing an end to emergency rule and restoring parliamentary democracy across the country, with Bhutto assuming office as prime minister. He brought in Abdul Qadeer Khan, strengthened the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission, and initiated the country's nuclear program which he regarded as a 'national priority'. Bhutto also introduced a policy of extensive nationalisation under his socialist agenda.
Despite winning the 1977 parliamentary elections, the Peoples Party faced allegations of vote rigging by the Pakistan National Alliance (PNA), the populist opposition, sparking violence across the country. Bhutto's government reached an agreement with the opposition to hold fresh elections under a neutral caretaker administration in October of the same year, but Bhutto was deposed two days later in a military coup by army chief Zia-ul-Haq on 5 July 1977. Controversially tried and executed in 1979, his trial — widely described, both in Pakistan and internationally, as a 'judicial murder' — was later declared 'unfair' by the Supreme Court of Pakistan in a mea culpa, following which he was posthumously awarded the Nishan-e-Pakistan, the country's highest civilian award, by the government of Pakistan.
Bhutto's legacy remains contentious, praised for nationalist and a secular internationalist agenda, yet criticised for economic challenges, political repression and human rights abuses. He is often referred to as the Quaid-e-Awām ("the People's Leader") by his supporters. His daughter Benazir Bhutto served twice as prime minister, and his son-in-law, Asif Ali Zardari, twice as president.
From Wikipedia’s article on Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.2
Companies
- Utility Stores CorporationFounder13
Early life and education
- Date not recordedUniversity of California, Berkeley3
- Date not recordedCity Law School3
- Date not recordedChrist Church3
- Date not recordedCathedral and John Connon School3
- Date not recordedUniversity of Southern California3
- Date not recordedUniversity of Oxford3
- Date not recordedUniversity of California3
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto belonged to a Sindhi family; Owen Bennett-Jones writes that the family traces its ancestry back to a 9th-century Rajput prince of the Bhati clan who ruled the town of Tanot (in current-day Rajasthan, India), Bhutto's ancestors later appearing in different Rajasthani chronicles in prominent roles, the family converting to Islam mostly around the 17th century before moving to Sindh.
He was born to Shah Nawaz Bhutto and Khursheed Begum near Larkana. His father was the dewan of the princely state of Junagadh and enjoyed an influential relationship with the officials of the British Raj. His mother, Khursheed Begum, was born Lakhi Bai, and had been a professional dance girl from a Hindu family and converted to Islam when she married Shah Nawaz. Reportedly, Shah Nawaz Bhutto had seen her dancing and had proposed, eventually marrying her. Zulfikar was their third child — the first, Sikandar Ali, had died from pneumonia at age seven in 1914, and the second, Imdad Ali, died of cirrhosis at age 39 in 1953.
As a young boy, Bhutto moved to Worli Seaface in Bombay, where he studied at the Cathedral and John Connon School and later at St. Xavier's College, Mumbai. He then also became an activist in the Pakistan Movement. In 1943, his marriage was arranged with Shireen Amir Begum. In 1947, Bhutto was admitted to the University of Southern California to study political science.
In 1949, as a junior, Bhutto transferred to the University of California, Berkeley from the University of Southern California, where he earned a B.A. (honours) degree in political science in 1950. A year later on 8 September 1951, he married a woman of Iranian Kurdish origin—Nusrat Ispahani, popularly known as Begum Nusrat Bhutto. During his studies at the University of California, Berkeley, Bhutto became interested in the theories of socialism, delivering a series of lectures on their feasibility in Islamic countries. During this time, Bhutto's father played a controversial role in the affairs of Junagadh. Coming to power in a palace coup, he secured the accession of his state to Pakistan, which was ultimately negated by Indian intervention in December 1947. In June 1950, Bhutto travelled to the United Kingdom to study law at Christ Church, Oxford and received a BA in jurisprudence, followed by an LLM degree in law and an M.Sc. (honours) degree in political science. Upon finishing his studies, he served as a lecturer in international law at the University of Southampton in 1952, and he was called to the bar at Lincoln's Inn in 1953.
From Wikipedia’s article on Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Career
Occupation: diplomat, politician, lawyer.7
- 1977Federal Minister for Interior6
- 1973 to 1977Prime Minister of Pakistan6
- 1972Speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan6
- 1971 to 1977Federal Minister for Defence6
- 1971 to 1972Federal Minister for Interior6
- 1971 to 1977Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs6
- 1971 to 1973President of Pakistan6
- 1963 to 1966Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs6
- Date not recordedFounded Pakistan Peoples Party4
- Date not recordedFounded Utility Stores Corporation5
- Date not recordedMember of the National Assembly of Pakistan6
Personal life
- BornJan 5, 1928, Larkana8
- DiedApr 4, 1979, Rawalpindi9
- CitizenshipBritish Raj, Pakistan10
- SpousesShireen Amir11; Nusrat Bhutto11
In 1943, he entered into his first marriage to his cousin Shireen Amir Begum, in 1943, at the time she was ten years his senior. The couple had no children.
On 8 September 1951, Bhutto married Nusrat Ispahani of Iranian Kurdish origin in Karachi. Their first child, Benazir, was born in 1953, followed by Murtaza in 1954, Sanam in 1957, and Shahnawaz in 1958.
From Wikipedia’s article on Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Politics
In 1957, Bhutto became the youngest member of Pakistan's delegation to the United Nations. He addressed the UN Sixth Committee on Aggression that October and led Pakistan's delegation to the first UN Conference on the Law of the Sea in 1958. That year, Bhutto became Pakistan's youngest cabinet minister, taking up the reins of the Ministry of Commerce by President Iskander Mirza, pre-coup d'état government. Bhutto became a trusted ally and advisor of Ayub Khan, rising in influence and power despite his youth and relative inexperience. Bhutto was a junior minister in Ayub Khan administration at the time of signing the Indus Waters Treaty with India in 1960 and was not part of the negotiating team. Bhutto was against this treaty due to yielding too much of water resources to India. Later he vehemently talked publicly against the IWT during his campaign against Ayub Khan regime. Bhutto negotiated an oil-exploration agreement with the Soviet Union in 1961, which agreed to provide economic and technical aid to Pakistan.
The Pakistan Association of Medical Editors in its book, Medical History, wrote: "Gen. Burki maintained very good relations with the late Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, who looked at him as a sort of mentor since Mr. Bhutto had joined the 1958 cabinet as a very junior minister and looked to General Burki for support during cabinet meetings."
When President Ayub Khan enacted his 1962 Constitution of Pakistan On the evening of 8 June 1962, Bhutto was almost dropped from the cabinet. Author Syed Shabbir Hussain recalled that it was Wajid Ali Khan Burki who came to Bhutto's rescue when Bhutto "entreatingly" approached Burki at the President's reception that evening who then got him included in the new set-up.
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Foreign Minister
Bhutto, a Pakistani nationalist and socialist, held distinctive views on the democracy required in Pakistan. Upon becoming foreign minister in 1963, his socialist stance led to a close relationship with neighboring China, challenging the prevailing acceptance of Taiwan as the legitimate government of China when two governments each claimed to be "China". In 1964, the Soviet Union and its satellite states broke off relations with Beijing over ideological differences, with only Albania and Pakistan supporting the People's Republic of China. Bhutto staunchly supported Beijing in the UN and the UNSC, while also maintaining connections with the United States.
Bhutto's strong advocacy for closer ties with China drew criticism from the United States, with President Lyndon B. Johnson cautioning him about potential repercussions on congressional support for aid to Pakistan. Bhutto, known for his demagogic speeches, led the foreign ministry assertively, rapidly gaining national prominence. During a visit to Beijing, Bhutto and his staff received a warm welcome from the Chinese leadership, including Mao Zedong. Bhutto contributed to negotiating trade and military agreements between Pakistan and China, fostering collaboration on various military and industrial projects.
Bhutto signed the Sino-Pakistan Boundary Agreement on 2 March 1963, transferring 750 square kilometers of territory from Gilgit Baltistan to Chinese control. Bhutto embraced non-alignment, making Pakistan an influential member in non-aligned organisations. Advocating pan-Islamic unity, Bhutto developed closer relations with Indonesia and Saudi Arabia. Bhutto significantly transformed Pakistan's pro-West foreign policy. While maintaining a role in the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization and the Central Treaty Organization, Bhutto asserted an independent foreign policy for Pakistan, free from U.S. influence. Bhutto also visited Poland in 1962, establishing diplomatic relations and fostering mutual cooperation, reaching out to the Polish community in Pakistan. Using Pakistan Air Force's Brigadier-General Władysław Turowicz, Bhutto initiated military and economic links between Pakistan and Poland.
In 1962, as territorial differences escalated between India and China, Beijing considered staging an invasion in northern Indian territories. Premier Zhou Enlai and Mao invited Pakistan to join the raid to reclaim the State of Jammu and Kashmir from India. Bhutto supported the plan, but Ayub opposed it due to fears of Indian retaliation. Instead, Ayub proposed a "joint defense union" with India, shocking Bhutto, who felt Ayub Khan lacked understanding of international affairs. Bhutto, aware of China's restraint from criticising Pakistan despite its membership in anti-communist western alliances, criticised the U.S. for providing military aid to India during and after the 1962 Sino-Indian War, seen as a breach of Pakistan's alliance with the United States.
In 1964, the Combined Opposition Parties (C.O.P.) agreed to unite behind a single candidate and considered nominating retired general Azam Khan to run against President Ayub Khan in the upcoming presidential election, due to Azam Khan's widespread popularity. Shortly after, Maulana Bhashani, a founding member of the Awami League, convinced the opposition to nominate Fatima Jinnah instead. Bhashani also added another condition: that no one associated with Ayub Khan's Martial Law administration, would be acceptable. Several sources indicate that as Ayub's foreign minister, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, orchestrated the entire strategy to block Azam Khan's candidacy. He did so through Masihur Rahman, a mutual friend of both Bhutto and Bhashani, by providing Masihur Rahman with a bribe of Rs500,000 rupees to pass on to Bhashani, all in an effort to ensure Ayub's victory by having a weaker opponent, Fatima Jinnah, run against him. Days before the election, Bhashani and his group withdrew their support for Fatima. Nevertheless, Azam supported Fatima Jinnah and actively campaigned for her and was noted as having contributed to her success in East Pakistan. Some speculate that Bhashani believed Fatima would be a weaker candidate and suggested her candidacy to ensure Ayub Khan's victory, as he was favoured by the Chinese.
On Bhutto's counsel, Ayub Khan launched Operation Gibraltar in an attempt to "liberate" Kashmir. The operation failed, leading to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. This war followed brief skirmishes between March and August 1965 in the Rann of Kutch, Jammu and Kashmir, and Punjab. Bhutto joined Ayub in Uzbekistan to negotiate a peace treaty with Indian prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri. Ayub and Shastri agreed to exchange prisoners of war and withdraw respective forces to pre-war boundaries. The agreement, deeply unpopular in Pakistan, caused significant political unrest against Ayub's regime. Bhutto's criticism of the final agreement created a major rift with Ayub. Initially denying rumors, Bhutto resigned in June 1966, expressing strong opposition to Ayub's regime.
During his term, Bhutto formulated aggressive geostrategic and foreign policies against India. In 1965, Bhutto received information from his friend Munir Ahmad Khan about the status of India's nuclear program. Bhutto stated, "Pakistan will fight, fight for a thousand years. If India builds the (atom) bomb, Pakistan will eat grass or leaves, even go hungry, but we (Pakistan) will get one of our own (atom bomb).... We (Pakistan) have no other choice!" In his 1969 book The Myth of Independence, Bhutto argued for the necessity of Pakistan acquiring a fission weapon and starting a deterrence program to stand up to industrialised states and a nuclear-armed India. He developed a manifesto outlining the program's development and selected Munir Ahmad Khan to lead it.
From Wikipedia’s article on Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Legal issues and controversies
Industrial reforms
The Bhutto government implemented a series of reforms in the industrial sector, focusing on nationalisation and improving workers' rights. The initial phase, in 1972, involved the nationalisation of basic industries such as steel, chemical, and cement. A significant move occurred on 1 January 1974, when Bhutto nationalised all banks. The final step in this sequence was the nationalisation of all flour, rice, and cotton mills across the country. However, this nationalisation process didn't meet Bhutto's expectations and faced challenges. Many nationalised units were small businesses that didn't qualify as industrial units, leading to adverse consequences for numerous small businessmen and traders who were either ruined, displaced, or left unemployed. In hindsight, nationalisation resulted in significant losses to both the national treasury and the people of Pakistan.
The Bhutto government established an extensive network of both rural and urban schools, including approximately 6,500 elementary schools, 900 middle schools, 407 high schools, 51 intermediate colleges, and 21 junior colleges. Departing from the Western education system, Bhutto returned most literature to the Western world and encouraged local academicians to publish books in their respective fields. Although these local books were made more affordable to the public, these reforms stirred controversy. Bhutto's government mandated the inclusion of Islamic and Pakistan studies in school curricula. Book banks were introduced in most institutions, and over 400,000 copies of textbooks were supplied to students.
Bhutto is credited with establishing the world-class Quaid-e-Azam University and Allama Iqbal Open University in Islamabad in 1974, along with founding Gomal University in Dera Ismail Khan in 1973. During his tenure as foreign minister, he collaborated with Abdus Salam in 1967 to set up the Institute of Theoretical Physics. As prime minister, Bhutto made groundbreaking efforts to enhance the education system, founding the Allama Iqbal Medical College in 1975.
In 1974, with Abdus Salam's assistance, Bhutto authorised the International Nathiagali Summer College on Contemporary Physics (INSC) at Nathiagali. To this day, the INSC conference continues to be held in Pakistan, attracting thousands of scientists worldwide to interact with Pakistan's academic community. In 1976, Bhutto established the Engineering Council, Institute of Theoretical Physics, Pakistan Academy of Letters, and Cadet College Razmak in North Waziristan. Additionally, he inaugurated four new universities in Multan, Bahawalpur, and Khairpur. The People's Open University, another innovative venture, commenced operations in Islamabad. The government's Education Policy included fee remission and the provision of numerous scholarships for higher education to the children of low-paid employees. After the 1977 election, plans were in place to add seven thousand new hostel seats to the existing accommodation. In 1975, Bhutto acknowledged the challenges and shortcomings faced by college students in many existing hostels. Consequently, he directed the provision of fans, water coolers, and pay telephones in each hostel as quickly as physically possible.
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On 5 July 1977, General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq led a military coup, removing Bhutto from power and detaining him for a month. Zia promised new elections within 90 days but continuously postponed them, asserting that Bhutto's party wouldn't return to power if he participated.
Upon release, Bhutto toured the country, addressing adulatory crowds of PPP supporters. Banned from train travel due to delays caused by these gatherings, Bhutto's last visit to Multan marked a turning point. Despite administration efforts to block the gathering, the crowd's size led to disorder, providing a pretext for Bhutto's arrest, claiming it was necessary for his safety.
On 3 September, Bhutto was arrested again, charged with authorising the murder of Nawab Muhammad Ahmed Khan Kasuri in March 1974. The charges were deemed "questionable" by some scholars, including Vali Nasr. A politician, Ahmed Raza Kasuri, claimed he was the target of the attack orchestrated by Bhutto. Bhutto's wife, Nusrat Bhutto, assembled a defense team, securing his release after ten days due to contradictory evidence. However, Bhutto was arrested again under martial law, leading to the cancellation of upcoming elections.
Arraigned before the Lahore High Court, Bhutto was denied a lower court appeal level. The trial, lasting five months, began on 24 October 1977, with key witness testimony from Masood Mahmood, director general of the Federal Security Force. Irregularities, alleged torture, and inconsistent confessions marred the trial. Former U.S. attorney general Ramsey Clark observed numerous irregularities and lack of corroborating evidence. When Bhutto began testifying on 25 January 1978, Chief Justice Maulvi Mushtaq, presiding over the trial, closed the courtroom to observers. Bhutto, alleging bias, demanded a retrial, but the court refused.
Death sentence and appeal
On 18 March 1978, Bhutto was pronounced guilty of murder and was sentenced to death. Bhutto's former Legal Minister, Abdul Hafiz Pirzada petitioned the Supreme Court for the release of Bhutto's Science Adviser, Mubashir Hassan, and to review Bhutto's death sentence based on the split decision. The Supreme Court denied Hassan's release because he was held by Military Police, but the court agreed to hear the arguments. After 12 days of proceedings, the Supreme Court concluded that the president of Pakistan can change a death sentence into life imprisonment. Pirzada filed an application to then-chief martial law administrator. However, General Zia-ul-Haq did not act immediately and claimed that the application had gone missing.
Devastated, Pirzada relayed the news to Bhutto, disclosing General Zia-ul-Haq's intentions. Consequently, Bhutto chose not to pursue an appeal. As he was transferred to a cell in Rawalpindi central jail, his family appealed on his behalf, leading to a Supreme Court hearing in May. Bhutto was granted one week to prepare, issuing a comprehensive rejoinder to the charges, although Zia impeded its publication. Chief Justice S. Anwarul Haq adjourned the court until the end of July 1978, purportedly because five of the nine appeal court judges were inclined to overturn the Lahore verdict, with one pro-Bhutto judge set to retire in July.
The appeal concluded on 23 December 1978. On 6 February 1979, the Supreme Court voted 4–3, delivering a guilty verdict. Bhutto's defender, Ramsey Clark, noted that during the appeal, "not one witness was re‐examined, nor did the court rectify" what he called "the glaring defects of the lower court's proceedings." Clark also highlighted that two of the Supreme Court's nine justices were absent from the decision, both showing signs of having been forced to not participate. One judge who had earlier remarked that he would not succumb to pressure retired in the fall of 1978 even though judicial propriety demanded that his leaving the Court be deferred until the conclusion of the case. The other judge was prevented from sitting in the Court from November because of an illness pronounced by a government‐appointed medical board. If they had been present and voted not guilty in a 5–4 decision, Bhutto would have gone free. The Bhutto family had seven days to appeal, and the court granted a stay of execution while studying the petition. Appeals for clemency arrived from many heads of state by 24 February 1979 when the next court hearing began, but Zia dismissed them as "trade union activity" among politicians.
On 24 March 1979, the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal, and Zia upheld the death sentence. Bhutto was hanged at Central Jail Rawalpindi on 4 April 1979, after enduring severe torture in jail, leading to vomiting and intense chest pain, and he was laid to rest at his family mausoleum in Garhi Khuda Baksh.
During his imprisonment, Bhutto's children Murtaza and Benazir worked tirelessly to garner international support for their father's release. Libya's Colonel Gaddafi dispatched his Prime Minister Abdus Salam Jalloud on an urgent mission to Pakistan for talks with the military establishment to secure Bhutto's release. In a press conference, Jalloud revealed that Gaddafi had proposed to exile Bhutto to Libya, and the Presidential aircraft awaited Bhutto at the Islamabad International Airport. However, after a week at the airport, General Zia rejected Jalloud's request and upheld the death sentence. Bhutto's execution shocked much of the Muslim world. In his final speech before being hanged, Bhutto's last words were: "Oh Lord, help me for... I am innocent".
Re-opening of the Bhutto trial
On 2 April 2011, 32 years after Bhutto's trial and execution, the PPP (the ruling party at that time) filed a petition at the Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP) to reopen Bhutto's trial. Senior journalist Iftikhar Ahmad aired a series of televised interviews on Geo News with those who played significant and often controversial roles in Bhutto's death. Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani's cabinet organised a legal team to seek the reopening of the trial. President Asif Ali Zardari consented to the resulting presidential order under Article 186 of the Constitution, and the Supreme Court took up the petition on 13 April 2011. Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry eventually presided over the three-judge bench (expanded with law experts from four provinces of Pakistan), while Minister of Law Babar Awan counseled Bhutto's case.
Immediately, Babar Awan resigned from his position as Law Minister, opting to leave the Justice Ministry entirely to independently counsel Bhutto's case. Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry commended this move by the senior PPP leadership, labeling it as "historic" in his noting remarks. In a significant development, the Supreme Court transferred the decision on the legal status of Bhutto's execution to a larger bench yet to be formed.
Following a series of hearings at the Supreme Court, the case was adjourned and eventually dismissed after the PPP sanctioned the suspension of Babar Awan on 2 May 2012.
On 6 March 2024, a nine-member SCP bench, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan, Qazi Faez Isa, in response to the presidential reference provided an opinion that Bhutto was not provided a fair trial as mentioned in Article 4 and 9 of the Constitution of Pakistan.
From Wikipedia’s article on Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Links
Sources
The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.
- 1WikidataZulfikar Ali Bhutto on Wikidata
- 2WikipediaZulfikar Ali Bhutto on Wikipedia
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- 14Wikimedia CommonsZulfikar Ali Bhutto photo by Bernard Gotfryd, Public domain