Causes of the 1977 Military coup in Pakistan

Dawn News, Pakistan’s oldest English Newspaper’s front page (Dated 6th July, 1977) bears the news of the military coup and the subsequent imposition of Martial Law (Source: Dawn Archives)

To what extent did the 1977 elections in Pakistan play a role in causing Operation Fair Play?

Bilal Akbar (Candidate Number: XXXX)Qatar Academy (School Code: 001368)

(3996 Words)

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Abstract:

This essay investigates the question “To what extent did the 1977 elections in Pakistan play a

role in causing Operation Fair Play?”

This investigation makes use of a wide variety of primary and secondary sources. Around seven

books have been used in this investigation. One main book being used is that of historian Stanley

Wolpert, Zulfi Bhutto of Pakistan, which contains the finest compilation of primary sources on

the area of investigation. The second main book is written by Ian Talbot, which explains how

Bhutto’s social, economic and political policies angered the Pakistanis, resulting in the PNA1

movement. A wide variety of articles written by both international and Pakistani newspapers

have been used throughout the investigation. Televised interviews with opposition politicians

such as Hasil Bizenjo and primary sources such as witness accounts during the PNA movement

have also been used.

The analysis is divided into six sections, the first four analyze and present the long-term causes

of the coup whereas the last two analyze and present the short-term causes of the coup. The long-

term causes include the Social and economic policies of Bhutto, the authoritarianism of Bhutto

and the Army’s Dilemma, a general analysis of the motivation that would have caused the army

to stage the coup. Then, the short-term causes that include the 1977 elections and the PNA

movement are analyzed in full detail to allow us to answer the research question. Finally, a

conclusion is reached.

1 Pakistan National Alliance; main opposition alliance to the Bhutto regime, see page 9 for more details

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The conclusion reached in this essay is that the 1977 elections played a crucial role in causing

the operation, in that they acted as a trigger to the series of events that led to the event. However,

the investigation also concludes that its role, as a trigger to the coup was only made possible by

the long-term causes of Operation Fairplay.

(300 Words)

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Contents

Abstract…………………………………………………………………………….Page 2

Introduction………………………………………………………………………...Page 5

Investigation………………………………………………………………………..Page 7

Economic Policies……………...…………….…..Page 7

Authoritarianism……………...…………….…....Page 10

Social Policies……………...…………….……....Page 11

Army’s Dilemma..……...…………….……..........Page 13

1977 Elections……………...…………….……...Page 14

PNA Movement……………...…………….……..Page 18

Conclusion………………………………………………………………………....Page 21

Bibliography………………………………………………………….…………....Page 23

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Introduction:

This investigation will be answering the question “To what extent did the 1977 general

elections in Pakistan play a role in causing Operation Fair Play?”

The 1977 coup in Pakistan is significant as it ended the first democratic phase in the country’s

history that lasted from 1971-19772 and brought about a military Junta that ruled Pakistan for

eleven years. The coup is also of relevance as it paved the path for the on-going phase in

Pakistan’s political History, that is the division of the Pakistani electorate along the lines of pro-

Bhutto voters (who vote for the PPP3) and anti-Bhutto sentiment (who vote for the PML-N4).5

Since the end of the military Junta in 1988, two parties, the PPP and the PML-N, have dominated

Pakistan’s political scene. The PPP is the party of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and retains its considerable

support whereas the PML-N is a party comprised of the conservative centre-right politicians who

were brought to the national stage and united by the Military Junta that deposed Mr. Bhutto to

neutralize the support of the PPP in the 80s. Both the aforementioned parties have won three

general elections since the coup in 1977.6 Since the coup influences Pakistani politics to this day,

2 Benazir Bhutto, Daughter of Destiny: An Autobiography. (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1989) 25+. Print. Source Evaluation: Author is

daughter of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and thus, the book is extremely biased towards Bhutto’s opponents. Only used here throughout the investigation. The fact it has been used for is an established fact found elsewhere as well.3 PPP (Pakistan People’s Party) was formed in 1967 and led by Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto until his hanging in 1979. http://www.ppp.org.pk/ 4 PML-N (Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz) is led by Nawaz Sharif, a protégé of Gen. Zia-Ul-Haq, the Military ruler of Pakistan from 1977-1988; http://www.pmln.org/pakistan-resolution/ 5 For a Timeline of Pakistan’s History, see “Appendix A”. This timeline doesn’t cover all events in Pakistan’s history, but has been placed here as it depicts events during Bhutto’s rule and depicts his legacy’s effect on Pakistan’s history thereon (through his daughter, Benazir Bhutto)6 “The First 10 General Elections of Pakistan”. PILDAT, May 2013. http://www.pildat.org/Publications/publication/elections/First10GeneralElectionsofPakistan.pdf/

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the question of what was the cause of the coup remains one intensely debated even today. Some

people argue that the coup would have occurred regardless of whether the elections happened or

not. Some claim that the PNA’s agitation following the alleged rigging was solely responsible

for the coup that disrupted democracy in Pakistan yet some believe that the army was simply

hungry for power as it was used to ruling Pakistan. There are countless other theories which give

more importance to one cause or the other for causing the coup. However, one commonly agreed

theory is that the 1977 election played the most important role in causing the election. Therefore,

this investigation seeks to analyze all the causes that caused the coup and then reach a conclusion

as to what role the 1977 elections play in causing the coup also known as “Operation Fair Play”.

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Investigation:

Economic Policies:

After his election victory in 1970(7)(8), Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, who has been

described as a socialist,9 began his nationalization program that included the nationalization of

over thirty-one industrial units that fell under ten categories, these included iron, steel,

petrochemical and cement industries amongst numerous others.10 Around a billion rupees worth

of industries were brought under direct state control. 11 This was seen by many as a move to

break the hold of the tiny elite class, the “twenty-two families” as they were know then, over the

majority of the industry and the banks. Furthermore, these families were banned from travelling

abroad to prevent any transfer of capital out of Pakistan.12 These families became one of the

many opponents of Bhutto’s rule from thereon.

On November 10th, 1975, Bhutto announced that small landowners would not have to pay any

taxes whatsoever. Zamindars13 owned much of Pakistan’s land at the time and the decision to

7 Craig Baxter "Pakistan Votes - 1970." Asian Survey, Mar. 1970: 211. Web. <http://cprid.com/history/5-Baxter%20Election%201970.pdf>8 See “Appendix B” for detailed results. Source: Ibid. Note that East Pakistan became Bangladesh consequently. West Pakistan thus became Pakistan where Bhutto had a majority.9 Salman Taseer, Bhutto, a Political Biography (New Delhi: Vikas Pub. House, 1980) 83. Source Evaluation: The author, Salman Taseer (1944-

2011), is a former PPP-governor and a man renowned political Analyst Yasmeen Manzoor described as a “man of principles” (Tonight With Yasmeen Manzoor, Samaa TV, 5 January 2011). Salman Taseer wrote this biography during Bhutto’s rule and thus this source might be too pro-Bhutto. However, just like many other sources used in this investigation that might not be unbiased, this source was only used for facts, and not views, that have already been established elsewhere. Thus, only biographical information has been taken from this book. 10 Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, ‘Address to the Nation announcing Nationalization of ten categories of Industry’, 12 January 1972, Speeches and Statements (20 December 1971 – 31 March 1972) (Karachi: 1972) 33.11 Stanley A. Wolpert, Zulfi Bhutto of Pakistan: His Life and times (New York: Oxford UP, 1993) 190. Stanley Wolpert is an Indologist and often considered one of the most learned and respectable authors who have written books regarding Pakistan’s and India’s History. This book has very little bias and has been based on interviews with 105 notable people (politicians, friends of Bhutto, Bhutto’s opponents etc.) who lived during the Bhutto rule and provide valuable insight into Bhutto’s rule and policies. Furthermore, this book is also based on and contains extremely valuable and rare primary sources. Therefore, this book has been used as a main source for this investigation. 12 J. Henry Korson, Contemporary Problems of Pakistan (Boulder: Westview, 1993) 82. Print. An unbiased book, but doesn’t contain a lot of primary sources and description regarding Bhutto’s policies. 13

“Zamindar” simply means “landowner”, but it is often used for large landowners in the Indian subcontinent.

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spare the smaller landowners to pay taxes came at the expense of doubling the taxes on the large

landowners. Bhutto was a wealthy landowner14 himself, and his decision to lay higher burden at

the rich landowners earned him a tag of ‘traitor’ by the rich landowners.15 Furthermore, he soon

announced more land reforms in that he re-distributed thousands of acres of lands that had been

bought by civil servants in the 1960s at rock bottom prices through misuse of power. These

decisions positively affected almost 80% of Pakistan’s landowners, which had a profound effect

on the entire country whose economy was predominantly agriculture-based. Bhutto was

consequently awarded the title of Quaid-e-Awam (Leader of the masses).16 Though these reforms

were popular, they also earned Bhutto the anger of former bureaucrats who still had a lot of

power along with the landowners who also had enormous power and like the industrialists,

became yet another group of people hostile to Bhutto’s rule.

Bhutto introduced a set of labour reforms a short time after the nationalization of major

industries. The reform gave unprecedented powers to labour unions, established labour councils

and courts.17 Pensions were increased and the children of the labors were promised free

education. Workers’ share of industrial profits from the nationalized industry was increased to

around 5%. Bhutto introduced these radical reforms to garner support from the worker class.18

The opposite happened. Mismanagement and corruption in the nationalized industry forced those

industries to backtrack on many of the promised reforms. Disillusioned by the failed reforms

they were promised, labour unions went on hartaal (labour union strike)19 that resulted in poor

14 Salman Taseer, Bhutto, a Political Biography (New Delhi: Vikas Pub. House, 1980) 9.15 Stanley A. Wolpert, Zulfi Bhutto of Pakistan: His Life and times (New York: Oxford UP, 1993) 278.16 “Quaid-e-Awam” means “Leader of the masses” in Urdu.17 Ibid. 34718 Stanley A. Wolpert, Zulfi Bhutto of Pakistan: His Life and times (New York: Oxford UP, 1993) 365.19 In this context, “hartaal” means “labour union strike”

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production levels in the nationalized industry. On several locations, the army was called in to

crack down on the protestors. This was the start of the alienation of mass sections, rather than

small sections of the society being alienated whose anger the PNA movement would channel.

In July 1976, Bhutto announced the nationalization of “The processing units of the cotton

ginning, rice husking and flour mills.” This was a move to eliminate the “middle man”, who

used to buy these commodities from the producers and used to sell it to the consumers at much

higher prices, thus, garnering excessive profits.20 However, the reform proved extremely

unpopular and its expected failure due to mismanagement lost Bhutto immense support amongst

the smaller entrepreneurs and even the consumers of these commodities whose livelihood were

threatened. This is yet another cause of the coup as the support of this alienated group would also

help the PNA movement and lost Bhutto considerable support, as Talbot states.21

Authoritarianism:

20 Sayed Rasul Raza, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto: Architect of New Pakistan (1976) 31. A biased, highly apologetic book on Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto’s reforms and policies. Only used as a source for already established facts, the point of view of the Bhutto government and not used for other purposes or arguments whatsoever. The Book was written during Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto’s rule and thus, the author must have been influenced in some manner to not criticize Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto’s policies, as is seen in the book.21 Ian Talbot, Pakistan, a Modern History (New York: St. Martin's, 1998) 233. A main source and also completely unbiased. The books details valuable information on Bhutto’s policies, contains interviews, provides extreme detail and primary sources from Bhutto’s rule. An important aspect of the book is that it details how Bhutto’s policies were received amongst the public (which most other sources on the subject lack) and provides a detailed account of the events of 1977 that are too crucial to this investigation. The book received extremely positive reviews from the Pakistani media for its unbiased approach to documenting Pakistan’s history. This source has been used throughout the investigation.

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Bhutto ruled Pakistan with an “Iron fist”. He was utterly intolerant of any opposition and ruthless

whenever it did occur. The provincial governments of the Frontier province and the Baluchistan

province were a coalition comprised of the opposition parties NAP (National Awami Party) and

JUI (Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam)22. When Wali Khan, the leader of the NAP and leader of the

opposition in the National Assembly revealed massive corruption in the nationalized industry to

the Parliament, their governments in these provinces were swept aside, their ministers dismissed

and “Governor rule” was imposed.23 The leaders and members of the two parties along with

several other opposition parties were imprisoned on numerous charges. A senator from

Balochistan Mir Hasil Bizenjo stated that “Bhutto from the very first day couldn’t have tolerated

the fact that he lost to the NAP and JUI in these provinces…His ego was immense, he wanted to

be the only power in Pakistan, including those provinces”24

The remaining members of the opposition were occasionally harassed, which included tactics

like constant spying of people’s houses, following of the people etc. Those who still opposed

Bhutto’s were often threatened that their wives and children would be kidnapped. There were

reports of inhumane torture of political prisoners. It was during his rule that twenty-four

prominent members of the opposition were murdered.25 According to Amnesty International, the

minimal estimate for political prisoners in Pakistan was 2,000, excluding the 20,000 that would

be taken during the PNA movement.26 Media laws imposed strict censorship on all news media

and newspapers. Furthermore, the role of the judiciary was also criticized and whatever power

22 For a map of Pakistan, see “Appendix C”. Note that the PPP won elections in Punjab and Sindh, but lost in Baluchistan and the Frontier (See Appendix B).23 Ian Talbot, Pakistan, a Modern History (New York: St. Martin's, 1998) 27624 Interview on News One Pakistan (July 19, 2012). Translated from Urdu.25 “Torture claims in India and Pakistan’’, Far Eastern Economic Review, (June 13, 1977).26 Ibid

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the judiciary had was curtailed by numerous constitutional amendments.27 Bhutto had always

suspected a military coup and thus, he formed this paramilitary force in order to not only handle

his opposition, but also to provide himself security, the Federal Security Force. FSF had 15,000

personnel, armed with the latest weapons and transportation capabilities such as Jeeps which

were denied to even the Army. An example of its role to suppress opposition was when it was

accused of the murder of Dr. Nazir Ahmed, a Jamaat-e-Islami leader, a Member of Parliament

and a staunch criticizer of Bhutto.28 These authoritarian policies not only angered the opposition,

but more importantly the people of Pakistan who had trusted Bhutto’s word that he was a

democrat and would establish a true democracy after a decade of dictatorship.

Social Policies:

His opponents often attacked Bhutto’s social policies. Pakistan was traditionally a conservative

society as the ideological foundation of Pakistan was Islam. Numerous MPs of the opposition

came from religious parties. Bhutto was targeted by these parties on his failure to prevent open

sale of alcohol, spread of ‘obscenity’ and promotion of mixing of sexes such as co-education.29

Examples of such policies included the fact that bars and pubs were not placed under any

restriction, magazines with pictures considered outrageous were sold publicly and the

27 Khalid Bin Sayeed, “How Radical is Pakistan Peoples’ Party”, Pacific Affairs (January 1974).28 "A Leaf from History: FSF-the dreaded organization." Dawn News, 29 July 2012. http://beta.dawn.com/news/737999/a-leaf-from-history-fsf-the-dreaded-organisation29 J. Henry Korson, Contemporary Problems of Pakistan (Boulder: Westview, 1993) 89.

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government did not pay any attention to banning alcohol30. Mullahs31 often targeted him for

trying to create a western society in which Islam played no role32

Political analyst Zaid Hamid states,” Obscenity was at its height during the 70s...alcohol was

sold in public markets, movies with explicit sexual scenes weren’t banned and women who wore

unacceptable clothes were appreciated by the society...he wasn’t able to end the shameful

cultural practices of the time”.33 Hamid’s statement reflects the general view at the time as a vast

amount of the populace was angered at these social policies as can be seen in Historian Javed

Chaudhry’s statement. Chaudhry links these social policies to the coup of 1977,“The Army was

growing religious by the 70s. Not only was Zia34 an extremely pious man, the majority of the

army was in support of the religious parties… A rather peculiar set of pamphlets were found in

Army barracks throughout Pakistan, written by the JUI leader that called for an ‘Army

revolution’”

These policies would become the central opposition cry during the PNA movement that led to

the coup and many historians, like Chaudhry, believe that his piousness was one of the factors

that led Zia to stage the coup, as Zia would, after seizing power, launch a relentless policy of

Islamisization.

Army’s Dilemma:

30 "Also Pakistan" Dawn News. N.p., 9 Feb. 2012. Web. <http://www.beta.dawn.com/news/694239/also-pakistan-2>. See this for some examples of the cultural practices of the time. Though some of these don’t seem obscene to many, these were extremely outrageous in a country as conservative and religious as Pakistan.31 Term for Muslim Religious Clerics32 Ian Talbot, Pakistan, a Modern History (New York: St. Martin's, 1998) 233.33 Interview at political show “Capital Talk”, Geo News (November 13, 2011). Interview translated from Urdu34 General Zia-Ul-Haq was the Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan (Head of the Military) and was the person who toppled Bhutto and ruled Pakistan for eleven years

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The Army has always been the most prestigious institution of Pakistan. This prestige was most

hurt when in 1971, the army suffered a terrible defeat at the hands of the Indian Army and thus,

had to surrender. The trauma of the surrender of the Army and the separation of East Pakistan

left a deep psychological impact on the Pakistani nation but also finished the prestige of the

Armed forces of Pakistan.35 When Bhutto came to power, he was faced with an insurgency in

Baluchistan where tribal leaders, who had for centuries made their own decisions, were forced to

obey the government’s decision of accepting Urdu, not Balochi, as there official language. After

the insurgency grew into a civil war, Bhutto called in the Army and imposed ‘Governor Rule’. 36

Thousands of tribal fighters were murdered and the image of the army was severely

compromised37

When one considers what may have been the motivation behind the coup, the most obvious

answer that emerges is that the Pakistan army wanted to restore its image of a savior. It is evident

that the army had no intentions to stage a coup during the PNA movement as one of the leaders

of PNA, Asghar Khan, himself demanded the army to impose Martial Law.38 Despite their ability

to do so, the army rejected such demands and stayed loyal to the government. This is proven by

the fact that at the height of the crisis, the army released a statement confirming their support to

Bhutto’s government.39 After the PNA movement began, the army was on several occasions

called on to crackdown on the opposition protests.40 Army officers in the streets were often faced

35 For a detailed explanation of these events, see Sisson, Richard, and Leo E. Rose. War and Secession: Pakistan, India, and the Creation of Bangladesh (Berkeley: University of California, 1990)36 “Governor Rule” is the removal of the provincial government and the order to allow the governor of a province (appointed by the President) to rule by decree37 Stanley A. Wolpert, Zulfi Bhutto of Pakistan: His Life and times (New York: Oxford UP, 1993) 236-25138 The Pakistan Times, May 5. 197739 The Pakistan Times, April 28, 197740 See Section “PNA Movement”

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with crowds taunting, abusing and ridiculing them for supporting what they perceived was an

illegitimate government.41 The image of the army was thus, further tarnished due its support of

an unpopular government, another long term cause which contributed to the army’s decision of

toppling the Bhutto regime.

1977 elections:

On 7th January 1977, Bhutto, confident that he could win fresh elections as the opposition parties

were deeply divided, announced that general elections would be held in March 1977.

On 11th January 1977, nine major opposition parties decided to form an alliance known as the

PNA. These parties were extremely diverse in their ideologies ranging from the leftist NAP to

the far-right JUI.42 However, they shared a common trait and that was there opposition to Bhutto.

These opposition parties had suffered at the regime’s heavy-handed approach to ruling. For

example, the NAP had been banned in 1975 for opposing the rule of Bhutto and its leader Wali

Khan was behind bars even during the elections of 1977.

41 The Pakistan Times, July 6, 1977.42 The PNA Comprised of:

Muslim League Pakistan Democratic Party Jamiat-i-Ulama-i-Islam Jamiat-i-Ulema-i-Pakistan Jamaat-i-Islami National Democratic Party Tehrik-i-Istiqlal-i-Pakistan The Khaksars All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference

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The PNA was extremely successful at channeling the frustration of the populace with Bhutto’s

authoritarianism and economic and social policies. The opposition rallied people by its promise

to implement “Nizam-E-Mustafa”,43 which proved to be popular in an increasingly conservative

Pakistan. The movement promised Islamization in which alcohol, co-education and “obscenity”

would be banned. Though there manifesto was vague, the Alliance’s targeting of government on

issues such as nationalization, high inflation, unemployment and corruption on its own proved

enough to rally mass support. Unlike the late 60s and the early 70s, PPP rallies were marked by

low attendance, whereas the PNA rallies astonishingly attracted large crowds, especially in urban

areas of Sind and Punjab. Although the PNA demonstrated its popularity through mass rallies,

most analysts and people still believed that Bhutto enjoyed support in rural Sindh and Punjab,

and would thus win the elections with a narrow majority.44

The Election Commission of Pakistan had set the deadline for nominating papers to be filed for

19th January. The Police arrested many PNA members from Sindh who attempted to file

nomination papers. In some rare cases, many PNA members were reported to go missing for

weeks. Consequently, Bhutto and a few other PPP stalwarts from Sindh were declared winners

unopposed. This was said to be an attempt to make an impact on the PNA and to demoralize

them.45

43 Urdu for “System of the Prophet”; a rather vague term for “Islamic Law”. 44 Source: The Pakistan Times (23 February, 1977)45 Stanley A. Wolpert, Zulfi Bhutto of Pakistan: His Life and times (New York: Oxford UP, 1993) 298-311.

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On March 7th, 1977, the elections were held and the results were surprising.46 Bhutto won the

election with a massive landslide.47 American Ambassador to Pakistan at the time would later

recall a meeting with Bhutto on Election night, "He [Bhutto] was losing in Karachi. He was

losing in Peshawar. Then the Punjab numbers started coming in and guys who were absolute

thugs won by 99 percent…Then, he became absolutely quiet and started drinking heavily, calling

Lahore, and he said, 'What are you guys doing?'... I saw Bhutto at 8 the next morning, and he

wasn't himself. He hadn't had any sleep, obviously drinking. He was just sad." Zulfiqar Ali

Bhutto had recently asked his Punjab Chief Minister Qureshi to shift the election campaign in

Punjab to ‘top gear’. 48

The PNA reacted with immediate claims that the elections were rigged and a farce. The PNA

boycotted the Provincial elections three days later claiming that there results would also be

manipulated like the National elections. It is evident that electoral fraud did occur at a large scale

in many constituencies, which affected the results of around forty constituencies according to

some estimates, with an overwhelming majority of them in Punjab where PPP candidates won

with unrealistic margins.49 Although the PPP maintained the elections were fair, foreign

correspondents started reporting mass irregularities in numerous constituencies. Furthermore, it

would only be later discovered that system of electoral malpractice was well planned and

systematic in that the entire government apparatus including the bureaucracy and the secret

services were put to the job of ensuring a PPP victory. On election day, all kinds of manipulative

46 For results of these elections, see “Appendix D”. Note the huge difference in the PPP’s achievement in 1970 and these elections, despite the fact that the PPP was much more unpopular in 1977 than in 1970 for the reasons given in the investigation.47 The PPP won 155 seats and 58.1% of the popular vote whereas the PNA only won 36 seats and 35.4% of the popular vote.48 Husain Haqani, Pakistan: Between Mosque and Military (Washington, D.C.: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 2005) 121. Source only used for the quote.49 Stanley A. Wolpert, Zulfi Bhutto of Pakistan: His Life and times (New York: Oxford UP, 1993) 348.

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methods were used including voter intimidation, ballot stuffing and harassing of PNA

supporters.50 It was even reported by The Guardian that polling agents of the PNA were locked

up until it was ensured the PPP candidates had won.51

However, the question arises as to why such a mass electoral fraud was carried out. Rafi Raza,

Bhutto’s election campaign head stated that the PPP Punjab politicians were essentially feudal

and unacquainted with the realities of politics and thus resorted to mass electoral malpractices in

order to satisfy Bhutto with sweeping victories in their constituencies. Many analysts also argue

that Bhutto wanted to amend the 1973 constitution in order to install a Presidential system

instead of the parliamentary system already in place, in order to get more powers for himself.

But, for amending the constitution, he needed a two-thirds majority in the parliament 52

After examining the electoral conduct in several constituencies, the Chief Election commissioner

at the time Sajjad Ahmed Jan and admitted that massive cheating had occurred by making

several public statements53. Convinced that the elections were rigged beyond fixing, he suggested

re-election54. However, he was fired and sent into exile when he declared election results in

several constituencies ‘null and void’ and was about to do so for another 80 constituencies.

PNA Movement:

50 Hasan Muktar, “The Drama of 7th March – revealed”, Weekly Islami Jamhuriya (Lahore, March 16th, 1977)51 Walter Schwarz, ‘Why Bhutto’s power is crumbling?’ The Guardian, London, May 1, 1977.52 Ian Talbot, Pakistan, a Modern History (New York: St. Martin's, 1998) 240-24153 Daily Millat, Karachi, June 13, 1977.54 The Pakistan Times, June 23, 1977.

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The PNA started its agitation that is often referred to as the “PNA movement”. Like the early 70s

when the students and small businessmen had supported Bhutto, these groups of people were

now supporting PNA. The agitation had started in Urban Sindh and Punjab, where the PNA had

performed strongly in the elections. However, after a violent crackdown by the police on a

demonstration in Lahore on 9th April, 1977, the agitation spread across rural Punjab. It is

estimated that police firing in these demonstrations killed at least 300 people and around 20,000

people were arrested55. The violent crackdowns led to even more protests that resulted in Martial

Law being imposed on 20th April in all major cities of Pakistan. Despite this step, the agitation

continued vigorously: people were asked to not pay taxes and withdraw their money from the

nationalized banks, tires and buses were burnt, the railway system was shut down, factories were

closed and the entire economy had completely shutdown. This resulted in the proclamation of

emergency law and announcement by the government to suspend civil liberties. Bhutto had

already laid the foundations of a military coup by granting the military extra-constitutional

powers.56

Bhutto agreed that there were some electoral malpractices. However, he denied any direct

involvement in it, stating that individual candidates might have manipulated the elections in their

own capacities without the knowledge or involvement of the Federal Government.57 He also

offered several concessions to the opposition in that he offered re-polling for the provincial

elections, a referendum on whether the electorate wanted him as Prime Minister or not, ban on

alcohol and closure of all night clubs and a promise to impose Shari’ah law with in six months.

55 Markham, James M. "Military Men Who Helped Bhutto Gain Power Warn That He Is Leading Toward Civil War." The New York Times Apr.

197756 Salamat Ali, ‘Bhutto Weathers Storm’, Far Eastern Economic Review, May 6, 1977.57 The Pakistan Times, April 9, 1977. Bhutto also defended himself by saying “I don’t want to go down in history as a rigger of the elections, which I am not. If 1 have re-elections, I would be conceding their false charge that I am a manipulator and rigger of elections... What the hell is office of Prime Minister? I am more concerned about my place in history”

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He also offered re-election in the event he lost the provincial elections.58 Despite the fact that the

concessions were what the PNA wanted, they refused to accept it, stating that they wanted

Bhutto to resign immediately.

Nevertheless, the PNA agreed to hold talks with Bhutto, which were set up by foreign nations

with Saudi Arabia playing a major role. The talks officially began on June 3, 1977. As the talks

began, both sides began to soften their stance. The PNA gave up on its demand of the resignation

of Mr. Bhutto as Prime Minister whereas Bhutto agreed to hold fresh elections. Agreements were

also reached on the dissolution of all assemblies and the appointments of provincial governors as

well as the election commission staff in which the PNA was to be consulted. In addition,

agreement was reached to form an implementation committee that would aid the election

commission in carrying out free and fair elections. A two-member sub-committee was created in

which a PNA and a PPP representative would decide how the elections were carried out.59 This

agreement was officially reached on June 16, 1977.

Even when it seemed the two parties had reached an agreement, the two parties continued

targeting and pressurizing each other. Bhutto immediately announced a weeklong tour to the

Middle East, a tactic to show that he was still in-charge and would not be impacted by the PNA’s

pressure whatsoever. Similarly, the party members of each party started threatening each other at

the constituency-level, which resulted in several skirmishes that left hundreds injured. During all

this, the two-member subcommittee was struggling to finalize what powers were to be granted to

the implementation committee. The PNA wanted to give it the powers of removing and

58 The Pakistan Times (May 1977 monthly issue)59 The Pakistan Times, June 16, 1977

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appointing the election staff whereas the PPP attempted to restrict its role to just that of advising

the election commission. Bhutto and the PNA yet again started accusation against each other

until a final agreement was reached on the 3rd of July.60 Peace was hardly restored before the

PNA’s member-council refused to accept the agreement and presented even more demands to the

PPP government. Bhutto retorted back stating that the PNA was violating the very agreement it

had signed a few days ago.61 By now, it appeared that the Army had run out of patience. The

country had suffered an economic loss of $730 million,62 the political conflict had gone on for

months and there were no chances of a political solution in sight and the violence was only

escalating. Ensured that it was the only solution to the fragile situation of the country, the army

took over on the 5th of July 1977, and deposed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, ending his rule.63 General

Zia-ul-Haq, Chief of Army Staff of the Army, became the Martial Law Administrator and in

effect, ruled Pakistan until his death in 1988.64

Conclusion:

This investigation has sought to answer the question to what extent did the 1977 general

elections play a role in causing Operation Fair Play, the military coup that was staged

60 The Pakistan Times, July 3, 1977.61 Dawn, July 5, 1977. This was Bhutto’s last press conference ever.62 Keesings Contemporary Archives, pg.28301-6.63 Dawn (July 5, 1977)64 Stanley A. Wolpert, Zulfi Bhutto of Pakistan: His Life and times (New York: Oxford UP, 1993) 354.

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successfully on 5th of July, 1977 in Pakistan and resulted in the removal of the Bhutto

administration. The answer to this question is that the 1977 elections did indeed play a crucial

role in causing the coup. One could argue that it was the trigger to a series of swift events that

followed it and led to the overthrow of Bhutto.

There have been numerous coup attempts in Pakistan’s history. However, the only four coups

that have been successful occur at times where the government in office has lost its legitimacy,

according to Ian Talbot.65 In 1977, the Bhutto administration had lost its legitimacy due to

several reasons. The loss of legitimacy began not in 1977, but since Bhutto had taken office. The

political, social and economic policies adopted by Bhutto devastated the economy and frustrated

and alienated both the upper and middle-class of his country which resulted in Bhutto’s loss of

legitimacy. Although considerable amount of his legitimacy was lost already due to the situation

the country was in, the final nail in the coffin came when the elections of 1977 were

manipulated. This resulted in Bhutto’s complete loss of legitimacy amongst the populace and

thus, this loss of legitimacy was translated into the PNA movement that was launched

consequently. It is also important to point out that the PNA movement played an equally

important role in that it successfully united all those who were frustrated with Bhutto. Many

election results have been challenged throughout history with no such agitation following, so the

role of the PNA was just as important as that of the 1977 elections.

The credibility of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto’s government was further challenged when the

government failed to contain the law and order situation in the country as well as meeting the

65 The coup of 1997 occurred at a time when the Prime Minister at that time, Nawaz Sharif, much like Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, had lost all his legitimacy and support. For more on this topic, read Ian Talbot’s “Pakistan: a Modern History”, mentioned in the bibliography. The theory that a coup’s success in Pakistan depends on the legitimacy of the government that the coup is attempted against is widely accepted amongst Pakistan’s intelligentsia, historians and political analysts.

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opposition’s demands. The 1977 election allowed all the causes to come together in the form of

the PNA movement. So, although all the causes studied in this investigation played a role in

leading up to the coup, the 1977 election was the most crucial cause.

The investigation does show that there are several questions that might never be answered. The

first one is that who exactly was responsible for rigging the 1977 elections. Furthermore, there

are numerous conspiracy theories regarding the events that might never be confirmed. It is very

hard to find an unbiased source regarding this topic as Historian Stanley Wolpert states, which

would prevent researchers from reaching a definite conclusion regarding the research question.

Bibliography:

Books:

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Wolpert, Stanley A. Zulfi Bhutto of Pakistan: His Life and times. New York: Oxford UP,

1993.

Taseer, Salmaan. Bhutto, a Political Biography. New Delhi: Vikas Pub. House, 1980. 83.

Print.

Talbot, Ian. Pakistan, a Modern History. New York: St. Martin's, 1998. Print.

Korson, J. Henry. Contemporary Problems of Pakistan. Boulder: Westview, 1993. 

Bhutto, Benazir. Daughter of Destiny: An Autobiography. New York: Simon and

Schuster, 1989. 

Haqqani, Husain. Pakistan: Between Mosque and Military. Washington, D.C.: Carnegie

Endowment for International Peace, 2005. Print.

Sisson, Richard, and Leo E. Rose. War and Secession: Pakistan, India, and the Creation

of Bangladesh. Berkeley: University of California, 1990.

Articles:

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"Address to the Nation by Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Broadcast and Telecast on

November 10, 1975." Bhutto. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Aug. 2013.

<http://www.bhutto.org/1976_speech15.php>.

Baxter, Craig. "Pakistan Votes - 1970." Asian Survey, Mar. 1970. Web.

<http://cprid.com/history/5-Baxter%20Election%201970.pdf>.

"A Leaf from History: Pledges for a New Pakistan." Dawn.com. N.p., 27 June 2012.

Web. 27 Aug. 2013.

Markham, James M. "Military Men Who Helped Leader Gain Power Warn That He Is

Leading Toward Civil War." The New York Times Apr. 1977

Ali, Salamat. "Bhutto Weathers Storm." Far Eastern Economic Review 6 May 1977: n.

pag. Print.

Schwarz, Walter. "Why Bhutto's Power Is Crumbling?" The Guardian [London] 1 May

1977: n. pag. Print.

"A Leaf from History: FSF-the dreaded organization." Dawn News, 29 July 2012.

http://beta.dawn.com/news/737999/a-leaf-from-history-fsf-the-dreaded-organisation

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Mukhtar, Hassan. "The Drama of 7th March – Revealed." Weekly Islami Jamhuriya

[Lahore] 16 Mar. 1977: n. pag. Print.

"Torture Claims in India and Pakistan." Far Eastern Economic Review 13 June 1977: n.

pag. Print.

Sayed, Khalid Bin. "How Radical Is the Pakistan People's Party." Pacific Affairs Jan.

1974: n. pag. Print.

Newspaper Archives:

The Pakistan Times (archives from 1970-1977 kept in Quaid-e-Azam Library, Lahore)

Dawn (Archives from 1968-1979 kept in Quaid-e-Azam Library, Lahore)

Daily Millat (Archives from 1976-1977 kept at Punjab University, Lahore)

APPENDIX A:

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APPENDIX B:

Page 27

APPENDIX C:

Page 28

Source: Dawn News

Note: N.W.F.P is more commonly known as the “Frontier province”, as it is referred to in this investigation

APPENDIX D:

Page 29

Source: Hasan Askari Rizvi, The Military and Politics in Pakistan (Delhi, 1988) 219.