With so many controversies going around about the fall of Dhaka, our son of soil General Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi is portrayed as the man who surrendered willfully to the enemy. While going through the following excerpts from different credible sources, any sensible reader can assess that the brave general was framed and left with no options but to surrender:

Excerpt from Wikipedia:
“Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi (1915 – February 2, 2004) was a Pakistani military commander who was notable for surrendering to Indian forces in the 1971 Indo-Pakistani War.

Born to a Pathan family in the Punjab, Niazi enlisted in the British Indian Army as a junior officer, and fought well during World War II. During this conflict, the young Niazi would win a Military Cross and be given the nickname “Tiger” by his superior officer due to his prowess in battle against Japanese forces. His Military Cross was earned for actions along the border with Burma, in which he showed great leadership, judgment, quick-thinking, and calm under pressure.

He would join the newly-formed Pakistani Army after Independence in 1947 and quickly rose through the ranks, earning various awards including the Hilal-e-Jurat twice. By 1971 he had reached the rank of Lieutenant-General. He was sent in that year to East Pakistan in April following a Pakistani military crack down on Bengali intellectuals. The army leader in East Pakistan at that time Tikka Khan was thought to be behind the implementation of the crack down, and Niazi had condemned the action. Despite this, the situation in the East was difficult, as Bengali forces in the Pakistani Army had gone into mutiny, large segments of the population were hostile, and an independence movement was gaining steam among the Bengalis. Despite this, Niazi was able to reaffirm Pakistani control over wide parts of East Pakistani territory, opening the window for a political solution to the turmoil – this would not come to fruition.

The crack-down against the Bengalis had gone too far, and the result saw Pakistani forces involved in a guerrilla war with Bengali Mukti Bahini who were aided by India. This would lead to later Indian involvement in the conflict, and a full-scale invasion of the Eastern wing of Pakistan by India, resulting in isolation for Niazi’s forces, and with the absence of external aid, eventual surrender.

On December 16, 1971, General Niazi surrendered all Pakistani forces in East Pakistan to Indian General Jagjit Singh Aurora. Niazi along with a sizable number of Pakistani soldiers were taken prisoner, and many would not be freed until two years later, with Niazi symbolically being the last prisoner of war to cross back to Pakistan. Such actions symbolized his reputation as a “soldier’s general” but did not shield him from the scorn he faced upon his return to Pakistan, where he was viewed as a scapegoat.

Niazi was stripped of his military rank, and the pension usually accorded to retired soldiers. In order to clear his name, Niazi sought a court martial, but it was never granted. The former general would try to take up politics in order to clear himself, but he was jailed in order to quell such actions. In 1998 he released The Betrayal of East Pakistan where he blamed Yahya Khan and Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto for the separation of East Pakistan. ”

Excerpt from Times Online UK:

“Pakistani general who fought the overwhelming might of India in Bengal in 1971 and was never forgiven by his country for losing.”

March 11, 2004

A SINGLE day in the life of Lieutenant-General Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi of Pakistan overshadowed a distinguished career and cast a pall over the rest of his life. On December 16, 1971, Niazi, as commander of the Eastern Command, signed the surrender document that ended the 1971 war between India and Pakistan in East Pakistan (Bangladesh).

That moment made him a focus for India’s triumphalism, Bangladesh’s hatred for West Pakistan and Pakistan’s humiliation.

In the bitter break-up of Pakistan the public forgot that as a young officer in the British Indian Army, Niazi had won an on-the-spot Military Cross for exceptional bravery after action on June 11, 1944, in the Kekrima area of the Assam-Burma front.
That spring, the 14th Army under General Slim had halted the advance of the Japanese at the battle of Imphal and elsewhere in bitterly fought actions along the Burma front.

Describing Niazi’s gallantry in the citation for the MC, his commanding officers wrote at length of his judgment about the best course of action, which they accepted, his skill in taking the enemy completely by surprise, as well as his personal leadership of his men, coolness under fire, ability to change tactics, create diversions, extricate his wounded and withdraw his men. At the Bauthi-Daung tunnels, Niazi impressed his commanding officers so much that they wanted to award a DSO. He was, however, too junior. A “mention” had to suffice.

The nickname “Tiger” was given him by Brigadier D. F. W. Warren, commander of 161 Infantry Brigade, after a ferocious fight with the Japanese.

After independence Niazi became a highly decorated general in the Pakistan Army, twice receiving Pakistan’s highest military honour, the Hilal-e-Jurat. When he was sent to East Pakistan in April 1971, General Tikka Khan had already launched a brutal crackdown against Bengali rebels. Niazi condemned this but was saddled with the consequences: mutiny among Bengali regiments, a totally hostile population and Pakistan’s tarnished reputation.

Yet, in a couple of months under him the Eastern Command systematically regained the territory, creating the opportunity for a political settlement — though none was ever achieved.

Instead Niazi and his men found themselves fighting a protracted guerrilla war against Bengalis, aided by India and eventually involved in a full-scale war with India. The small, battle-weary Eastern Command, cut off from headquarters, with meagre resources, put up a valiant fight against India’s overwhelming might, but the outcome of such a contest was never in doubt. Pakistan’s failure to secure external assistance or UN intervention sealed its fate.

Niazi’s reputation as a “soldier’s general” lasted to the end. After spending two years as a prisoner of war in India, he was the last to cross the border after the repatriation of prisoners. He then found himself vilified in his own country for losing the war with India.

His requests for a court martial to clear his name were never granted. He was removed from the army and stripped of pensions, without trial. When he entered politics to try to be heard, he was jailed.

Niazi was born in a Pathan family in Punjab. He lived his last years quietly in Lahore. His memoir, The Betrayal of East Pakistan, was published in 1998.

His wife predeceased him. He is survived by their five children.”

More on this in Part-2 of this post.

A View of the beautiful colors of sunset at River Indus. Photo taken near Jalalpur.

After thorough analysis of water flow, “Ahsan-Maqbool Bund” was constructed at a location, on River Kurrum with the following features:
Length: 2900-fts (1 Km app)
Average height: 7-fts
Width Bottom: 55~60-fts Width Top: 20~25-fts
Material Used: 8-9 lacs feet approx (with dumper trolleys), excavated from Jungle Side to make channel for the flow of water to the mainstream

This bund was made by Jamal Ahsan Khan Niazi,using his own personal machinery and expense just in time to avert the flooding of adjacent areas during the recent floods in Ramadan, 2010.

Hundreds of people became victims of fate, after the heavy monsoon rains wreaked havoc in the Isakhel surroundings washing away their homes and belongings. Water levels in River Indus and River Korum are registering record height in history and a state of emergency has been declared in Mainwali district. Small bridges on the Mianwali-Isakhel road are broke at Ratakhel and

A View from Isa Khel Railway Station

A beautiful sight at Jalalpur, Isakhel. Taken by Jamal Ahsan Khan Niazi.

Tomb of Isakhan

Isa Khan

Isa Khan, the common ancestor of the Isakhel clan, left two sons, Zakku and Apu, and two grandsons, Badu (Badan) and Mammu. Their respective descendants are known by their patronymics. For many generations the clan was not governed by chiefs, but by its counsel of elders. In time feuds between the different sections became frequent, the numerically stronger domineering over the numerically weaker. Thus the Zakku Khels and Apu Khels were both weak, and the Badanzais and Mammu Khels strong. This state of things continued until the time of Khan Zaman, Zakku Khel. Procuring help from Ahmad Shah Durrani, he raised himself to the chief-ship, and so turned the tables on the two rival sections who had so long oppressed him.

In 1761 he led a troop of his clansmen to Panipat, and took part in the battle which destroyed Mahratta pretensions in Upper India. His son Umar Khan succeeded him and administered the southern parts of Isakhel in the interest of the Nawab of Mankera. It was this Umar Khan who excavated the canal called after him, and did so much to revive and develop canal irrigation. He was allowed one-quarter of all revenue collections made by him. Ahmad Khan, his son, succeeded to his position. Under him the fortunes of his house continued to improve until the Sikh conquest of Isakhel. When that had been effected, Ahmad Khan and his family took refuge in Bannu proper and in Dawar.

On his death in exile in 1838, Muhammad Khan his brother made terms, with his new masters, and was granted one-eighth of the revenues of IsaKhel and one-third of the proceeds from the alum pans at Kotki, instead of one-quarter of the former and all the latter, which he and his father before him had enjoyed in the Nawab’s time. But the rapacity of Diwan Lakhi Mal, the Sikh kardar, drove the family once more into exile, and it was not until nearly ten years later that they returned and were reinstated in all their old rights and privileges by Major Edwardes.

The restored Khan proved his gratitude a few months after wards by siding with us throughout the second Sikh war. His third son, Shah Nawaz, was killed in action near Multan in 1848 before the eyes of his benefactor, and his other sons joined Fateh Khan Tewana in withstanding the Sikhs in Bannu proper. Muhammad Khan died in 1855, having first divided his property into eight equal shares, one for each of his seven sons, and one for his grandson, Abdul Rahim Khan, son of the Shah Nawaz just mentioned. Government confirmed the jagir in perpetuity in the same shares after reducing the alum proceeds item to a sixth. When the mutiny broke out, the Khans again came forward and did right good service both in the neighbourhood of Delhi and in the district, for which they were rewarded with special life jagirs and pensions.

Below is their genealogical tree, omitting the common surname “Khan”:
1. Khan Zaman
1. Ahmad
2. Muhammad
1. Muhammad Alam (died 1877)
1. Abdul Samad
2. Shah Nawaz (died 1848)
1. Abdul Rahim
3. Muhammad Ayaz
4. Muhammad Sarfaraz
5. Abdullah
6. Zulfikar
1. Rab Nawaz
2. Sahibdad
3. Karimdad
7. Abdul Satar
8. Abdul Aziz

Of the sons of Muhammad Khan, Nos. 1 to 5 inclusive are by his senior wife, No. 6 by his second wife, and Nos. 7 and 8 by his youngest wife.

The children and grandsons by the two latter are all poor and thriftless, whilst those of the senior wife, who are also the eldest, are comparatively rich and thriving. Abdul Samad holds aloof from the rest of the family fancying that he should be recognized as its head.

Muhammad Sarfaraz is the ablest and richest man in the family. Besides his Isakhel lands and certain lands in Nar he has a grant in Shahpur, the net profits from which are large. Abdullah is an Extra Assistant Commissioner in Dera Ismail Khan.

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Niazi (Pashto: نیازی) is a Pashtun tribe, a group of the Ghilzai Pashtuns of Afghanistan and Pakistan. The word Niazi is derived from the word Niazai like the other forms of Pashtun tribes, such as Yusafzai and Orakzai.

The history of the Pashtuns is ancient, and much of it has yet to be fully researched. From the 2nd millennium BC to the present, Pashtun regions have seen invasions and migrations including Aryan tribes (Iranian peoples, Indo-Aryans), Medes, Persians, Mauryas, Scythians, Kushans, Hephthalites, Greeks, Arabs, Turks, and Mongols. There are many conflicting theories about the origins of the Pashtun people, some modern and others archaic, both among historians and the Pashtuns themselves. Some anthropologists lend credence to the theory of Pashtun descent from Israelites, however, most modern authorities have found this oral tradition to be inconsistent. Ghilzais are reputed to be descended from the Turko-Mongolic Khiljis and Tajiks, as well as the numerous other invaders from Central Asia and the Middle East who have entered Afghanistan over the centuries. Their name being another form of Khitali the Turkish word for ‘swords man’ who early settled, perhaps as mercenaries rather than as a corporate tribe, in the Siah-band range of the Ghor mountains. They first rose into notice in the time of Mahmud of Ghazni when they accompanied in his invasions of India.

Isakhel

A research study was carried out at Isakhel to confine the identification of useful flora of Isakhel. This study was conducted during September 2005- January 2006 in different villages of the area by Department of Biological Sciences, Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad-Pakistan.