Dir campaign

Last updated
Dir campaign
Part of Dir conflict and Pakistan-Afghanistan skirmishes
Date1959–1960
Location
Result

Pakistani/Opposition victory

  • Overthrow of Nawab Jahan Khan
Belligerents
Flag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan
Flag of the State of Dir 2.svg Dir opposition
Supported by:
Flag of Swat.svg Swat state
Flag of the State of Dir 2.svg Dir state
Supported by:
Flag of Afghanistan (1931-1973).svg  Afghanistan
Commanders and leaders
Flag of Pakistan.svg Maj.M.A Beg
Flag of Pakistan.svg Maj. Aslam Beg
Flag of Pakistan.svg Lt Col. A O Mitha
Flag of Pakistan.svg Maj. Nishat Ahmed
Flag of Pakistan.svg Capt. S.M. Naeem
Flag of Pakistan.svg Lt. Fakhre Alam
Flag of the State of Dir 2.svg Sharrif Khan
Flag of the State of Dir 2.svg Khosru Khan
Flag of the State of Dir 2.svg Rakhman Gul
Flag of the State of Dir 2.svg Nawab Jahan Khan
Flag of the State of Dir 2.svg Khan of Jandool
Units involved

Flag of the Pakistani Army.svg  Pakistan Army

Flag of the State of Dir 2.svg Shariff Force
Flag of the State of Dir 2.svg Rakhman Gul Force
Flag of the State of Dir 2.svg Dir Levies
Flag of Afghanistan (1931-1973).svg  Afghan tribesmen
Flag of the Afghan Army (1931-1973).svg  Afghan army (Alleged)
Casualties and losses
Unknown 200+ soldiers killed

Dir campaign refers to a conflict that took place in Dir state, originally an insurrection by locals against the rule of Nawab Jahan Khan that lead to the death of 200 soldiers of Nawab and unknown number of locals. This insurrection antagonized Pakistani government and it tried to negotiate the resignation of Nawab but no settlement was reached. This was followed by an invasion of the state by Pakistani SSG and overthrow of Nawab. It was the first deployment of SSG in a conflict.

Contents

Background

On 8 Feb 1948, Dir acceded to the newly created Muslim dominion of Pakistan, initially continuing as one of the surviving princely states of Pakistan. The politics of the late Nawabs are described as reactionary and harsh. [1] [2]

State violence and underdevelopment

It was reported by Fosco Maraini in 1959 during an expedition towards Hindu-Kush, reported the opinion of the people that the Nawab Jahan Khan (who was about 64 years old at that time) was a tyrannical leader, denying his subjects any freedom of speech and instruction, governing the land with a number of henchmen, and seizing for his harem any girl or woman he wanted. Maraini also noticed the lack of schools, sewers, and paved roads, and the presence of just a rudimentary newly built hospital. The Nawab was negatively compared to the Wali of Swat, whose liberal politics allowed his state to enter into the modern era. [3]

Civilian uprising

As a consequence, uprisings began eventually to explode. A repressed revolt in 1959 was reported by Maraini's. [3] Another insurrection in 1960 led to the death of 200 soldiers and put the Nawab in a bad light in the view of the press. Pakistani government put heavy pressure on the Nawab Jahan Khan to resign but no diplomatic success was reached.

Afghan infiltration

In September 1960, Afghan tribesmen and some regular troops under civilian cover entered the area of Dir as part of the wider Bajaur Campaign to help Nawab Jahan khan against the Pakistan -backed opposition. [4] [5] The Afghan lashkars were forced to withdraw and this proved to be the casus belli for the Pakistani government to launch the operation for the overthrow of Nawab. [4] [5] [6]

Pakistan military operation

In October 1960, Two companies of the SSG covertly in Scouts uniform launched an operation to overthrow the Nawab Jahan Khan and his son Khan of Jandool. [7] [8] [9]

First SSG company operated from Chitral under the command of Mirza Aslam Beg Commanded SSG alongside Shariff Force commanded by Brig M. Shariff. [7] They launched an assault on the town of Dir with the aim of overthinking Nawab Jahan Khan. Maj. Nishat Ahmed, Capt. S.M. Naeem and Lt. Fakhre Alam also participated in this operation. The overthrow was bloodless. [7]

The second SSG company, commanded by Maj. Aslam Beg, operated in the area of Munda Killa alongside Rakhman Gul Force . Its aim was to capture Khan of Jandool. Lt Col. A O Mitha were part of this company. [7] They transported the Nawab and his son in to Risalpur via air. [7]

All the weapons of nawab were confiscated and constitutional government was established. Nawab shah Khesrao khan was recognised as the Nawab of Dir. [10] The SSG personnel remained in the area for a month. [7] [9] [8]

Exile of Nawab

General Yahya decided to exile Jahan Khan, who would die in 1968. His throne passed in October 1961 to his eldest son, Mohammad Shah Khosru Khan, educated in India and a serving Major General of the Pakistan Army. However, the effective rule of Dir was taken by the Pakistani government's Political Agent.

Aftermath

A few years later, on 28 July 1969, the Dir state was incorporated into Pakistan, ceasing its political existence. [1] The royal status of the Nawabs was abolished in 1972, at the same time as most other princes of Pakistan.[ citation needed ] [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bahawalpur (princely state)</span> Princely state

Bahawalpur was a princely state in subsidiary alliance with British Raj and later Dominion of Pakistan, that was a part of the Punjab States Agency. The state covered an area of 45,911 km2 (17,726 sq mi) and had a population of 1,341,209 in 1941. The capital of the state was the town of Bahawalpur.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fosco Maraini</span>

Fosco Maraini was an Italian photographer, anthropologist, ethnologist, writer, mountaineer and academic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mirza Aslam Beg</span> Pakistan Army general (born 1928)

Mirza Aslam BegNI(M) HI(M) SBt LoM, also known as M. A. Beg, is a retired Pakistani four-star general who served as the third Chief of Army Staff of the Pakistan Army from 1988 until his retirement in 1991. His appointment as chief of army staff came when his predecessor, President General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, died in an air crash on 17 August 1988.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asif Nawaz Janjua</span> Pakistan army general (1937–1993)

General Asif Nawaz Janjua NI(M), HI(M), SBt, psc, was a senior officer of the Pakistan Army who served as the fourth chief of army staff from 16 August 1991 until his death in 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dir District</span> Place in Pakistan

Dir is a region in northwestern Pakistan in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, in the foothills of the Himalayas. Before the independence of Pakistan, Dir was a princely state, and it remained so until 1969 when it was abolished by a presidential declaration, and the Dir District was created the following year. The area covers 5,280 square kilometres. In 1996 Dir district was officially divided into Lower Dir District and Upper Dir District.

Muhammad Aslam Khan Khattak, SPk was a Pakistani politician and diplomat who was the Governor of North-West Frontier Province from 1973 to 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dir (princely state)</span> Princely state of British India and later Pakistan

Dir was a princely state in a subsidiary alliance with the British Raj, located within the North-West Frontier Province. Following the Partition of British India, Dir remained independent and unaligned until February 1948, when the Dominion of Pakistan accepted its accession.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frontier Corps</span> Pakistani paramilitary force

The Frontier Corps are a group of four paramilitary forces of Pakistan, operating in the provinces of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, to maintain law and order while overseeing the country's borders with Afghanistan and Iran. There are four Frontier Corps: FC KPK (North) and FC KPK (South) stationed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, and FC Balochistan (North) and FC Balochistan (South) stationed in Balochistan province.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shamim Alam Khan</span> Pakistani general (1937–2021)

General Shamim Alam Khan, NI(M) HI(M) SJ SBt LoH, was a four star-rank general in the Pakistan Army who served as the 7th Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee from 1991 until retiring in 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iqbal Khan (general)</span> Pakistani general

Mohammad Iqbal KhanNI(M) HI(M) SI(M) SBt (1924–2000) was a senior general in the Pakistan Army who served as the third Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee from being appointed in 1980 until 1984.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Muhammad Shariff (general)</span> Pakistani general

General Muhammad ShariffNI(M) SPk SI(M) was a senior Pakistan Army general who was the first Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, serving in this post from 1976 until tendering his resignation in 1977 over the disagreement with the military takeover of the civilian government by the Pakistani military.

On 25 March 1971, the Pakistani military, supported by paramilitary units, launched the military operation to pacify the insurgent-held areas of East Pakistan, which led to a prolonged conflict with the Bengali Mukti Bahini. Although conventional in nature during March–May 1971, it soon turned into a guerrilla insurgency from June of that year. Indian Army had not directly supported the Bengali resistance but had launched Operation Jackpot to support the insurgency from May 1971.

Operation Midnight Jackal, or simply known as Midnight Jackal, was a first of two major political scandals that took place in the first term of Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in 1988–89 that was a plot of ISI's Internal Wing to assist the vote of no-confidence movement in the Parliament to pave the way for new elections in favor of conservative politicians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mohammad Shariff</span> Pakistani admiral (1920–2020)

Admiral Mohammad ShariffNI(M) HJ HI(M) LoM, was a Pakistani senior admiral who served as the 2nd Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and a memoirist who was at the center of all the major decisions made in Pakistan in the events involving the war with India in 1971, the enforcement of martial law in the country in 1977, and the decision in covertly intervening against Soviet Union in Afghanistan.

Lieutenant General Zahid Ali AkbarHI(M), SBt, PE, is a former engineering officer in the Pakistan Army Corps of Engineers, known for his role in Pakistan's acquisition of nuclear weapons, and directing the Engineering Research Laboratories (ERL), a top secret research facility developing the clandestine atom bomb project.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Special Service Group</span> Special operations force of the Pakistan Army

The Pakistan Army Special Service Group is the special operations forces of the Pakistan Army. They are also known by their nickname of "Maroon Berets" due to their headgear.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sitara-e-Basalat</span> Award

Sitara-e-Basalat is a non-operational gallantry award of Pakistan Armed Forces given to individuals for distinguished acts of gallantry, valor or courage while performing their duty

The Princely States of Pakistan were princely states of the British Indian Empire which acceded to the new Dominion of Pakistan between 1947 and 1948, following the partition of British India and its independence.

The Bajaur Campaign was an armed conflict between Afghanistan and Pakistan that began in September 1960 and ended in September 1961. It primarily took place in and around Bajaur District in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas.

Major General Sana Ullah Khan Niazipscafwc also known as Soldiers’ General, was a two-star rank general in the Pakistan Army serving as G.O.C 17th Division (Malakand) when he was assassinated in a roadside blast. He was posthumously awarded the Sitara-e-Basalat and Hilal-i-Imtiaz on Pakistan Day in 2014 and 2015.

References

  1. 1 2 Syed Ziafat Ali. "Welcome To Dir State" . Retrieved 2013-08-13.
  2. Jinnah Papers The states: Historical and Policy Perspectives and Accession to Pakistan, First series volume VIII, Editor: Z.H.Zaidi, Quaid-i-Azam Papers Project, Government of Pakistan 2003 Pg xvii.
  3. 1 2 Maraini, Fosco (1965). Where four worlds meet: Hindu Kush, 1959. London: Hamish Hamilton.
  4. 1 2 Qassem, Ahmad Shayeq (16 March 2016). Afghan infiltration into Dir. Routledge. ISBN   978-1-317-18459-1.
  5. 1 2 Hussain, Arif (1966). Pakistan,it's ideology,it's foreign policy.
  6. Events in 1960-61. 1962.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Amin, A.H. (February 2002). "Remembering Our Warriors: Brig. Shamim Yasin Manto". www.defencejournal.com. Karachi: Defence Journal Shamim. Archived from the original on 3 May 2013. Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  8. 1 2 Baily, John (September 2016). War, Exile and the Music of Afghanistan. Taylor & Francis. ISBN   978-1-315-46692-7.
  9. 1 2 Fighting to the End, Pakistan army's way of fighting.
  10. 1 2 "Dir Royal Family[Akhun khel]: History".