Zulfikar Ali
Bhutto becomes President [1971]
Chief Justice of Pakistan, Justice
Hamood-ur-Rahman, administering the oath of office of the President
to Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto in Rawalpindi, on April 21, 1972
Zulfikar Ali
Bhutto becomes President [1971]
After the disastrous war with India that ingloriously concluded
in December 1971, Pakistan had to face its greatest crisis since Independence.
The dismembered Pakistan was left only with the four Provinces of West Pakistan;
Punjab, Sindh, N. W. F. P. and Baluchistan. East Pakistan was now independent.
Pakistan had lost a whole province of 70 million, 56 percent of the total
population, and over 54,501 sq. miles of territory. There were 93,000 prisoners
of war in India and Bangladesh. Pakistan's international credit was depleted.
President Yahya tried to act in a militaristic
manner to impose law and order but the people's patience had been exhausted by
this time. Military leadership had been discredited. Disillusionment,
uncertainty and pessimism prevailed. People were no longer prepared to tolerate
misgovernment. The public severely criticized and accused President Yahya and
his Government for ineptness and inability that culminated with the 1971
national debacle
Faced with these difficulties, President Yahya ceded power to
Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, Chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party that had won the
majority votes in the 1970 elections in West Pakistan. On the request of
Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, on December 6, 1971, Yahya Khan installed a civilian setup
at the Centre and Nurul Amin, a prominent Bengali politician who was against
Mujib-ur-Rahman, was made the Prime Minister. Z. A. Bhutto was made Deputy Prime
Minister on the same day. Nurul Amin remained Prime Minister till December 20,
1971, the day when Bhutto took over as the civilian Chief Marshal Law
Administrator.
A Pakistan International Airline flight was sent to fetch Bhutto
from New York, who at that time was pleading Pakistan's case before the United
Nations Security Council on the East Pakistan Crises. Bhutto returned home on
December 18, 1971. On December 20, he was taken to the President House in
Rawalpindi where he took over two positions from Yahya Khan, one as President
and the other as Chief Martial Law Administrator. Thus he was the first civilian
Chief Martial Law Administrator of the dismembered Pakistan.
Bhutto's intentions to restore national
confidence were in several shapes. He spoke about democracy, a new Constitution,
and a modified federal and parliamentary system. He took steps to stabilize the
situation by successfully negotiating the return of the 93,000 prisoners of war
and a peaceful settlement with India. He took steps to ameliorate poverty and to
revitalize the economy, industry and agriculture. He gave the third Constitution
to the country and established civilian authority over the armed forces in the
political setup.
In early 1972, Bhutto nationalized ten
categories of major industries and withdrew Pakistan from the Commonwealth of
Nations and S. E. A. T. O. On March 1, he introduced extensive land reforms. On
July 2, 1972, he signed the Simla Agreement with India for exchange of the
occupied territories and release of Prisoners of War.
After the 1973 Constitution was
promulgated, Bhutto was elected by the House as the Prime Minister of Pakistan.
He was sworn-in on August 14, 1973.