GeneralA general officer is an officer of high military rank. The term or equivalent is used by nearly every country in the world. General can be used as a generic term for all grades of general officer, or it can specifically refer to a single rank that is simply called general.-All general officer...
Asif Nawaz Janjua, NI(M), SBt (Bar), afwc, psc (3 January, 1937 - 8 January, 1993) was the 10th Chief of Army Staff of the
Pakistan ArmyThe Pakistan Army is a branch of the Pakistan military that protects the state borders and territories.The Pakistan Army, combined with the Navy and Air Force, makes Pakistan's armed forces the sixth largest military in the world. The Army is modelled on the United Kingdom armed forces and came...
from August 16, 1991 till January 8, 1993. His tenure was cut short by his untimely death after suffering a heart attack. His career highlights featured successful pacification operation in
SindhSindh , is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhis. Different cultural and ethnic groups also reside in Sindh including Urdu-speaking Muslim refugees who migrated to Pakistan from India upon independence as well as the people migrated from other provinces after...
when the province wilted under the most violent period in its history.
GeneralA general officer is an officer of high military rank. The term or equivalent is used by nearly every country in the world. General can be used as a generic term for all grades of general officer, or it can specifically refer to a single rank that is simply called general.-All general officer...
Asif Nawaz Janjua, NI(M), SBt (Bar), afwc, psc (3 January, 1937 - 8 January, 1993) was the 10th Chief of Army Staff of the
Pakistan ArmyThe Pakistan Army is a branch of the Pakistan military that protects the state borders and territories.The Pakistan Army, combined with the Navy and Air Force, makes Pakistan's armed forces the sixth largest military in the world. The Army is modelled on the United Kingdom armed forces and came...
from August 16, 1991 till January 8, 1993. His tenure was cut short by his untimely death after suffering a heart attack. His career highlights featured successful pacification operation in
SindhSindh , is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhis. Different cultural and ethnic groups also reside in Sindh including Urdu-speaking Muslim refugees who migrated to Pakistan from India upon independence as well as the people migrated from other provinces after...
when the province wilted under the most violent period in its history. He also stayed as Corps Commander Karachi and Chief of General Staff before becoming the COAS.
His brother, Shuja Nawaz, is a political and strategic analyst, and the author of the seminal book on
Pakistan ArmyThe Pakistan Army is a branch of the Pakistan military that protects the state borders and territories.The Pakistan Army, combined with the Navy and Air Force, makes Pakistan's armed forces the sixth largest military in the world. The Army is modelled on the United Kingdom armed forces and came...
Crossed Swords: Pakistan, its Army, and the Wars Within.
Early life
Asif Nawaz was born in the village of Chakri of
Jhelum DistrictJhelum District is in the Punjab province of Pakistan. According the 1998 census the district had a population of 936,957, of which 31.48% were urban. The district of Jhelum stretches from the river Jhelum almost to the Indus. Salt is quarried at the Mayo mine in the Salt Range...
into Janjua Muslim Rajput family. He was educated at St Mary's, a mission school in
Rawalpindi' Rāwalpindī) is a city in the Potwar Plateau near Pakistan's capital city of Islamabad, in the province of Punjab. Rawalpindi is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad. Locally known as Pindi, the area was home to the pre-historic Soanian culture indigenous to...
, about which he later said that two Irish teachers, Fr Burns and Miss May Flanagan, had most influence in teaching him the values for his future career. He was the third generation of his family to join the
Punjab RegimentThe Punjab Regiment is an infantry regiment of the Pakistan Army.The Army‘s most senior fighting arm is the Punjab Regiment. In fact, two battalions of the Punjab Regiment are the oldest in the South Asia, with foundation dates as early as 1759.- History :...
and as an outstanding cadet went on a scholarship to
SandhurstThe Royal Military Academy Sandhurst , commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is the British Army officer initial training centre...
.
Military career
He was commissioned in the Punjab Regiment on 31 March, 1957 in the 15th PMA Long Course and received his initial training from
Royal Military Academy SandhurstThe Royal Military Academy Sandhurst , commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is the British Army officer initial training centre...
. He was one of the last Sandhurst-trained soldier (
Pakistan Military AcademyPakistan Military Academy is the Military Academy of Pakistan Army . It is located at Kakul near Abbottabad in NWFP, Pakistan. The Pakistan Military Academy is similar in function to Sandhurst, Saint-Cyr or West Point and provides training to the officers of Pakistan Army. The academy has three...
was started later on) and known as a soldier's soldier with no political ambition. He spent most of his career in the field, holding command positions during the 1965 and 1971 wars with India. From 1982 to 1985 he commanded a division in Peshawar and then headed the
Pakistan Military AcademyPakistan Military Academy is the Military Academy of Pakistan Army . It is located at Kakul near Abbottabad in NWFP, Pakistan. The Pakistan Military Academy is similar in function to Sandhurst, Saint-Cyr or West Point and provides training to the officers of Pakistan Army. The academy has three...
, Kakul until 1988. From April 1988 to March 1991 he was Corps Commander, Karachi, in charge of three army divisions. In April 1991 he became Chief of General Staff and was appointed Chief of Army Staff in August 1991 with a tenure of three years.
He took over the command from the retiring General
Mirza Aslam BegGeneral Mirza Aslam Beg, NI, SBt, afwc, psc Mirza Aslam Beg was born in Muslimpatti , a small village in the district of Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh.was the Chief of Army Staff of the Pakistan Army succeeding General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, after the latter died in the air crash on August 17, 1988...
at a time when Pakistan's relations with the United States were at an all-time low because of Washington's suspicions about Islamabad's
nuclear weapons programPakistan began focusing on nuclear development in January 1972 under the leadership of Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, who delegated the program to nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan and military administrator Zahid Ali Akbar. This program would reach fruition under President Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq...
.
Chief of Army Staff
At the completion of three-year term of General
Mirza Aslam BegGeneral Mirza Aslam Beg, NI, SBt, afwc, psc Mirza Aslam Beg was born in Muslimpatti , a small village in the district of Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh.was the Chief of Army Staff of the Pakistan Army succeeding General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, after the latter died in the air crash on August 17, 1988...
, four generals were in the race to replace him: Lt Gen
Shamim Alam KhanGeneral Shamim Alam Khan, NI, SJ, SBt, is a former Pakistan Army general who served as the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee from 1991 to 1994. He also commanded the II Corps at Multan and XXXI Corps at Bahawalpur and stayed as the Chief of General Staff at the Army GHQ.-Military career:He...
, commander XXXI Corps,
BahawalpurBahawalpur , located in the province of Punjab, is the twelfth largest city in Pakistan. The city was once the capital of the former princely state of Bahawalpur. The city was home to various Nawabs and counted as part of the the Rajputana states...
; Lt Gen Asif Nawaz, chief of general staff (CGS); Lt Gen Zulfiqar Akhtar Naz; and Lt Gen Hamid Gul, commander
II CorpsII Corps is one of the Pakistan Army's 10 active corps. It is stationed in Multan and is one of Pakistan's four heavy armour corps. It is also known as Army Reserve South.-History:...
,
Multanis a city in the Punjab Province of Pakistan and capital of Multan District. It is located in the southern part of the province. Multan District has a population of over 3.8 million—according to 1998 census—and the city itself is the sixth largest within the boundaries of Pakistan...
. The senior two were promoted as four-star generals, with
Shamim Alam KhanGeneral Shamim Alam Khan, NI, SJ, SBt, is a former Pakistan Army general who served as the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee from 1991 to 1994. He also commanded the II Corps at Multan and XXXI Corps at Bahawalpur and stayed as the Chief of General Staff at the Army GHQ.-Military career:He...
being named as Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and Lt Gen Asif Nawaz was appointed the Chief of Army Staff to replace Mirza Aslam Beg on 11 June, 1991 by President
Ghulam Ishaq KhanGhulam Ishaq Khan also known as Mr. Nuke, was President of Pakistan from August 17, 1988 until July 18, 1993.-Early life:...
.
Shortly after being named to the post, General Nawaz said the army had no role in politics other than to defend the civilian government and the country. The army's image had been tarnished and its officers corrupted in Pakistan's 25 years of martial law, he said. Nawaz, whose views tended to be pro-Western, spent much of his brief tenure as COAS trying to improve ties between Pakistan and the United States, the two formerly staunch allies. As a strong believer in liberal values, he was trying to improve the military's relations with India and take Pakistan out of the dead-end legacy of Islamic fundamentalist rhetoric left by his two predecessors, General Zia ul-Haq and General Aslam Beg. During Nawaz's tenure, the army took on the surprising role of becoming a protector of a free press and liberal values of criticism.
Sindh operations
It was in Karachi and Sindh where Asif Nawaz came to political prominence as the province wilted under the most violent period in its history. Ethnic battles between Sindhis and Muhajirs claimed thousands of lives, and General Nawaz's troops were frequently called upon to impose curfews and break the civil strife. In a celebrated incident he was instrumental in organising a handover of 'prisoners of war' between ethnic extremist groups. His experience in Sindh stood him in good stead when the government asked the army to take over law and order in Sind last year for a six-month period.
His tenure as Chief of Army Staff was ended abruptly by his death on 8 January 1993, apparently from a
heart attackMyocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, is the interruption of blood supply to part of the heart, causing some heart cells to die...
. He suffered the heart attack while he was jogging near his home in Rawalpindi. He is widely remembered as having died under mysterious circumstances. He was replaced by General Abdul Waheed Kakar as the next Army Chief.
Controversial death
The untimely demise of General Asif Nawaz fuelled much controversy, with
FIRsA First Information Report or FIR is a written document prepared by the police in India, Pakistan and Japan when they receive information about the commission of a cognizable offence. It is a report of information that reaches the police first in point of time and that is why it is called the First...
being filed against
Brigadier ImtiazBrigadier Imtiaz Ahmed alias Billa is a former director of Pakistan's Intelligence Bureau between 1990-1993 and former senior operative in the Inter-Services Intelligence . He earned notoriety for his role in the covert Operation Midnight Jackal to destabilise the government of Prime Minister...
, the then Director Intelligence Bureau. The issue gathered momentum following General Nawaz's widow Nuzhat Janjua's filed a formal complaint to the then President
Ghulam Ishaq KhanGhulam Ishaq Khan also known as Mr. Nuke, was President of Pakistan from August 17, 1988 until July 18, 1993.-Early life:...
about the unnatural circumstances surrounding her husband's death. At the time the General Asif Nawaz had been heading up "Operation Clean-Hands"- an army probe into corruption in
Karachiis the largest city, main seaport and the financial capital of Pakistan, and the capital of the province of Sindh. It is the 3rd largest city in the world by population and 20th largest city of the world, in terms of metropolitan population. It is Pakistan's premier centre of banking, industry, and...
, which lost impetus after he died.
He was survived by his wife and three daughters.
Legacy
Benazir BhuttoBenazir Bhutto was a Pakistani politician who chaired the Pakistan Peoples Party , a centre-left political party in Pakistan. Bhutto was the first woman elected to lead a Muslim state, having twice been Prime Minister of Pakistan . She was Pakistan's first and to date only female prime minister...
, former Prime Minister, then described Nawaz as "a true professional soldier," and further stated that "he did what he said he would do -- he kept the army out of politics." Unlike many of his predecessors, Nawaz was incorruptible and often talked of how he would relax when he retired, unlike other generals who plunged into politics.
External links
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