Bhutto’s one mistake cost him dear
Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was the ninth Prime Minister of Pakistan. He was the father of Benazir, the country’s first woman PM. On March 1, 1976, when Bhutto chose Major General Zia-ul-Haq as the country’s new army chief, everyone was surprised. From a three star general, Zia became a four star general and had unlimited power. Those close to Bhutto were very angry with his decision. Bhutto had appointed Zia-ul-Haq as General by ignoring seven senior officers. Ghulam Mustafa Khar, who was Bhutto’s right hand, had also advised the former PM not to do so. He told Bhutto that trusting Zia ul Haq would be the biggest mistake of his life. But Bhutto did not listen to anyone.
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used to make fun of the general
Bhutto would often tease General Zia by calling her ‘Monkey General’. Bhutto used to make fun of General Zia because of her height and face. On July 5, 1977, General Zia surprised Bhutto by launching a coup in the country. Just a year after becoming the Army Chief, General Zia also proved the apprehensions to be true. General Zia imposed martial law in the country and also abolished all political parties. Bhutto was a very popular prime minister.
General Zia was beginning to get nervous about the popularity of the former PM. Zia accused Bhutto of killing opposition leader Ahmed Raza Khan and put him in jail. Bhutto was found guilty of the murder and sentenced to death. General Zia’s influence was so great that Bhutto did not even have the right to appeal. Bhutto was sentenced on 18 March 1978 by the Lahore High Court.
trust the general till death
In his book ‘Bhutto’s last 323 days’, Colonel Rafiuddin has written that till the last moment the former PM was not sure that General Zia could do this to him. Colonel Rafiuddin was the person who was assigned the responsibility of keeping an eye on Bhutto in Rawalpindi jail. On April 4, 1979, when Bhutto was being taken to the gallows, he had lost faith in the general. This was the time when he realized that his chosen favorite general had ruined everything for him. General Zia ruled Pakistan for 11 years. He ruled the country from 1977 to 1988 and during this time he implemented many Islamic laws.
The General killed the PM
Publicly punishing people under his rule was common in Pakistan. At that time, Arthur William Hummel Jr. was the US ambassador to Pakistan. It is said that he told the US State Department that General Zia wanted to inform the government of his country about Bhutto’s arrest. It is said that Zia-ul-Haq had told him that because of Bhutto, Soviet Union’s interference in the country was increasing. No one knows the truth, but people in Pakistan call this incident a murder with political motives.
