General Abdul Hamid Khan (29 April 1917 – 21 July 1983) was a Pakistani four-star rank general who served as the de facto Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan army from 1969 to 1971. He led the Army during the Bangladesh Liberation War and the India–Pakistan war of 1971. He was also the Deputy Chief Martial Law Administrator under Yahya Khan.
Born in British Burma, Khan was commissioned into the British Indian Army in 1939. After serving in the Mediterranean theatre during the Second World War, he went on to command the 10th, 11th, and 15th infantry divisions of the Pakistan Army. During the Indo-Pakistani war of 1965, He led Pakistan to multiple victories on the Punjab Front. In 1966, he assumed command of the I Corps.
In the aftermath of the 1968-69 Pakistan revolution and the resignation of Ayub Khan, he was made the Chief of Staff of the Pakistan Army and was part of the Council of Administration within the Yahya Khan government. During the Bangladesh War and Indo-Pakistani war of 1971, he was the acting Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Army and headed the General Headquarters. He would also act as the Chief Martial Law Administrator of the country in the absence of the President.
He is widely regarded as the closest person to Yahya Khan during his presidency. He is also accused for complicity in the 1971 Bangladesh genocide.
Early life and education Abdul Hamid Khan was born on 29 April 1917 in Maymyo, British Burma, to a Punjabi-Kashmiri father and a Burmese mother.The Half Yearly Indian Army List April 1946 His father was an administrative officer from Gujrat working for the British Indian Government in Burma. Hamid Khan never publicly identified his mother who was a house servant from Mandalay.
Khan completed his early education in Mandalay before moving to Punjab in British india to pursue higher studies. Here he attended Government College Lahore, where he graduated with a Bachelor's degree.
Later, he enrolled into the Indian Military Academy in Dehra Dun. He was classmates with Yahya Khan and Jagjit Singh Aurora. After passing out of his term, he was commissioned into the British Indian Army as a second lieutenant on the Special List on 15 July 1939.
Military career (1939–1971)
British Indian Army & World War Two After being commissioned in July 1939, Abdul Hamid Khan was initially attached to the Somerset Light Infantry for experience from 11 August 1939.July 1940 Indian Army List. His date of commission was later antedated to 28 August 1938 and he was promoted to lieutenant on 28 November 1940. He was admitted to the British Indian Army on 27 August 1940. He was appointed acting captain then temporary captain on 23 December 1940. He had been posted to 3rd battalion 10th Baluch Regiment by October 1942.
During World War II, he fought on the Mediterranean and Middle eastern fronts. As a captain, Hamid Khan led an infantry company during the Battle of El Alamein. He also saw action in Italy towards the end of the war, where he was captured as a Prisoner of war.October 1942 Indian Army List Most Secret edition.
He was promoted to war substantive captain and temporary major on 3 February 1944. He was briefly an acting lieutenant-colonel from 15 August to 18 October 1945. He had attended a wartime staff course.
Pakistan Army During the partition of India, he opted for Pakistan and joined the newly created Pakistan Army, in 1947 he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel and became commanding officer of 6th battalion, Baluch Regiment, he commanded from April 1948 to November 1948. Later he was appointed commanding officer of 3rd battalion, Baluch Regiment, he served in this post from November 1948 to December 1949.Riza, Maj Gen Shaukat. The Pakistan Army 1947-49 Rawalpindi: Services Book Club 1989.
On 16 August 1952, Colonel Abdul Hamid Khan was appointed as the military secretary to the Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Army, General Ayub Khan.
In 1958, Hamid Khan was promoted to Major-General and served as the Director of military training, a brigadiers post, from 1958 to 1961. The name was changed to 'Director-general' (DGMT) for Khans appointment, as President Ayub Khan had "reposed great faith" in him. He was tasked with planning new organization and tactics for the army.
1965 war with India
During the 1965 Indo-Pakistani War, then Major General Khan served as the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of 11th Infantry Division at Kasur. This division in addition to 10th Infantry Division under Major General Sarfaraz Khan repelled the Indian thrust at Lahore on 6 September 1965. Following victory at the Battle of Kasur, his division pushed the Indians back to the border and captured the district of Khemkaran in Indian Punjab, though further advances were checked. He then was able to repel multiple counter-attacks by the Indian Army in an effort to retake Khemkaran.Riza, Maj Gen Shaukat. (1984). The Pakistan Army: War 1965. Rawalpindi: Services Book Club 1990.
Yahya Khan Regime
After the Indo-Pak war of 1965, Khan was promoted to lieutenant general and served as the commander of I Corps, Pakistan's primary strike formation and a strategically important garrison town near the Indian border. Then based in Kharian (it is currently based in Mangla) his appointment as corps commander placed him in charge of key military operations and enhanced his prominence in the army hierarchy."Changes in the Army High Command" "British High Commission", 5 May 1966.
Khan was a close and trusted ally of General Yahya Khan, with their friendship tracing back to their early years in the military. Both officers shared a long-standing association, having served together in various capacities throughout their careers. This camaraderie and trust played a significant role in Hamid Khan’s rise through the ranks, particularly during Yahya Khan’s tenure as the Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Army and later as President of Pakistan.
In March 1969, Pakistan experienced severe political unrest and street protests against the regime of President Ayub Khan, largely driven by dissatisfaction with his policies and governance. Amid this chaos, General Yahya Khan, the then Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Army, removed Ayub and imposed martial law on 25 March 1969. Yahya took over as President of Pakistan, and in recognition of his loyalty and leadership, Lt. Gen. Hamid Khan was appointed to multiple roles..
After martial law was imposed by General Yahya Khan on 25 March 1969, Lieutenant General Hamid was appointed Deputy Martial Law Administrator (DMLA) of the country and was a central figure within the martial law council of administration.
On 26 March, he was appointed as the Chief of Staff of the Pakistan Army or in another sense the de facto Commander-in-Chief of the army in place of Yahya as he was the president. He would also act as the Chief Martial Law Administrator of the country in the absence of Yahya Khan.
During that time he briefly held the cabinet portfolio of Home Affairs for four months. He was promoted to full general on 1 January 1971, as a new years gift from Yahya Khan.
Hamid Khan was a central figure in Yahya's military government along with several active duty military officials:
+ Yahya Khan administration Ministers Portrait Ministries and departments Inter-servicesGeneral Yahya Khan President and Chief Martial Law AdministratorInformation and BroadcastingLaw and JusticeForeign and Defence General Abdul Hamid Khan Deputy CMLAInterior and Kashmir Affairs Vice-Admiral S. M. Ahsan Deputy CMLAFinance and Planning CommissionStatistics, Commerce, and Industry Pakistan NavyAir Marshal Nur Khan Deputy CMLACommunications and HealthLabour and Science and Technology
Foreign diplomacy General Abdul Hamid Khan led a Pakistani good-will delegation to Peking on 28 September 1969. During his week-long state visit, he met and held talks with Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai. He took part in China's National Day celebrations.
On 19 October 1969, he also led a week-long military mission in Saudi Arabia, where toured military sites and other institutions. He held a meeting with King Faisal of Saudi Arabia. In April 1970, He headed another week-long mission to Algeria, where he made a televised statement affirming Pakistan's support to the "just struggle" of the Palestinian people.
On 16 February 1971, General Hamid officially opened the 400-mile Karakoram Highway over the Khunjerab Pass, establishing a vital road link between Pakistan and China connecting Lhasa to Karachi. During a ceremony in Baltit with Chinese ministers, he described the highway as the beginning of a "new era of friendship" with China in a speech to officials of both countries, including Chinese communications minister Yang Chieh.
On 9 July 1971, Abdul Hamid Khan met US national security advisor Henry Kissinger at Nathia Gali and had lunch with him. The pair discussed American military aid to Pakistan in the lead of the war in East Pakistan. He also took part in a state luncheon hosted in Rawalpindi for a Chinese delegation in November 1971.
1971 war with India On 30 November 1971, Abdul Hamid Khan met with Pakistani president Yahya Khan and the Chief of the General Staff, Lieutenant General Gul Hassan Khan, where they planned and decided to authorize the launch of Operation Chengiz Khan, which occurred on 3 December 1971. It was a series preemptive strikes conducted by the Pakistan Air Force on Indian airbases, aimed at crippling Indian airpower and initiating hostilities in the west. The operation inflicted limited damage."Trying to catch the Indian Air Force napping, Yahya Khan, launched a Pakistani version of Israel's 1967 air blitz in hopes that one rapid attack would cripple India's far superior air power. But India was alert, Pakistani pilots were inept, and Yahya's strategy of scattering his thin air force over a dozen air fields was a bust!", p. 34, Newsweek, 20 December 1971
Western Front His GHQ authorized the offensive in Chhamb under Major-General Iftikhar Janjua, which resulted in territorial gains. He also directed the attempted advance towards Longewala, which was described as a "favourite project" of Hamid by some sources, though there is disagreement over this claim. The effort was ultimately repelled by Indian forces due to a lack of air support on the pakistani side.
After the 18th division's unsuccessful advance at Longewala, General Hamid had split the 33rd Infantry division and spread its formations across various sectors in Sindh. This decision by Hamid had proved to be tactful as the Sindh was, according to Agha Humayun Amin, was highly underdefended and vulnerable to Indian exploitation. Though Hamid's defensive reapproach had, supposedly, reduced Lieutenant-General Tikka Khan's scope of potential gains in India as part of a counterattack.
Hamid Khan had also planned to allow India to occupy the BRB Canal so that he could launch a counter offensive by his primary strike force, the I Corps in order to secure Jammu Tawi and Poonch
Around the 8th of December, General Hamid Khan was called on by visiting French strategist General Andre Beaufre to gain an official view of Pakistan’s military situation. Hamid tasked his staff to assist Beaufre in touring the operational areas. However, Hamid Khan played a role in delaying the II Corps offensive into the Indian state of Punjab due to conflicting agreements within Army Command. This led President Yahya Khan to stall the operation.