#PPPGoldenJubilee - Bhutto’s most outstanding achievement — Part-1

By - Wajid Shamsul Hasan

Once I was asked what was Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s most outstanding achievement. No doubt he left indelible imprints on the sands of time. As an admirer of Bhutto Sahib since my college days I could have easily said — his charismatic personality was too fascinating for the youth of the day — his dare, his swashbuckling style, his love and commitment for Quaid’s Pakistan and his courage and defiance against odds made him our hero.

Later in the years the more I came to know of him, the more enamouring his multi-faceted personality dawned on me. He was a statesman par excellence, his oratory held his contemporaries in awe in the United Nations defending Pakistan or speaking his populist language he moved millions of shirtless, down trodden masses in Karachi’s Nishtar Park or Lahore’s Moochi Gate into hitherto unknown ecstasy.

I was with him in Simla in 1972. It was significant for me on two counts. I was introduced by him to his ‘Dearest Daughter’ who would be leader of Pakistan, to live and die like him. Secondly, it was historically land mark event to witness an upright leader of a vanquished nation with 93,000 generals and soldiers rotting in Indian PoW camps, with over 12000 kilometres of its territory under the Indian occupation lost on the battle front — negotiate with honour with the victor — Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi riding high on the crest of popularity.

Negotiations with Mrs Gandhi were as difficult as any war could be yet the two great leaders — as equals — came out with an agreement that has given peace to our region for over 45 years. It was his masterly stroke of statesmanship and diplomatic skill that convinced Mrs Gandhi that it would be in the interest of peace to end being hostage to communal history, acrimonies of the past to seek peaceful co-existence. Infinite wisdom and burying of distrust by the two leaders needs to be emulated even now to bring to an end snake and ladder relationship. We should get onto a trajectory crossing uncertainties to usher in peace and harmony for the good of 1.5 billion half starved, shirtless and shelter-less masses of the two-nuclear powers.

Negotiations with Mrs Gandhi were as difficult as any war could be yet the two great leaders — as equals — came out with an agreement that has given peace to our region for over 45 years. It was his masterly stroke of statesmanship and diplomatic skill that convinced Mrs Gandhi that it would be in the interest of peace to end being hostage to communalism and other acrimonies of the past and to seek peaceful co-existence instead

I believe whether it was astounding success of diplomacy at Simla or Bhutto Sahib’s defiance of the Americans despite being threatened to be made ‘horrible example’ in pursuit of nuclear technology for Pakistan — each one was his great achievement second to none. However, as a student of history and politics, I had a different view of his unparalleled contribution in the form of his gigantic struggle for the empowerment of the masses and socio-economic change for seminal developments for the greatest good of the largest number.

His establishment of Pakistan Peoples Party in association with like-minded Left-of-the-Centre friends at a time when country was straight-jacketed in the stranglehold of a powerful rightist establishment representing forces of status quo including the well-entrenched feudal class and the bigoted mullahs -would no doubt be recorded as his singular achievement in the archaic politics of Pakistan.

Bhutto Sahib, being of sharp mind, an admirer and follower of the Quaid from his students days, having keenly studied his politics and raison d’être for Pakistan knew what direction to take. From the outset he sought answer to the fact as to why a pure Indian nationalist Jinnah having resisted for long, opted finally for Pakistan.

His establishment of Pakistan Peoples Party in association with like-minded Left-of-the-Centre friends at a time when country was straight-jacketed in the stranglehold of a powerful rightist establishment representing forces of status quo including the well-entrenched feudal class and the bigoted mullahs -would no doubt be recorded as his singular achievement in the archaic politics of Pakistan.

Bhutto Sahib, being of sharp mind, an admirer and follower of the Quaid from his students days, having keenly studied his politics and raison d’être for Pakistan knew what direction to take. From the outset he sought answer to the fact as to why a pure Indian nationalist Jinnah having resisted for long, opted finally for Pakistan.

ZAB traced the plight of Indian Muslims in the roots of 1857 revolt that changed the power and socio-economic structure rendering Muslim ruling class and others into “hewers of wood, drawers of water”. He found that tug-of-war between Hindus and Muslims was not related to religion. It pertained to economic causes, Muslims outnumbered by Hindus in every field, no jobs, not much of education, in matter of wealth too poor to match. They could not compete even if they were the best.

Bhutto , A thorough-bred nationalist, known as Ambassador of Hindu Muslim Unity — Jinnah Sahib tried his best to bring around Nehrus (father and son) to an equitable formula for peaceful co-existence. His 14-points sought maximum autonomy for the Muslims in their majority areas and reserved quotas for jobs, education etc. where in minority. His proposal for keeping India united was rejected by Indian Congress.

Bhutto sahib knew that it was over the issue of autonomy and economic disparities that India was divided. And when Sheikh Mujib raised his 6 points, he wanted to resolve the issue through debate but Ayub with Altaf Gauhar has been the master planner — he would not let Bhutto Sahib go to East Pakistan. Once battle had been lost by the generals and Bhutto handed over power as legitimate representative of West Pakistan, he got to resolve the autonomy issue that had seeds for future implosion. And indeed, to this date Constitution of 1973 has proved to be stronger unifying and binding force than religion itself.

General Zia believed in strong centre, divide and rule. In order to counter PPP and Benazir Bhutto, he ‘engineered’ ethnic and sectarian parties. Thousands of PPP workers and leaders starting from Bhutto Sahib, Begum Bhutto, Benazir Sahiba, her two brothers — theirs was a struggle strewn in blood, toil and tears confronted by General Zia by raising brigades of ethnic and sectarian forces to counter PPP’s democratic march. Zia engineered much like today ethnic groups to divide PPP’s power of the people and to push back to burner issue of provincial autonomy in context of Pakistan with five provinces and resource sharing between centre and the federating units. Either General Zia did not deliberately or inadvertently understand the gravity of issue that had led to the partition of India in 1947 and later break up of Pakistan in 1971.