Indo-Pakistani War of 1971

The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a military confrontation between Mitrabahini and Pakistan. It occurred during the liberation war in East Pakistan from 3 December 1971 to the fall of Dacca on 16 December 1971. Lasting just 13 days, it is one of the shortest wars in history. During the war, Indian and Pakistani militaries simultaneously clashed on the eastern and western fronts.

About Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 in brief

Summary Indo-Pakistani War of 1971The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a military confrontation between Mitrabahini and Pakistan. It occurred during the liberation war in East Pakistan from 3 December 1971 to the fall of Dacca on 16 December 1971. Lasting just 13 days, it is one of the shortest wars in history. During the war, Indian and Pakistani militaries simultaneously clashed on the eastern and western fronts. The war ended after the Eastern Command of the Pakistan military signed the Instrument of Surrender on16 December 1971 in Dhaka, marking the formation of East Pakistan as the new nation of Bangladesh. It is estimated that members of the Pakistani military and supporting Islamist militias killed between 300,000 and 3,000,000 civilians in Bangladesh. As a result of the conflict, a further eight to ten million people fled the country to seek refuge in India. The conflict was sparked by the Bangladesh Liberation War, a conflict between the traditionally dominant West Pakistanis and the majority East Pakistanis. The political tensions between East Bengal and West Pakistan had its origin in the creation of Pakistan in 1947; the popular language movement in 1950; mass riots in East Bengal in 1964; and the mass protests in 1969. These led to the resignation of President Ayub Khan, who invited army chief General Yahya Khan to take over the central government. In 1969, East Pakistan lay over 1,600 kilometres away, which greatly hampered any attempt to integrate the Bengali and the Pakistani cultures. In 1970, West Pakistan disestablished the first general elections and dis established the status of West Pakistan as a single province in order to restore it to its original heterogeneous status.

The general elections, held in 1970, resulted in the Awami League gaining out 167 seats for the East Pakistan Legislative Assembly and a majority in 313-seat National Assembly. In addition, there were religious and racial tensions between Bengalis and the multi-ethnic Westis, as Bengalis looked different from the dominant Westis. In the 1970s, the Westis became the dominant group in Pakistan, with the Bengalis as the majority in the West Pakistan Assembly and in the National Assembly near Islamabad. The East Pakistan League gained out 167 out of 169 seats for East Pakistan’s National Assembly and near Islamabad in the 1970 general elections. This resulted in a majority of Bengalis gaining out of 167 seats in the Legislative Assembly, near Islamabad, and near Lahore in 1970. The West Pakistan League won the general elections in 1970 and gained control of Lahore and the rest of the country. In 1971, the Pakistani government established the controversial One Unit Unit programme to govern the two wings of East and. West Pakistan. This made it difficult to effectively govern both wings of Pakistan. In 1973, the Government of Pakistan established the One Unit Programme, which led to tensions between the West and East Pakistan. During this time, the East Pakistani government tried to form a single government in Islamabad, but the West Pakistani government was unable to do so. This led to a series of disputes between the East and West Pakistani governments.