General Niazi
| Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi | |
|---|---|
Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi (1915–2004)
|
|
| Governor of East Pakistan | |
|
In office 14 December 1971 – 16 December 1971 |
|
| President | Yahya Khan |
| Prime Minister | Nurul Amin |
| Preceded by | Abdul Motaleb Malik |
| Succeeded by | Office disestablished - Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as President of Bangladesh |
| Commander of Eastern Command | |
|
In office 4 April 1971 – 16 December 1971 |
|
| Lieutenant | Rear-Admiral Mohammad Shariff |
| Preceded by | Lt. Gen. Tikka Khan |
| Succeeded by | post abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi 1915 Mianwali, Punjab, British India (Present-day Pakistan) |
| Died | 1 February 2004 (aged 89 or 90) Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan |
| Resting place | Military Graveyard in Lahore |
| Citizenship |
 Pakistan 1947–2004 British India (1915–1947)
|
| Alma mater | Officers Training School Bangalore Quetta Staff College |
| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Nickname(s) | Tiger |
| Service/branch |
 Pakistan Army (1947–71) British Indian Army (1942–47)
|
| Years of service | 1942–1972 |
| Rank |
  Lieutenant-General (S/No. PA-477)(Rank stripped/withdrawn) |
| Unit | 4/7 Rajput Regiment |
| Commands |
GOC 10th Infantry Division GOC 8th Infantry Division Commander Parachute Training School |
| Battles/wars |
Indo-Pakistani war of 1965 Bangladesh Liberation War |
| Awards |
  Military Cross Hilal-i-Jurat (withdrawn) |
Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi (Urdu: امیر عبداللہ خان نیازی; b. 1915–1 February 2004), MC, popularly known as A.A.K. Niazi or General Niazi was a former lieutenant-general in the Pakistan Army and the last Governor of East Pakistan, known for commanding the Eastern Command of Pakistani military in East Pakistan during the third war with India until surrendering on 16 December 1971 to Lieutenant General Jagjit Singh of the Eastern Command of the Indian Army.
Niazi had the area responsibility of defending the borders of East Pakistan from India and held morally responsible by authors and critics within Pakistan's military for having surrendering the Eastern Command, consisting of ~42000-45000 men, to the Indian Army when the preparations underwent to lay siege on Dacca. Thus ending the liberation struggle led by the Bengali Mukti Bahini which also ended the war with India amid a unilateral ceasefire called by Pakistan in 1971.
After taken and held as war prisoner by the Indian Army, he was repatriated to Pakistan on 30 April 1975 and was dishonored from his military service after confessing at the War Enquiry Commission led by Chief Justice Hamoodur Rahman. The War Commission leveled accusations against him of violating the human rights, supervising the smuggling goods during the Indian supported civil war in East as well as held him morally responsible of military failure during the course of the war. Niazi, however, he rejected the base allegations and sought for a military court-martial while insisting that he had acted according to the orders of the Army GHQ but the court-martial was never granted. After the war, he remained active in national politics and supported the ultra-conservative agenda under the conservative alliance against Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto's government in 1970s.
...
Wikipedia