Hamoodur Rahman
Encyclopedia
Chief Justice
Hamoodur Rahman, Urdu
: حمود الرحمن) (November 1, 1910 – October 31, 1975) was Pakistan-Bengali jurist
and academia, a legal educator, who formerly served as the 7th Chief Justice
of the Supreme Court of Pakistan
, and Vice Chancellor of Dhaka University as well as Professor of Law and Justice at the Karachi University. Hailed from East-Pakistan, Hamoodur Rahman retained his Pakistani citizenship even after the war and independence of Bangladesh. Hamoodur Rahman gained international and public fame when he was named by the Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's Government as the Chairman of the Hamoodur Rahman Commission. The Commission, under Chief Justice of Pakistan Chief Justice Hamoodur Rahman, investigated and was very critical to the role of Pakistan Armed Forces in Politics.
Chief Justice Hamoodur Rahman remained a respectable and honorable name in Pakistan's judiciary, and he was publicly hailed by the Chief Justice Khalil-ur-Rehman Ramday
. His commission's fact finding and, even for his personal role, is widely regarded as the most honorable commission that was investigated by a Bengali Justice, in spite of East-Pakistan disaster.
, India
. He obtained his graduation from the St. Xavier's College
of the University of Calcutta
and an LLB
from the University of London
, studied in Gray's Inn
, London
, and was called to the Bar in London in 1937.
Hamoodur Rahman began his career as a lawyer
in Calcutta High Court in 1938. He was a councillor
of the Calcutta Corporation (1940) and Deputy Mayor
of Calcutta (1943). Hamoodur Rahman was a member of the Junior Standing Counsel of the province of Bengal
from 1943 to 1947. After the independence of Pakistan
he opted for East Pakistan
and came to Dhaka
in 1948. He was appointed Advocate General of East Pakistan
in 1953 and held it till 1954 when he was elevated to the bench as a judge of the Dhaka
High Court.
Committee on Crime Prevention and Control (1972–1973), and chairman of the Council of Islamic Ideology, Pakistan (1974–1977). Hamoodur Rahman chose to remain a citizen of Pakistan after the Bangladesh Liberation War
.
Zulfikar Bhutto
sat up the public inquiry commission and named Chief Justice Rahman as its Chairman. Initially, Chief Justice Rahman was tasked to investigate the causes and the break-up of Pakistan, and role of the Pakistan Armed Forces in the national politics
. His report revealed many aspects of politics in Pakistan Armed Forces during the East-Pakistan war. Because of the nature of the findings it was not declassified for decades until an Indian newspapers, later Pakistani newspapers, published the details.
—both civilians and "Bengali" soldiers—rape, pan smuggling, looting of banks in East Pakistan, drunkenness by officers, even an instance of a 1 star officers "entertaining" women while their troops were being shelled by Indian troops. The report recommended a string of courts-martial and trials against top senior military officers. The commission called for the courts-martial of the PAF
's Lieutenant-General Enamul Haq— Air Officer Commanding of Eastern Military Air Command
of Pakistan Air Force, Vice-Admiral Mohammad Shariff
— Commander of the Naval Eastern Command
of Pakistan Navy, and Lieutenant-General Tikka Khan
— General Officer Commanding of Army Eastern Command
of Pakistan Army— and former generals Amir Khan Nazi and Rao Farman Ali
. However, no action was taken were by Bhutto and his government. The Pakistan Armed Forces' role in splintering Pakistan after its greatest military debacle was largely ignored by successive Pakistani governments. The report examined nearly 300 individuals and hundreds of classified armed forces signals. The final report was submitted on October 23, 1974 by Chief Justice Hamoodur Rahman who submitted the report to Prime minister Secretariat.
: We're here, you're there.). Though the responsibility of the debacle lay on the shoulders of the people in power then as was recommended in the report by Chief Justice Rahman. When the report was submitted the then Prime Minister Bhutto, the prime minister wrote to the Chairman War Inquiry Commission Chief Justice Hamoodur Rahman, that the commission has exceeded its limits. The Commission was appointed to look into the military "aspect of debacle", not the aspect of political failure. Bhutto classified the publications of the Commission and marked its report as "Top Secret". Soon, the report was stolen from Prime minister Secretariat by the members of Naval Intelligence.
began to look for the publications after the elements of reports were published by Indian newspaper, The Times of India
in 2000. After much investigation, the News International reported that the report was founded and was stored in secret record section of the Pakistan Army. After much criticism given to General Musharraf and his military regime, the Pakistan Government finally declassified all of the 1970s secret publications, hence making it public domain.
Chief Justice
The Chief Justice in many countries is the name for the presiding member of a Supreme Court in Commonwealth or other countries with an Anglo-Saxon justice system based on English common law, such as the Supreme Court of Canada, the Constitutional Court of South Africa, the Court of Final Appeal of...
Hamoodur Rahman, Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
: حمود الرحمن) (November 1, 1910 – October 31, 1975) was Pakistan-Bengali jurist
Jurist
A jurist or jurisconsult is a professional who studies, develops, applies, or otherwise deals with the law. The term is widely used in American English, but in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries it has only historical and specialist usage...
and academia, a legal educator, who formerly served as the 7th Chief Justice
Chief Justices of Pakistan
The Chief Justice of Pakistan heads the Supreme Court of Pakistan. These are the names of the Chief Justices of the Supreme Court of Pakistan .-List:-See also:* Supreme Court of Pakistan* Pakistan Bar Council...
of the Supreme Court of Pakistan
Supreme Court of Pakistan
The Supreme Court is the apex court in Pakistan's judicial hierarchy, the final arbiter of legal and constitutional disputes. The Supreme Court has a permanent seat in Islamabad. It has number of Branch Registries where cases are heard. It has a number of de jure powers which are outlined in the...
, and Vice Chancellor of Dhaka University as well as Professor of Law and Justice at the Karachi University. Hailed from East-Pakistan, Hamoodur Rahman retained his Pakistani citizenship even after the war and independence of Bangladesh. Hamoodur Rahman gained international and public fame when he was named by the Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's Government as the Chairman of the Hamoodur Rahman Commission. The Commission, under Chief Justice of Pakistan Chief Justice Hamoodur Rahman, investigated and was very critical to the role of Pakistan Armed Forces in Politics.
Chief Justice Hamoodur Rahman remained a respectable and honorable name in Pakistan's judiciary, and he was publicly hailed by the Chief Justice Khalil-ur-Rehman Ramday
Khalil-ur-Rehman Ramday
Chief Honourable Justice Khalil-ur-Rehman Ramday is an ad-hoc judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. He remained permannet judge of Supreme Court from 2002 to 2010. He was born in Lahore on January 13, 1945 in the famous Ramday Arain family of Justice Mr. Muhammad Siddique as the fifth child and...
. His commission's fact finding and, even for his personal role, is widely regarded as the most honorable commission that was investigated by a Bengali Justice, in spite of East-Pakistan disaster.
Biography
RahmanJustice Hamoodur Rahman was born in PatnaPatna
Paṭnā , is the capital of the Indian state of Bihar and the second largest city in Eastern India . Patna is one of the oldest continuously inhabited places in the world...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. He obtained his graduation from the St. Xavier's College
St. Xavier's College, Calcutta
St. Xavier's College is located in Kolkata, India, and is named after St. Francis Xavier, a Jesuit saint of the 16th century, who travelled to India. It is an autonomous college affiliated to the University of Calcutta. It gained autonomy in July 2006, thus becoming the first autonomous college of...
of the University of Calcutta
University of Calcutta
The University of Calcutta is a public university located in the city of Kolkata , India, founded on 24 January 1857...
and an LLB
Bachelor of Laws
The Bachelor of Laws is an undergraduate, or bachelor, degree in law originating in England and offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree...
from the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, studied in Gray's Inn
Gray's Inn
The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court in London. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wales, an individual must belong to one of these Inns...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and was called to the Bar in London in 1937.
Hamoodur Rahman began his career as a lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
in Calcutta High Court in 1938. He was a councillor
Councillor
A councillor or councilor is a member of a local government council, such as a city council.Often in the United States, the title is councilman or councilwoman.-United Kingdom:...
of the Calcutta Corporation (1940) and Deputy Mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
of Calcutta (1943). Hamoodur Rahman was a member of the Junior Standing Counsel of the province of Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
from 1943 to 1947. After the independence of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
he opted for East Pakistan
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a provincial state of Pakistan established in 14 August 1947. The provincial state existed until its declaration of independence on 26 March 1971 as the independent nation of Bangladesh. Pakistan recognized the new nation on 16 December 1971. East Pakistan was created from Bengal...
and came to Dhaka
Dhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...
in 1948. He was appointed Advocate General of East Pakistan
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a provincial state of Pakistan established in 14 August 1947. The provincial state existed until its declaration of independence on 26 March 1971 as the independent nation of Bangladesh. Pakistan recognized the new nation on 16 December 1971. East Pakistan was created from Bengal...
in 1953 and held it till 1954 when he was elevated to the bench as a judge of the Dhaka
Dhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...
High Court.
Career
Justice Hamoodur Rahman was a judge of the Dhaka High Court from 1954 to 1960 and vice chancellor of Dhaka University from November 1958 to December 1960. Hamoodur Rahman was appointed a judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in 1960, and was made Chief Justice of Pakistan in 1968 and retired in 1976.After the war
Justice Hamoodur Rahman held various dignified positions during his judicial career. He was a member of the International Court of Arbitration (The Hague, 1959–60), chairman of the Commission on Students Problems and Welfare (1964), member of Law Reforms Commission (1967), member of War Enquiry Commission (1972), member of United NationsUnited Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Committee on Crime Prevention and Control (1972–1973), and chairman of the Council of Islamic Ideology, Pakistan (1974–1977). Hamoodur Rahman chose to remain a citizen of Pakistan after the Bangladesh Liberation War
Bangladesh Liberation War
The Bangladesh Liberation War was an armed conflict pitting East Pakistan and India against West Pakistan. The war resulted in the secession of East Pakistan, which became the independent nation of Bangladesh....
.
Family
His son Justice Iqbal Hameedur Rahman is currently the Chief Justice of the Islamabad High Court. He had refused to take oath under the Provisional Constitutional Order issued by General Pervez Musharraf who imposed the Emergency Rule in November 2007. He resumed work at the Lahore High Court on the 19th of March 2009 after the restoration of Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry.Hamoodur Rahman Commission Report
In 1971, the-PresidentPresident of Pakistan
The President of Pakistan is the head of state, as well as figurehead, of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Recently passed an XVIII Amendment , Pakistan has a parliamentary democratic system of government. According to the Constitution, the President is chosen by the Electoral College to serve a...
Zulfikar Bhutto
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was 9th Prime Minister of Pakistan from 1973 to 1977, and prior to that, 4th President of Pakistan from 1971 to 1973. Bhutto was the founder of the Pakistan Peoples Party — the largest and most influential political party in Pakistan— and served as its chairman until his...
sat up the public inquiry commission and named Chief Justice Rahman as its Chairman. Initially, Chief Justice Rahman was tasked to investigate the causes and the break-up of Pakistan, and role of the Pakistan Armed Forces in the national politics
Politics of Pakistan
Politics of Pakistan have taken place in the framework of a federal republic, where the system of government has at times been parliamentary, presidential, or semi-presidential. In the current parliamentary system, the President of Pakistan is the largely ceremonial head of state, the Prime...
. His report revealed many aspects of politics in Pakistan Armed Forces during the East-Pakistan war. Because of the nature of the findings it was not declassified for decades until an Indian newspapers, later Pakistani newspapers, published the details.
Fact Finding
During 1971 till 1975 when the commission submitted its report, Chief Justice Rahman conduct several interviews of Pakistan Armed Forces' senior military officers as well as Bengali nationalists. Due to its criticism to government and other serious allegations on politicians, the report was never made public in Pakistan, and concealed all of its information as the report was marked as "Top secret". The report explores a number of issues such as, killing of thousands of East Pakistanis1971 Bangladesh atrocities
Beginning with the start of Operation Searchlight on 25 March 1971 and continuing throughout the Bangladesh Liberation War, there were widespread violations of human rights in East Pakistan perpetrated by the Pakistan Army, with support from local political and religious militias, especially...
—both civilians and "Bengali" soldiers—rape, pan smuggling, looting of banks in East Pakistan, drunkenness by officers, even an instance of a 1 star officers "entertaining" women while their troops were being shelled by Indian troops. The report recommended a string of courts-martial and trials against top senior military officers. The commission called for the courts-martial of the PAF
Pakistan Air Force
The Pakistan Air Force is the leading air arm of the Pakistan Armed Forces and is primarily tasked with the aerial defence of Pakistan with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and the Pakistan Navy. The PAF also has a tertiary role of providing strategic air transport...
's Lieutenant-General Enamul Haq— Air Officer Commanding of Eastern Military Air Command
Evolution of Pakistan Eastern Command plan
The Eastern Military High Command of the Pakistan Armed Forces was a field-level military command headed by an appointed senior 3-star officer, who was designated the Unified Commander of the Eastern Military High Command...
of Pakistan Air Force, Vice-Admiral Mohammad Shariff
Mohammad Shariff
Admiral Mohammad Shariff, , , is a retired four-star naval officer and a career war veteran. Admiral Mohammad Shariff took over the command of Pakistan Navy on 21 March, 1979, when a three-star vice-admiral, Hasan Hafeez Ahmed, died in office...
— Commander of the Naval Eastern Command
Evolution of Pakistan Eastern Command plan
The Eastern Military High Command of the Pakistan Armed Forces was a field-level military command headed by an appointed senior 3-star officer, who was designated the Unified Commander of the Eastern Military High Command...
of Pakistan Navy, and Lieutenant-General Tikka Khan
Tikka Khan
General Tikka Khan, HJ, HQA, SPk, was a senior four-star general in the Pakistan Army who served as the first Chief of Army Staff of the Pakistan Army from 3 March 1972 to 1 March 1976. Before his four-star assignment, Khan was a Martial Law Administrator of erstwhile East-Pakistan...
— General Officer Commanding of Army Eastern Command
Evolution of Pakistan Eastern Command plan
The Eastern Military High Command of the Pakistan Armed Forces was a field-level military command headed by an appointed senior 3-star officer, who was designated the Unified Commander of the Eastern Military High Command...
of Pakistan Army— and former generals Amir Khan Nazi and Rao Farman Ali
Rao Farman Ali
Major General Rao Farman Ali Khan was Pakistan Army general during the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971. He took commission in an artillery regiment in 1941 and later commanded the 26 Field Regiment...
. However, no action was taken were by Bhutto and his government. The Pakistan Armed Forces' role in splintering Pakistan after its greatest military debacle was largely ignored by successive Pakistani governments. The report examined nearly 300 individuals and hundreds of classified armed forces signals. The final report was submitted on October 23, 1974 by Chief Justice Hamoodur Rahman who submitted the report to Prime minister Secretariat.
What was found?
This commission of inquiry was appointed to look in to the military aspect of the debacle of East Pakistan, but however Chief Justice Hamoodur Rahman went into the depth of the matter right since 1947 the creation of Pakistan. He wrote a separate chapter on the Political aspect of the debacle as well very extensively, and also provided the critical role of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. In his report, Hamoodur Rahman founded and criticized Bhutto for his role in the 1971 crisis, to some extent implicating him as well of having manipulating General Yahya Khan to take military action. Chief Justice Rahman noted that the General Yahya Khan failed to not come to political settlement laying the foundation of two separate states which was known during general's time as "Tum Wahan Hum Yaha" (Urdu: تم وها ههم ياها; EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
: We're here, you're there.). Though the responsibility of the debacle lay on the shoulders of the people in power then as was recommended in the report by Chief Justice Rahman. When the report was submitted the then Prime Minister Bhutto, the prime minister wrote to the Chairman War Inquiry Commission Chief Justice Hamoodur Rahman, that the commission has exceeded its limits. The Commission was appointed to look into the military "aspect of debacle", not the aspect of political failure. Bhutto classified the publications of the Commission and marked its report as "Top Secret". Soon, the report was stolen from Prime minister Secretariat by the members of Naval Intelligence.
Fate
After the report was submitted, the both Bhutto and General Zia-ul-Haq claimed that it was lost and the report was no where to be found. However, it turned out to have been willfully suppressed by both Bhutto and General Zia-ul-Haq and to have lain in the Directorate-General for the Military History of the Combatant Pakistan Army General Headquarters (GHQ) all the time. Pakistan's premier newspaper, The News InternationalThe News International
The News International , published in tabloid size, is the largest English language newspaper in Pakistan. The News has an ABC certified circulation of 140,000. It is published from Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi/Islamabad...
began to look for the publications after the elements of reports were published by Indian newspaper, The Times of India
The Times of India
The Times of India is an Indian English-language daily newspaper. TOI has the largest circulation among all English-language newspaper in the world, across all formats . It is owned and managed by Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd...
in 2000. After much investigation, the News International reported that the report was founded and was stored in secret record section of the Pakistan Army. After much criticism given to General Musharraf and his military regime, the Pakistan Government finally declassified all of the 1970s secret publications, hence making it public domain.
External links
See also
- List of Pakistanis
- Chief Justice of Pakistan