History of Balochistan
Encyclopedia
Balochistan
is known to be the largest province and one of the four provinces
of today's Pakistan. The British Empire
on October 1, as paramount power in the region reached a security agreement with the princely state of Kalat which was ruled by the Khan of Kalat 1887 but the kingdom retained its sovereignty in all other respects.In 1947, when Pakistan became independent
, Pakistan signed a standstill agreement with the state of Kalat (a land-locked state surrounded by Pakistani territory and covering 23% of the territory of the current province of Balochistan) which recognized its autonomy and sovereignty, subject to future negotiation of the relationship. However, both houses of the Kalat parliament had asserted independence in 1947 and the Khan subsequently acknowledged that he had no right to accede to Pakistan's demand for annexation which he said he had only done under the threat of military force. Since then, a number of separatist
groups in the province have engaged in an armed struggle against the Pakistani government; the first was led by Prince Karim Khan
in 1948, and later by Nawab Nowroz Khan
in 1968. These tribal uprisings were limited in scope, a more serious insurgency was led by the Marri
and Mengal
tribes between 1973 and 1977. All these groups fought for the existence of a "Greater Balochistan" — a single independent state ruled under tribal jirga
s (a tribal system of government) and comprising the historical Balochistan region,found within Iran
, Pakistan and Afghanistan
. In 2005 there was another struggle to achieve these aims, in 2006, the Pakistan army killed Nawab Akbar Bugti
, the man they blamed for the violence. Although Bugti had been proclaimed an offender by former president Pervez Musharraf
he has become a hero for separatists.However,he is accused of devouring federal funds for the development of the province,as well as gas royalties,and was also accused of operating unauthorized jails and dungeons in his territory.
(lit. "Pārata Kings"), a dynasty of Indo-Scythian or Indo-Parthian kings. The dynasty of the Pāratas is thought to be identical with the Pāradas of the Mahabharata
, the Puranas
and other Indian sources.
They are essentially known through their coins, which typically exhibit the bust of the ruler on the observe, with long hair within a headband), and a swastika
within a Brahmi
legend on the reverse (usually silver coins) or Kharoshthi (usually copper coins). The coins can mainly be found in the Loralai
area of modern Pakistan.
Herodotus
in 650 BCE describes the Paraitakenoi as a tribe ruled by Deiokes, a Persian king, in north-western Persia (History I.101). Arrian
describes how Alexander the Great encountered the Pareitakai in Bactria
and Sogdiana
, and had them conquered by Craterus
(Anabasis Alexandrou IV). The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea
(1st century CE) describes the territory of the Paradon beyond the Ommanitic region, on the coast of modern Baluchistan.
The bulk of Baloch migrations from what was Persia was caused by the invasions of Genghis Khan
into that region and the Balochies were given refuge in what was the greater Sindh region. Later infighting between Balochies resulted in clans led by sardars, which claimed regions within Sindh. In an effort to gain total control of the regions, the British named the area Balochistan and got the support of the Baloch Sardars who then were titled Nawab
s. These Nawabs were to keep minor Baloch, Pathan and other factions in check. For the last 150 years the region has seen continual fighting to gain access to natural resources in an otherwise barren land.
The land also belonged to the ancient Hindu empires of King Ashoka and chandragupta maurya.
province of Persian Empire and north eastern region was part of the Persian province Sistan
. The southern region was included in Makran
, prior to the Islamic era - the suzerainty over the petty rulers of Baluchistan alternative between east and west. In the 14th year of the Hijra
, 636-6CE, Rai Chach marched from Sindh and conquered Makran, however in 643 the Arabs reached Makran. In early 644 CE, Caliph
Umar
sent Suhail ibn Adi from Busra to conquer the Karman region of Iran; he was made governor of Karman. From Karman he entered the western Baluchistan and conquered the region near to Persian frontiers. South Western Balochistan was conquered during the campaign in Sistan the same year.
During Caliph Uthman
's reign in 652, Balochistan was re-conquered during the campaign against the revolt in Karman, under the command of Majasha ibn Masood, it was first time when western Baluchistan came directly under the Laws of Caliphate
and gave tribute on agriculture. In those days western Baluchistan was included in the dominion of Karman. In 654 Abdulrehman ibn Samrah was made governor of Sistan, an Islamic army was sent under him to crush the revolt in Zarang, which is now in southern Afghanistan. Conquering Zarang a column moved north ward to conquer areas up to Kabul
and Ghazni
in Hindu Kush
Mountains, while another column moved towards North western
Baluchistan and conquered area up to the ancient city of Dawar and Qandabil (Bolan
), by 654 the whole of what is now Baluchistan province of Pakistan was under the rule of Rashidun Caliphate
except for the well defended mountain town of QaiQan' (now called Kalat), which was conquered during Caliph Ali's reign. Abdulrehman ibn Samrah made Zaranj his provincial capital and remained governor of these conquered areas from 654 to 656, until Uthman was murdered.
During the Caliphate of Ali, the areas of Balochistan, Makran again broke into revolt. Due to civil war in the Islamic empire Ali was unable to take notice of these areas, at last in the year 660 he sent a large force under the command of Haris ibn Marah Abdi towards Makran, Baluchistan and Sindh
. Haris ibn Marah Abdi arrived in Makran and conquered it by force then moved north ward to northeastern Balochistan and re-conquered Qandabil (Bolan
), then again moving south finally conquered Kalat after a fierce battle. In 663 CE, during the reign of Umayyad
Caliph Muawiyah I
, Muslims lost control of northeastern Balochistan and Kalat when Haris ibn Marah and large part of his army died on the battle field suppressing a revolt in Kalat. Muslim forces latter re-gained the control of the area during Umayyads' reign. It also remained part of Abbasid
Caliphate's empire.
Arab rule in Balochistan lasted until the end of the 10th century, the parts of Balochistan best known to them were, Turan (the Jhalawan country) with its capital at Khuzdar, and Nudha or Budha (Kachhi). Around 976 Ibn Haukal, during second visit to India, found an Arab governor residing in Kaikanan (probably the modern Nal) and governing Khuzdar.
was able to conquer Sindh due to his possession of Khuzdar
. After the Ghaznivids
the area passed to the Ghurids
and a little later became part of the dominion of Sultan Muhammad Khan of Khwazrizm
(Khiva) in 1219. However around 1223 a Mongol expedition under Chagatai
, the son of Genghis Khan
, penetrated as far as Makran. A few years later, southern Baluchistan briefly came under the rule of Sultan Altamsh of Delhi but soon came back under Mongol rule. The raids organised by the Mongols have left a lasting mark on history of Baluchistan, from Makran to Gomal the Mongol (known to the people as Mughal) and the atrocities they caused are still well known.
Afterwards the history of Balochistan centres around Kandahar
and is was in this area in 1398 that Pir Muhammad, the grandson of Timur
, fought the Afghans in the Sulaiman mountains. According to local tradition Timur himself passed through Marri country during one of his Indian expeditions.
The succeeding century is one of great historical interest. The Baloch extended their power to Kalat, Kachhi, and the Punjab, and the wars took place between Mir Chakar the Rind and Gwahram Lashari which are so celebrated in Baloch verse. In these wars a prominent part was played by Mir Zunnun Beg, Arghun, who was governor of north-eastern Baluchistan under Sultan Husain Mirza of Herat about 1470. At the same time the Brahuis had been gradually gaining strength, and their little principality at this time extended through the Jhalawan country to Wadh
.
The Arghuns shortly afterwards gave way before Babar. From 1556 to 1595 the country was under the Safavid dynasty. Then it fell into the hands of the Mughals of Delhi until 1638, when it was again transferred to Persia.
We have an interesting account of Baluchistan in the Ain-i-Akbari
. In 1590 the upper highlands were included in the sarkdr of Kandahar, while Kachhi was part of the Bhakkar sarkdr of the Multan Subah. Makrdn alone remained independent under the Maliks, Buledais, and
Gichkis, until Nasir Khan I of Kalat brought it within his power during the 18th century.
From the middle of the 17th century Baluchistan remained under the Safavids
till the rise of the Ghilzai
power in I708. The latter in its turn gave way before Nadir Shah, who, during the first part of the 18th century, made several expeditions to or through Baluchistan. Ahmad Shah Durrani
followed; and thenceforth the north-eastern part of the country, including almost all the areas now under direct administration, remained under the more or less nominal suzerainty of the Sadozais and Barakzais till I879, when Pishin, Duki, and Sibi passed into British hands by the Treaty of Gandamak.
Meanwhile the whole of Western Baluchistan had been consolidated into an organized state under the Ahmadzai
Khans of Kalat. All tradition asserts that the former rulers of Kalat were Hindus, Sewa by name.
As Muslim dynasties held Baluchistan from about the 7th century, we must look to an earlier period for the date of the Sewas; and it is not improbable that they were connected with the Rai dynasty of Sind, whose genealogical table includes two rulers named Sihras. The Mirwaris, from whom the Ahmadzais are descended, claim Arab origin. In their earlier legends we find them living at Surab near Kalat, and extending their power thence in wars with the Jats or Jadgals. They then fell under the power of the Mongols; but one of their chiefs, Mir Hasan, regained the capital from the Mongol governor, and he and his successors held Kalat for twelve generations till the rise of Mir Ahmad in 1666-7. It is from Mir Ahmad that the eponym Ahmadzai is derived.
of Delhi
and to the rulers of Kandahar, and supplied men-at-arms on demand. Most peremptory orders from the Afghan rulers to their vassals of Kalat are still extant, and the predominance of the Sadozais and Barakzais was acknowledged so late as 1838. It was not until the time of Nasir Khan I that the titles of Beglar Begi (Chief of Chiefs) and Wali-i-Kalat (Governor of Kalat) were conferred on the Kalat ruler by the Afghan kings.
For the first 150 years, up to the death of Mir Mahmud Khan I
, a gradual extension of power took place and the building up of a constitution.A period of social ferment, anarchy, and rebellion succeeded, in which sanguinary revolts rapidly alternated with the restoration of a power ruthless in retaliation, lasting into the period of British Government.
As the Mughal power decayed, the Ahmadzai chiefs found themselves freed in some degree from external interference. The first problem that presented itself was to secure mutual cohesion and co-operation in the loose tribal organization of the state, and this was effected by
adopting a policy of parceling out a portion of all conquests among the poverty-stricken highlanders. Thus all gained a vested interest in the welfare of the community, while receiving provision for their maintenance. A period of expansion then commenced. Mir Ahmad made successive descents on the plains of Sibi. Mir Samandar extended his raids to Zhob, Bori, and Thal-Chotiali, and levied an annual sum of Rs. 40,000 from the Kalhoras of Sindh.
Mir Abdullah, the greatest conqueror of the dynasty, turned his attention westward to Makran, while in the north-east he captured Pishin and Shorawak from the Ghilzai rulers of Kandahar. He was eventually slain in a fight with the Kalhoras at Jandrihar near Sanni in Kachhi.
During the reign of Mir Abdullah's successor, Mir Muhabbat, Nadir Shah rose to power; and the Ahmadzai ruler obtained through him in 1740 the cession of Kachhi, in compensation for the blood of Mir Abdullah and the men who had fallen with him. The Brahuis had now gained what highlanders must always covet, good cultivable lands; and, by the wisdom of Muhabbat Khan and of his brother Nasir Khan, certain tracts were distributed among the tribesmen on the condition of finding so many men-at-arms for the Khan's body of irregular troops. At the same time much of the revenue-paying land was retained by the Khan for himself.
The forty-four years of the rule of Nasir Khan I, known to the Brahuis as 'The Great,' and the hero of their history, were years of strenuous administration and organization interspersed with military expeditions. He accompanied Ahmad Shah in his expeditions to Persia and India, while at home he was continuously engaged in the reduction of Makran, and, after nine expeditions to that country, he obtained from the Gichkis the right to the collection of half the revenues. A wise and able administrator, Nasir Khan was distinguished for his prudence, activity, and enterprise. He was essentially a warrior and a conqueror, and his spare time was spent in hunting. At the same time he was most attentive to religion, and enjoined on his people strict attention to the precepts of Islamic law. His reign was free from those internecine conflicts, subsequently common in Kalat's history.
The reign of Nasir Khan's successor, Mir Mahmud Khan, was distinguished by little except revolts. In I810 Henry Pottinger visited his capital and left a full record of his experience. The reign of Mir Mehrab Khan was one long struggle with his chiefs, many of whom he murdered. He became dependent on men of the stamp of Mulla Muhammad Hasan and Saiyid Muhammad Sharif, by
whose treachery, at the beginning of the first Afghan War, Sir William Macnaghten and Sir Alexander Burnes were deceived into thinking that Mehrab Khan was a traitor to the British; that he had induced the tribes to oppose the advance of the British army through the Bolan Pass; and that finally, when Sir Alexander Burnes was returning from a mission to Kalat, he had caused a robbery to be committed on the party, in the course of which an agreement, which had been executed between the envoy and the Khan, was carried off. This view determined the diversion of Sir Thomas Willshire's brigade from Quetta to attack Kalat in 1839, an act which has been described by Malleson as 'more than a grave error, a crime.' The place was taken by assault and Mehrab Khan was slain.
Under pressure from Colonel Stacey Mir Nasir Khan II submitted to the British, and Major Outram had him installed at Kalat in 1840.
of Kalat, Mir Ahmad Yar Khan, was coerced by Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the first governor-general of Pakistan, to sign the document of accession. Critics dispute such claims as unrealistic and contrary to popular support for Jinnah, as the Khan of Kalat ruled even after Jinnah's death with the support of the government. However, the Khan was not an absolute monarch; he was required to act under the provisions of the Rawaj (Kalat's constitution).
The incorporation of the Khanate resulted in a few anti-Pakistani rallies and meetings in certain areas of the Khanate. To subdue anti-Pakistani sentiment, the Army of Pakistan was placed on alert. The Government of Pakistan decided to take complete control of the administration of the Khanate of Kalat on April 15, [1948. The Agent to the Governor General (A.G.G.) in Kalat conveyed Jinnah's orders that the Khanate would revert to its previous status as it had existed under British rule.
In April 1948, several political leaders from Kalat, including Mohammad Amin Khosa and Abdul Samad Achakzai, were arrested. The pro-Congress
Anjuman-i-Watan Party, headed by Samad Achakzai, was declared unlawful.
, the Baloch League, and the Baloch National Workers Party—to join him in the struggle for the creation of an independent "Greater Balochistan." Apart from his political motives, the Prince was a member of the royal family and the former governor of the Makran province; he was upset by Pakistan's recognition of Sardar Bay Khan Gichki as Makran's ruler.He saw an end to his privileges and position in a Pakistani Balochistan province. The Baloch insurgents fled to Afghanistan and encamped at Sarlath in the province of Kandahar. During their stay, the Baloch fighters adopted national, cultural and religious ideas to further their cause. The Prince also organized the Baloch Warriors, former soldiers and officers of the Khanate's army.
, who was in charge of the Pakistani army's Seventh Regiment, was ordered to attack the insurgents and force them to surrender. Prince Karim and his 142 followers were arrested and imprisoned in the Mach and Quetta
jails.
was instructed to study the circumstances and events which led to the revolt and was asked to give its recommendations to the District Magistrate. On November 10], 1948, the Jirga heard the testimony of the accused and gave its recommendations to the D.M. on November 17, 1948], suggesting the delivery of the Prince to Loralai at the pleasure of the Government of Pakistan and various other penalties. The D.M., in his order dated November 27, 1948, differed with the opinion of the Jirga and sentenced the Prince to ten years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of 5000 rupees. Other members of his party were given various sentences and fines.
or Nowroz Khan, commonly known by Balochs as Babu Nowroz, was the head of the Zarakzai tribes of Balochistan. Nowroz started an armed struggle against Pakistan, but later surrendered to Lt. Col. Tikka Khan
(later General of the Pakistani army). Nawroz Khan's rebellion ended when he was finally executed. He and his followers, including his sons and nephews, were taken to Hyderabad Jail, where they all faced military trial.
(now Bangladesh
).
The National Awami Party, led by ethnic nationalists Ghaus Bux Bizenjo, Sardar Ataullah Mengal
, Gul Khan Nasir, Khair Bux Marri, Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti and Khan Wali Khan
, dominated Balochistan and the North-West Frontier Province
(NWFP). At the time, even the Jamiat i Ulema i Islam of Maulana Mufti Mahmud (father of Maulana Fazlur Rehman) thought it fit to join hands with the ethnic nationalists to espouse the parochial cause.
Emboldened by the stand taken by Sheikh Mujib, the ethnic nationalists of the two provinces demanded their "provincial rights" from Zulfikar Ali Bhutto
in exchange for a consensual approval of the 1973 constitution. But while Mr. Bhutto admitted the National Awami Party to a NAP-JUI coalition, he refused to negotiate with the provincial governments led by chief minister Ataullah Mengal
in Quetta and Mufti Mahmud
in Peshawar. Tensions erupted.
Within six months, the federal government had sacked the two provincial governments, arrested the two chief ministers, two governors and forty-four MNAs and MPAs, obtained an order from the Supreme Court banning the NAP and charged everyone with high treason to be tried by a specially constituted Hyderabad tribunal
of handpicked judges. In time, an ethnic nationalist insurgency erupted and sucked the army into the province, pitting the Baloch tribals against Islamabad.
The 1970s conflict with the separatists, which manifested itself in the form of an armed struggle against the Pakistani army in Balochistan
, was provoked by federal impatience,brought about by Bhutto's desire to monopolize as much power as possible,and high-handedness and undemocratic constitutional deviation. Mir Hazar Khan Marri headed the separatist movement under the Baluch People's Liberation Front
(BPLF). Marri
and the BPLF fled to Afghanistan, along with thousands of his supporters. Baluch separatists often fight today under related nicknames such as BLA, BLM, BLO, etc.
The irony was that Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti served the federal government when Bhutto
appointed him Governor
of Balochistan throughout the time of the insurgency; during this time, Bugti spoke not a word in favour of provincial autonomy. The greater irony was that the insurgency came to an end following the army coup of General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq
against Mr. Bhutto's civilian government.
Soon thereafter, Gen. Zia unfolded plans to desensitize the alienated Baloch and Pashtun separatist leadership by a multi-faceted strategy aimed at co-opting the leaders into office while providing jobs and funds from the federal government to the alienated, insecure tribal middle classes. More significantly, Zia created maximum political space for the mullah parties in the NWFP and Balochistan so that they could be galvanized in the jihad
against the USSR in neighbouring Afghanistan
.
Divided, fatigued and shorn of its ideological moorings or avowed enemies such as Bhutto, the Greater Balochistan movement melted into memory over the next two decades.
within Pakistan. Attacks were organised by individual Baloch separatist chiefs, rather than an organised Baloch-wide attack. Also, the Baloch separatists hoped to get the support of the USSR], which never happened. Also, the large Pashtun and Brahvi minorities in Balochistan did not take part and were hostile to the idea of a separate Balochistan.
Another Pathan who was hostile to the idea of a separate Balochistan was Rahimuddin Khan
, a distinguished Lieutenant General at the time (later General). Soon after Zia's assuming power, Rahimuddin was appointed Martial Law
Governor of Balochistan, a position that headed all affairs to do with the province, and thus was, for the Pakistani government, a phenomenally powerful post.
Rahimuddin's unprecedented long rule (1978–84) crushed any armed uprisings within the province with an iron fist. His completely isolating Baloch Sardars from provincial policy was a move that, over time, gained increasing controversy], due to the unheard of nature of Rahimuddin's style of government.Past rulers had tried to appease the feudal lords; Rahimuddin went out of his way to isolate them from any position of provincial power,and tried to appease the common masses of the province by promoting economic growth.
This, in retrospect, ultimately led to the most stable period Balochistan has ever witnessed after the British left. Economic expansion was also impressive during Rahimuddin's reign.
has never benefited the people of Balochistan. Huge royalties are paid to Sardar
of Sui, but the money fails to reach the area's poor; Gwadar is in the clutches of a land-grab mafia
of Pakistan; the federal government earns billions from gas extracted from the province, but gives only a fraction back to Balochistan for development, and this fraction is largely improperly spent; the provincial autonomy promised in the 1973 constitution is nonexistent, etc.
Balochistan] remains a neglected backwater of Pakistan largely due to internal and external politics. Balochistan's internal politics have been factionalised by federal interference and meddling in the pursuit of dubious strategic regional interests. The province's drought-stricken pastoral economy cannot even provide for its small population.Government neglect,and growing support for tribal leaders has strengthened the ranks of the separatists and increased their clout.
The danger in Balochistan is twofold. The nascent but alienated middle class in the few towns of Balochistan is now rallying behind the nationalists and accepts the sardars spearheading PONM as genuine leaders. At the same time, the developmental lag in the province is sufficient to substantiate the anti-centre stance of the PONM. That is why any military action in the province may perhaps completely lack local support. Locals may support military action if it is against the sardars who are eating their resources, but this is unlikely as the federal government does not want to create any more problems in Balochistan. Even the PONM is not representing all of Balochistan, as its ideology is very narrow and its leader rarely delivers.
The other destabilizing factor relates to the ongoing battle against the combined forces of the Taliban and Al Qaeda in the area. The Pashtuns in Balochistan also have serious problems with the federal government's policy on the Pakistani-Afghan frontier. This could be troublesome, since Pashtun nationalism has also been responsible for the internationally-reported presence of the Taliban in the province.
deep sea port which is being built by the help of China. The Makran Coastal Highway
was also constructed on the coastline between Gwadar and Karachi
by National Highway Authority
, and has reduced travelling time considerably. The Government is also making several water filled dams in Balochistan, including Mirani dam. Furthermore since 1947 till 2002 the total development budget allotted to Baluchistan was Rs.152 Bn and the development budget allotted to Balochistan since 2002 to 2008 in the last seven years only is Rs.302 Billion. It is to be noted that this amount is only the amount allocated for developmental projects and is separate from the money allotted for other things.
has allegedly been operating MQ-1 Predator drones out of Shamsi airfield
in Balochistan to assassinate militants
in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas
.
In December 2009, Balochistan itself became a target as well, as the command of ISAF
operating in Afghanistan, announced that 30,000 soldiers – a third British, the rest mostly American – would be based across the border in Helmand. From there the US had to "target Taliban leaders in Balochistan" through a drone strike campaign.
Balochistan (Pakistan)
Balochistan is one of the four provinces or federating units of Pakistan. With an area of 134,051 mi2 or , it is the largest province of Pakistan, constituting approximately 44% of the total land mass of Pakistan. According to the 1998 population census, Balochistan had a population of...
is known to be the largest province and one of the four provinces
Subdivisions of Pakistan
The administrative units of Pakistan consist of four provinces, one federal capital territory, and a group of federally-administered tribal areas...
of today's Pakistan. The British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
on October 1, as paramount power in the region reached a security agreement with the princely state of Kalat which was ruled by the Khan of Kalat 1887 but the kingdom retained its sovereignty in all other respects.In 1947, when Pakistan became independent
Partition of India
The Partition of India was the partition of British India on the basis of religious demographics that led to the creation of the sovereign states of the Dominion of Pakistan and the Union of India on 14 and 15...
, Pakistan signed a standstill agreement with the state of Kalat (a land-locked state surrounded by Pakistani territory and covering 23% of the territory of the current province of Balochistan) which recognized its autonomy and sovereignty, subject to future negotiation of the relationship. However, both houses of the Kalat parliament had asserted independence in 1947 and the Khan subsequently acknowledged that he had no right to accede to Pakistan's demand for annexation which he said he had only done under the threat of military force. Since then, a number of separatist
Separatism
Separatism is the advocacy of a state of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, governmental or gender separation from the larger group. While it often refers to full political secession, separatist groups may seek nothing more than greater autonomy...
groups in the province have engaged in an armed struggle against the Pakistani government; the first was led by Prince Karim Khan
Prince Karim Khan
Prince Agha Abdul Karim Khan Ahmedzai was the younger brother of Khan of Kalat , Mir Ahmedyar Khan, the last ruler of Balochistan. After the British left Balochistan on 13 August 1947...
in 1948, and later by Nawab Nowroz Khan
Nawab Nowroz Khan
Nawab Nauroz Khan, , respectfully known by Balochis as Babu Nowroz, was the head of the Zarakzai , a Brahui people subject to the Khan of Kalat in Balochistan, Pakistan...
in 1968. These tribal uprisings were limited in scope, a more serious insurgency was led by the Marri
Marri
Marri ) is one of the largest ethnic Baloch tribes in Balochistan and Sindh provinces of Pakistan. Marri was considered to be a clan of the Rind tribe in the early history of Baloch and Balochistan...
and Mengal
Mengal
Mengal is a Brahui / Baloch tribe in Balochistan, Pakistan- Demographics :The Mengal tribe is one of the largest Baloch tribe. Mengal people speak Brahui, a Dravidian language that has been heavily influenced by other Iranian languages spoken in the area, especially Balochi...
tribes between 1973 and 1977. All these groups fought for the existence of a "Greater Balochistan" — a single independent state ruled under tribal jirga
Jirga
A jirga is a tribal assembly of elders which takes decisions by consensus, particularly among the Pashtun people but also in other ethnic groups near them; they are most common in Afghanistan and among the Pashtuns in Pakistan near its border with Afghanistan...
s (a tribal system of government) and comprising the historical Balochistan region,found within Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, Pakistan and Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
. In 2005 there was another struggle to achieve these aims, in 2006, the Pakistan army killed Nawab Akbar Bugti
Nawab Akbar Bugti
Akbar Khan Bugti was the Tumandar of the Bugti tribe of Baloch and served as Minister of State for Interior and Governor of Balochistan Province in Pakistan.He is the head of the Bugti Family...
, the man they blamed for the violence. Although Bugti had been proclaimed an offender by former president Pervez Musharraf
Pervez Musharraf
Pervez Musharraf , is a retired four-star general who served as the 13th Chief of Army Staff and tenth President of Pakistan as well as tenth Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee. Musharraf headed and led an administrative military government from October 1999 till August 2007. He ruled...
he has become a hero for separatists.However,he is accused of devouring federal funds for the development of the province,as well as gas royalties,and was also accused of operating unauthorized jails and dungeons in his territory.
Ancient history
From the 1st century to the 3rd century CE, the region was ruled by the PāratarājasParatarajas
The Pāratarājas were a dynasty of Indo-Scythian kings who ruled in the Baluchistan region of Pakistan and Iran, from the 1st century to the 3rd century CE....
(lit. "Pārata Kings"), a dynasty of Indo-Scythian or Indo-Parthian kings. The dynasty of the Pāratas is thought to be identical with the Pāradas of the Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
, the Puranas
Puranas
The Puranas are a genre of important Hindu, Jain and Buddhist religious texts, notably consisting of narratives of the history of the universe from creation to destruction, genealogies of kings, heroes, sages, and demigods, and descriptions of Hindu cosmology, philosophy, and geography.Puranas...
and other Indian sources.
They are essentially known through their coins, which typically exhibit the bust of the ruler on the observe, with long hair within a headband), and a swastika
Swastika
The swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles, in either right-facing form in counter clock motion or its mirrored left-facing form in clock motion. Earliest archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization of Ancient...
within a Brahmi
Brāhmī script
Brāhmī is the modern name given to the oldest members of the Brahmic family of scripts. The best-known Brāhmī inscriptions are the rock-cut edicts of Ashoka in north-central India, dated to the 3rd century BCE. These are traditionally considered to be early known examples of Brāhmī writing...
legend on the reverse (usually silver coins) or Kharoshthi (usually copper coins). The coins can mainly be found in the Loralai
Loralai
Loralai is the principal city of Loralai District in the northeast of the Balochistan Province of Pakistan. It was formerly known as Bori. It is four thousand seven hundred feet above the sea level....
area of modern Pakistan.
Herodotus
Herodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...
in 650 BCE describes the Paraitakenoi as a tribe ruled by Deiokes, a Persian king, in north-western Persia (History I.101). Arrian
Arrian
Lucius Flavius Arrianus 'Xenophon , known in English as Arrian , and Arrian of Nicomedia, was a Roman historian, public servant, a military commander and a philosopher of the 2nd-century Roman period...
describes how Alexander the Great encountered the Pareitakai in Bactria
Bactria
Bactria and also appears in the Zend Avesta as Bukhdi. It is the ancient name of a historical region located between south of the Amu Darya and west of the Indus River...
and Sogdiana
Sogdiana
Sogdiana or Sogdia was the ancient civilization of an Iranian people and a province of the Achaemenid Empire, eighteenth in the list on the Behistun Inscription of Darius the Great . Sogdiana is "listed" as the second of the "good lands and countries" that Ahura Mazda created...
, and had them conquered by Craterus
Craterus
Craterus was a Macedonian general under Alexander the Great and one of the Diadochi.He was the son of a Macedonian nobleman named Alexander from Orestis and brother of admiral Amphoterus. Craterus commanded the phalanx and all infantry on the left wing in Battle of Issus...
(Anabasis Alexandrou IV). The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea
Periplus of the Erythraean Sea
The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea or Periplus of the Red Sea is a Greco-Roman periplus, written in Greek, describing navigation and trading opportunities from Roman Egyptian ports like Berenice along the coast of the Red Sea, and others along Northeast Africa and India...
(1st century CE) describes the territory of the Paradon beyond the Ommanitic region, on the coast of modern Baluchistan.
The bulk of Baloch migrations from what was Persia was caused by the invasions of Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan , born Temujin and occasionally known by his temple name Taizu , was the founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death....
into that region and the Balochies were given refuge in what was the greater Sindh region. Later infighting between Balochies resulted in clans led by sardars, which claimed regions within Sindh. In an effort to gain total control of the regions, the British named the area Balochistan and got the support of the Baloch Sardars who then were titled Nawab
Nawab
A Nawab or Nawaab is an honorific title given to Muslim rulers of princely states in South Asia. It is the Muslim equivalent of the term "maharaja" that was granted to Hindu rulers....
s. These Nawabs were to keep minor Baloch, Pathan and other factions in check. For the last 150 years the region has seen continual fighting to gain access to natural resources in an otherwise barren land.
Major kings
- Yolamira, son of Bagavera (2nd century)
- Arjuna, son of Yolamira (2nd century)
- Hvaramira, another son of Yolamira (2nd century)
- Mirahvara, son of Hvaramira (2nd century)
- Miratakhma, another son of Hvaramira (2nd century)
The land also belonged to the ancient Hindu empires of King Ashoka and chandragupta maurya.
Arab conquest of Balochistan
In the 7th century the current Balochistan province of Pakistan was divided into two main regions, its south western parts were part of KarmanKarman
- Science :* Born–von Karman boundary condition* Karman cannula* Kármán–Howarth equation* Kármán line* Kármán vortex street* Theodore von Karman Medal* Kármán–Trefftz airfoil, also known as the Joukowsky transform* Von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics...
province of Persian Empire and north eastern region was part of the Persian province Sistan
Sistan
Sīstān is a border region in eastern Iran , southwestern Afghanistan and northern tip of Southwestern Pakistan .-Etymology:...
. The southern region was included in Makran
Makran
The present day Makran is a semi-desert coastal strip in the south of Sindh, Balochistan, in Iran and Pakistan, along the coast of the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman. The present day Makran derived its name from Maka, a satrap of Achaemenid Empire....
, prior to the Islamic era - the suzerainty over the petty rulers of Baluchistan alternative between east and west. In the 14th year of the Hijra
Hijra (Islam)
The Hijra is the migration or journey of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE. Alternate spellings of this Arabic word are Hijrah, Hijrat or Hegira, the latter following the spelling rules of Latin.- Hijra of Muhammad :In September 622, warned of a plot to...
, 636-6CE, Rai Chach marched from Sindh and conquered Makran, however in 643 the Arabs reached Makran. In early 644 CE, Caliph
Caliph
The Caliph is the head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the ruler of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah. It is a transcribed version of the Arabic word which means "successor" or "representative"...
Umar
Umar
`Umar ibn al-Khattāb c. 2 November , was a leading companion and adviser to the Islamic prophet Muhammad who later became the second Muslim Caliph after Muhammad's death....
sent Suhail ibn Adi from Busra to conquer the Karman region of Iran; he was made governor of Karman. From Karman he entered the western Baluchistan and conquered the region near to Persian frontiers. South Western Balochistan was conquered during the campaign in Sistan the same year.
During Caliph Uthman
Uthman
Uthman ibn Affan was one of the companions of Islamic prophet, Muhammad. He played a major role in early Islamic history as the third Sunni Rashidun or Rightly Guided Caliph....
's reign in 652, Balochistan was re-conquered during the campaign against the revolt in Karman, under the command of Majasha ibn Masood, it was first time when western Baluchistan came directly under the Laws of Caliphate
Caliphate
The term caliphate, "dominion of a caliph " , refers to the first system of government established in Islam and represented the political unity of the Muslim Ummah...
and gave tribute on agriculture. In those days western Baluchistan was included in the dominion of Karman. In 654 Abdulrehman ibn Samrah was made governor of Sistan, an Islamic army was sent under him to crush the revolt in Zarang, which is now in southern Afghanistan. Conquering Zarang a column moved north ward to conquer areas up to Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
and Ghazni
Ghazni
For the Province of Ghazni see Ghazni ProvinceGhazni is a city in central-east Afghanistan with a population of about 141,000 people...
in Hindu Kush
Hindu Kush
The Hindu Kush is an mountain range that stretches between central Afghanistan and northern Pakistan. The highest point in the Hindu Kush is Tirich Mir in the Chitral region of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.It is the westernmost extension of the Pamir Mountains, the Karakoram Range, and is a...
Mountains, while another column moved towards North western
Quetta District
Quetta is a district in the north-west of Balochistan province of Pakistan.It was part of Quetta Division until the year 2000 when divisions were abolished. The district is famous for its agriculture produce, most notably fruit orchards but also including apples and grapes. The Hanna Valley is an...
Baluchistan and conquered area up to the ancient city of Dawar and Qandabil (Bolan
Bolan
Bolan may refer to:People*Sihag or Bolan, a gotra of Jat people.Music*Marc Bolan , British musician of T. Rex*Rachel Bolan, of band Skid Row*T-Bolan, Japanese rock bandPlaces...
), by 654 the whole of what is now Baluchistan province of Pakistan was under the rule of Rashidun Caliphate
Rashidun Caliphate
The Rashidun Caliphate , comprising the first four caliphs in Islam's history, was founded after Muhammad's death in 632, Year 10 A.H.. At its height, the Caliphate extended from the Arabian Peninsula, to the Levant, Caucasus and North Africa in the west, to the Iranian highlands and Central Asia...
except for the well defended mountain town of QaiQan' (now called Kalat), which was conquered during Caliph Ali's reign. Abdulrehman ibn Samrah made Zaranj his provincial capital and remained governor of these conquered areas from 654 to 656, until Uthman was murdered.
During the Caliphate of Ali, the areas of Balochistan, Makran again broke into revolt. Due to civil war in the Islamic empire Ali was unable to take notice of these areas, at last in the year 660 he sent a large force under the command of Haris ibn Marah Abdi towards Makran, Baluchistan and Sindh
Sindh
Sindh historically referred to as Ba'ab-ul-Islam , is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran". Though Muslims form the largest religious group in Sindh, a good number of Christians, Zoroastrians and Hindus can...
. Haris ibn Marah Abdi arrived in Makran and conquered it by force then moved north ward to northeastern Balochistan and re-conquered Qandabil (Bolan
Bolan
Bolan may refer to:People*Sihag or Bolan, a gotra of Jat people.Music*Marc Bolan , British musician of T. Rex*Rachel Bolan, of band Skid Row*T-Bolan, Japanese rock bandPlaces...
), then again moving south finally conquered Kalat after a fierce battle. In 663 CE, during the reign of Umayyad
Umayyad
The Umayyad Caliphate was the second of the four major Arab caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. It was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty, whose name derives from Umayya ibn Abd Shams, the great-grandfather of the first Umayyad caliph. Although the Umayyad family originally came from the...
Caliph Muawiyah I
Muawiyah I
Muawiyah I was the first Caliph of the Umayyad Dynasty. After the conquest of Mecca by the Muslims, Muawiyah's family converted to Islam. Muawiyah is brother-in-law to Muhammad who married his sister Ramlah bint Abi-Sufyan in 1AH...
, Muslims lost control of northeastern Balochistan and Kalat when Haris ibn Marah and large part of his army died on the battle field suppressing a revolt in Kalat. Muslim forces latter re-gained the control of the area during Umayyads' reign. It also remained part of Abbasid
Abbasid
The Abbasid Caliphate or, more simply, the Abbasids , was the third of the Islamic caliphates. It was ruled by the Abbasid dynasty of caliphs, who built their capital in Baghdad after overthrowing the Umayyad caliphate from all but the al-Andalus region....
Caliphate's empire.
Arab rule in Balochistan lasted until the end of the 10th century, the parts of Balochistan best known to them were, Turan (the Jhalawan country) with its capital at Khuzdar, and Nudha or Budha (Kachhi). Around 976 Ibn Haukal, during second visit to India, found an Arab governor residing in Kaikanan (probably the modern Nal) and governing Khuzdar.
Mongol to Mughal era
Shortly afterwards Balochistan fell to Nasir-ud-din Sabuktagin, Sabuktagin's son Mahmud of GhazniMahmud of Ghazni
Mahmud of Ghazni , actually ', was the most prominent ruler of the Ghaznavid dynasty who ruled from 997 until his death in 1030 in the eastern Iranian lands. Mahmud turned the former provincial city of Ghazni into the wealthy capital of an extensive empire which covered most of today's Iran,...
was able to conquer Sindh due to his possession of Khuzdar
Khuzdar
Khuzdar or Khozdar is a town located in Khuzdar District in Balochistan, Pakistan. Khuzdar is the capital of Khuzdar District, which was created on 1 March 1974...
. After the Ghaznivids
Ghaznavid Empire
The Ghaznavids were a Persianate Muslim dynasty of Turkic slave origin which existed from 975 to 1187 and ruled much of Persia, Transoxania, and the northern parts of the Indian subcontinent. The Ghaznavid state was centered in Ghazni, a city in modern-day Afghanistan...
the area passed to the Ghurids
Ghurids
The Ghurids or Ghorids were a medieval Muslim dynasty of Iranian origin that ruled during the 12th and 13th centuries in Khorasan. At its zenith, their empire, centred at Ghōr , stretched over an area that included the whole of modern Afghanistan, the eastern parts of Iran and the northern section...
and a little later became part of the dominion of Sultan Muhammad Khan of Khwazrizm
Khwarezmian Empire
The Khwarazmian dynasty or Khwarezmian dynasty, also known as Khwarezmids, dynasty of Khwarazm Shahs or Khwarezm-Shah dynasty was a Persianate Sunni Muslim dynasty of Turkic mamluk origin.They ruled Greater Iran in the High Middle Ages, in the period of about 1077 to 1231, first as vassals of...
(Khiva) in 1219. However around 1223 a Mongol expedition under Chagatai
Chagatai Khan
Chagatai Khan was the second son of Genghis Khan and first khan and origin of the names of the Chagatai Khanate, Chagatai language and Chagatai Turks....
, the son of Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan , born Temujin and occasionally known by his temple name Taizu , was the founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death....
, penetrated as far as Makran. A few years later, southern Baluchistan briefly came under the rule of Sultan Altamsh of Delhi but soon came back under Mongol rule. The raids organised by the Mongols have left a lasting mark on history of Baluchistan, from Makran to Gomal the Mongol (known to the people as Mughal) and the atrocities they caused are still well known.
Afterwards the history of Balochistan centres around Kandahar
Kandahar
Kandahar is the second largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 512,200 as of 2011. It is the capital of Kandahar Province, located in the south of the country at about 1,005 m above sea level...
and is was in this area in 1398 that Pir Muhammad, the grandson of Timur
Timur
Timur , historically known as Tamerlane in English , was a 14th-century conqueror of West, South and Central Asia, and the founder of the Timurid dynasty in Central Asia, and great-great-grandfather of Babur, the founder of the Mughal Dynasty, which survived as the Mughal Empire in India until...
, fought the Afghans in the Sulaiman mountains. According to local tradition Timur himself passed through Marri country during one of his Indian expeditions.
The succeeding century is one of great historical interest. The Baloch extended their power to Kalat, Kachhi, and the Punjab, and the wars took place between Mir Chakar the Rind and Gwahram Lashari which are so celebrated in Baloch verse. In these wars a prominent part was played by Mir Zunnun Beg, Arghun, who was governor of north-eastern Baluchistan under Sultan Husain Mirza of Herat about 1470. At the same time the Brahuis had been gradually gaining strength, and their little principality at this time extended through the Jhalawan country to Wadh
Wadh
Wadh is a town in the Khuzdar District of Balochistan, Pakistan. The population of the town was 48.950 according to the 1998 census. Most of the inhabitants of the sub-district belong to the Mengal tribe...
.
The Arghuns shortly afterwards gave way before Babar. From 1556 to 1595 the country was under the Safavid dynasty. Then it fell into the hands of the Mughals of Delhi until 1638, when it was again transferred to Persia.
We have an interesting account of Baluchistan in the Ain-i-Akbari
Ain-i-Akbari
The Ain-i-Akbari or the "Institutes of Akbar", is a 16th century, detailed document recording the administration of emperor Akbar's empire, written by his vizier, Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak...
. In 1590 the upper highlands were included in the sarkdr of Kandahar, while Kachhi was part of the Bhakkar sarkdr of the Multan Subah. Makrdn alone remained independent under the Maliks, Buledais, and
Gichkis, until Nasir Khan I of Kalat brought it within his power during the 18th century.
From the middle of the 17th century Baluchistan remained under the Safavids
Safavid dynasty
The Safavid dynasty was one of the most significant ruling dynasties of Iran. They ruled one of the greatest Persian empires since the Muslim conquest of Persia and established the Twelver school of Shi'a Islam as the official religion of their empire, marking one of the most important turning...
till the rise of the Ghilzai
Ghilzai
Ghilzai are the largest Pashtun tribal confederacy found in Afghanistan and Pakistan. They are also known historically as Ghilji, Khilji, Ghalji, Ghilzye, and possibly Gharzai...
power in I708. The latter in its turn gave way before Nadir Shah, who, during the first part of the 18th century, made several expeditions to or through Baluchistan. Ahmad Shah Durrani
Ahmad Shah Durrani
Ahmad Shah Durrani , also known as Ahmad Shāh Abdālī and born as Ahmad Khān, was the founder of the Durrani Empire in 1747 and is regarded by many to be the founder of the modern state of Afghanistan.Ahmad Khan enlisted as a young soldier in the military of the Afsharid kingdom and quickly rose...
followed; and thenceforth the north-eastern part of the country, including almost all the areas now under direct administration, remained under the more or less nominal suzerainty of the Sadozais and Barakzais till I879, when Pishin, Duki, and Sibi passed into British hands by the Treaty of Gandamak.
Meanwhile the whole of Western Baluchistan had been consolidated into an organized state under the Ahmadzai
Ahmadzai
Aḥmadzai is a Pashtun tribe. There are many separate and distinct clans, sub-clans, tribal fractions, large families etc. that trace their ancestry to different Aḥmads.-Afghanistan:...
Khans of Kalat. All tradition asserts that the former rulers of Kalat were Hindus, Sewa by name.
As Muslim dynasties held Baluchistan from about the 7th century, we must look to an earlier period for the date of the Sewas; and it is not improbable that they were connected with the Rai dynasty of Sind, whose genealogical table includes two rulers named Sihras. The Mirwaris, from whom the Ahmadzais are descended, claim Arab origin. In their earlier legends we find them living at Surab near Kalat, and extending their power thence in wars with the Jats or Jadgals. They then fell under the power of the Mongols; but one of their chiefs, Mir Hasan, regained the capital from the Mongol governor, and he and his successors held Kalat for twelve generations till the rise of Mir Ahmad in 1666-7. It is from Mir Ahmad that the eponym Ahmadzai is derived.
Khans of Kalat
Authentic history begins with the reign of the Khans of Kalat, the rulers of Kalat were never fully independent, there was always a paramount power to whom they were subject. In the earliest times they were merely petty chiefs: later they bowed to the orders of the Mughal emperorsMughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
of Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
and to the rulers of Kandahar, and supplied men-at-arms on demand. Most peremptory orders from the Afghan rulers to their vassals of Kalat are still extant, and the predominance of the Sadozais and Barakzais was acknowledged so late as 1838. It was not until the time of Nasir Khan I that the titles of Beglar Begi (Chief of Chiefs) and Wali-i-Kalat (Governor of Kalat) were conferred on the Kalat ruler by the Afghan kings.
For the first 150 years, up to the death of Mir Mahmud Khan I
Mir Mahmud Khan I
Mir Mahmud Khan I was the Khan of the princely state of Kalat in what is now the Balochistan province of Pakistan during the eighteenth century.-References:...
, a gradual extension of power took place and the building up of a constitution.A period of social ferment, anarchy, and rebellion succeeded, in which sanguinary revolts rapidly alternated with the restoration of a power ruthless in retaliation, lasting into the period of British Government.
As the Mughal power decayed, the Ahmadzai chiefs found themselves freed in some degree from external interference. The first problem that presented itself was to secure mutual cohesion and co-operation in the loose tribal organization of the state, and this was effected by
adopting a policy of parceling out a portion of all conquests among the poverty-stricken highlanders. Thus all gained a vested interest in the welfare of the community, while receiving provision for their maintenance. A period of expansion then commenced. Mir Ahmad made successive descents on the plains of Sibi. Mir Samandar extended his raids to Zhob, Bori, and Thal-Chotiali, and levied an annual sum of Rs. 40,000 from the Kalhoras of Sindh.
Mir Abdullah, the greatest conqueror of the dynasty, turned his attention westward to Makran, while in the north-east he captured Pishin and Shorawak from the Ghilzai rulers of Kandahar. He was eventually slain in a fight with the Kalhoras at Jandrihar near Sanni in Kachhi.
During the reign of Mir Abdullah's successor, Mir Muhabbat, Nadir Shah rose to power; and the Ahmadzai ruler obtained through him in 1740 the cession of Kachhi, in compensation for the blood of Mir Abdullah and the men who had fallen with him. The Brahuis had now gained what highlanders must always covet, good cultivable lands; and, by the wisdom of Muhabbat Khan and of his brother Nasir Khan, certain tracts were distributed among the tribesmen on the condition of finding so many men-at-arms for the Khan's body of irregular troops. At the same time much of the revenue-paying land was retained by the Khan for himself.
The forty-four years of the rule of Nasir Khan I, known to the Brahuis as 'The Great,' and the hero of their history, were years of strenuous administration and organization interspersed with military expeditions. He accompanied Ahmad Shah in his expeditions to Persia and India, while at home he was continuously engaged in the reduction of Makran, and, after nine expeditions to that country, he obtained from the Gichkis the right to the collection of half the revenues. A wise and able administrator, Nasir Khan was distinguished for his prudence, activity, and enterprise. He was essentially a warrior and a conqueror, and his spare time was spent in hunting. At the same time he was most attentive to religion, and enjoined on his people strict attention to the precepts of Islamic law. His reign was free from those internecine conflicts, subsequently common in Kalat's history.
The reign of Nasir Khan's successor, Mir Mahmud Khan, was distinguished by little except revolts. In I810 Henry Pottinger visited his capital and left a full record of his experience. The reign of Mir Mehrab Khan was one long struggle with his chiefs, many of whom he murdered. He became dependent on men of the stamp of Mulla Muhammad Hasan and Saiyid Muhammad Sharif, by
whose treachery, at the beginning of the first Afghan War, Sir William Macnaghten and Sir Alexander Burnes were deceived into thinking that Mehrab Khan was a traitor to the British; that he had induced the tribes to oppose the advance of the British army through the Bolan Pass; and that finally, when Sir Alexander Burnes was returning from a mission to Kalat, he had caused a robbery to be committed on the party, in the course of which an agreement, which had been executed between the envoy and the Khan, was carried off. This view determined the diversion of Sir Thomas Willshire's brigade from Quetta to attack Kalat in 1839, an act which has been described by Malleson as 'more than a grave error, a crime.' The place was taken by assault and Mehrab Khan was slain.
British conquest
The British gradually became involved in Balochistan during the reign of Mir Mehrab Khan whose reign was characterised by the power struggle he had with the chief, many of whom he had murdered. Mehrab Khan had become dependent on Mulla Muhammad Hasan and Saiyid Muhammad Sharif. And it was these men who had convinced the British that he had encouraged the tribes to oppose the British advance through the Bolan pass. The British justified their 1839 attack of Kalat on this, and had had Mehrab Khan killed, his successor — Shah Nawaz Khan was then appointed with Lieutenant Loveday as political officer. However a rebellion of the Sarawan tribes the following year force Shah Nawaz to abdicate, his successor Mir Muhammad Hasan then took power and afterwards being known as Mir Nazir Khan II.Under pressure from Colonel Stacey Mir Nasir Khan II submitted to the British, and Major Outram had him installed at Kalat in 1840.
Accession issues of 1948
Balochi nationalists support the claim that the ruler of the KhanateKhanate
Khanate, or Chanat, is a Turco-Mongol-originated word used to describe a political entity ruled by a Khan. In modern Turkish, the word used is kağanlık, and in modern Azeri of the republic of Azerbaijan, xanlıq. In Mongolian the word khanlig is used, as in "Khereidiin Khanlig" meaning the Khanate...
of Kalat, Mir Ahmad Yar Khan, was coerced by Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the first governor-general of Pakistan, to sign the document of accession. Critics dispute such claims as unrealistic and contrary to popular support for Jinnah, as the Khan of Kalat ruled even after Jinnah's death with the support of the government. However, the Khan was not an absolute monarch; he was required to act under the provisions of the Rawaj (Kalat's constitution).
The incorporation of the Khanate resulted in a few anti-Pakistani rallies and meetings in certain areas of the Khanate. To subdue anti-Pakistani sentiment, the Army of Pakistan was placed on alert. The Government of Pakistan decided to take complete control of the administration of the Khanate of Kalat on April 15, [1948. The Agent to the Governor General (A.G.G.) in Kalat conveyed Jinnah's orders that the Khanate would revert to its previous status as it had existed under British rule.
In April 1948, several political leaders from Kalat, including Mohammad Amin Khosa and Abdul Samad Achakzai, were arrested. The pro-Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
Anjuman-i-Watan Party, headed by Samad Achakzai, was declared unlawful.
Prince Abdul Karim Khan
On the night of May 16, 1948, Prince Abdul Karim Khan, the younger brother of the Khan, decided to lead a rebellion.The Prince invited the leading members of nationalist political parties—the Kalat State National PartyKalat State National Party
The Kalat State National Party was a Baloch nationalist political party in Balochistan in the princely state of Kalat. It was formed in February 1937, emerging out of the re-organization of the Anjuman-e-Ittehad-e-Balochan. Among its leadership were Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo, Mir Gul Khan Nasir and...
, the Baloch League, and the Baloch National Workers Party—to join him in the struggle for the creation of an independent "Greater Balochistan." Apart from his political motives, the Prince was a member of the royal family and the former governor of the Makran province; he was upset by Pakistan's recognition of Sardar Bay Khan Gichki as Makran's ruler.He saw an end to his privileges and position in a Pakistani Balochistan province. The Baloch insurgents fled to Afghanistan and encamped at Sarlath in the province of Kandahar. During their stay, the Baloch fighters adopted national, cultural and religious ideas to further their cause. The Prince also organized the Baloch Warriors, former soldiers and officers of the Khanate's army.
Prince Karim's capture
With Afghan aid, Abdul Karim entered Balochistan and organized a rebellion against Pakistan in the Jalawan area. He received assistance from Mir Gohar Khan Zahrri, an influential tribal leader of the Zarkzai clan. Major General Akbar KhanAkbar Khan
Amir Akbar Khan Amir Akbar Khan Amir Akbar Khan (1816 – 1846;, born as Mohammad Akbar Khan and famously known as Wazir Akbar Khan, was an Afghan Prince, a general, a tribal leader and Emir. He was active in the First Anglo-Afghan War, which lasted from 1839 to 1842...
, who was in charge of the Pakistani army's Seventh Regiment, was ordered to attack the insurgents and force them to surrender. Prince Karim and his 142 followers were arrested and imprisoned in the Mach and Quetta
Quetta
is the largest city and the provincial capital of the Balochistan Province of Pakistan. Known as the "Fruit Garden of Pakistan" due to the diversity of its plant and animal wildlife, Quetta is home to the Hazarganji Chiltan National Park, which contains some of the rarest species of wildlife in the...
jails.
Trial and sentencing
After the arrest of the Prince and his party, the A.G.G. gave an order for an inquiry, to be conducted by Khan Sahib Abdullah Khan, the Additional District Magistrate of Quetta. He submitted his report on September 12, 1948. His report was based on the Prince's activities and upon the letters and documents published by the rebel force. After the inquiry, R. K. Saker, the District Magistrate of Quetta, appointed a special Jirga (official council of elders), this JirgaJirga
A jirga is a tribal assembly of elders which takes decisions by consensus, particularly among the Pashtun people but also in other ethnic groups near them; they are most common in Afghanistan and among the Pashtuns in Pakistan near its border with Afghanistan...
was instructed to study the circumstances and events which led to the revolt and was asked to give its recommendations to the District Magistrate. On November 10], 1948, the Jirga heard the testimony of the accused and gave its recommendations to the D.M. on November 17, 1948], suggesting the delivery of the Prince to Loralai at the pleasure of the Government of Pakistan and various other penalties. The D.M., in his order dated November 27, 1948, differed with the opinion of the Jirga and sentenced the Prince to ten years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of 5000 rupees. Other members of his party were given various sentences and fines.
Second Balochistan Conflict (1958)
Nawab NowrozNawab Nowroz Khan
Nawab Nauroz Khan, , respectfully known by Balochis as Babu Nowroz, was the head of the Zarakzai , a Brahui people subject to the Khan of Kalat in Balochistan, Pakistan...
or Nowroz Khan, commonly known by Balochs as Babu Nowroz, was the head of the Zarakzai tribes of Balochistan. Nowroz started an armed struggle against Pakistan, but later surrendered to Lt. Col. 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...
(later General of the Pakistani army). Nawroz Khan's rebellion ended when he was finally executed. He and his followers, including his sons and nephews, were taken to Hyderabad Jail, where they all faced military trial.
Balochistan Conflict of the 1970s
This rebellion constitutes an infamous period in Pakistani history, second only to the Civil War of 1971 and subsequent loss of East PakistanEast 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...
(now Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
).
The National Awami Party, led by ethnic nationalists Ghaus Bux Bizenjo, Sardar Ataullah Mengal
Ataullah Mengal
Sardar Ataullah Khan Mengal , popularly known as Sardar Ataullah Mengal, is a well-known political and feudal figure of Pakistan hailing from Balochistan. He has been campaigning a nationalist and separatist movement in Pakistan for over four decades. He is the head of the Shahizai Mangal tribe...
, Gul Khan Nasir, Khair Bux Marri, Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti and Khan Wali Khan
Khan Wali Khan
Khan Abdul Wali Khan was Pakistani democratic socialist and Pashtun leader who also served as President of National Awami Party. Son of the prominent Pashtun Bacha Khan, Wali Khan was an activist and a writer against the British India like his father.His early years were marked by his involvement...
, dominated Balochistan and the North-West Frontier Province
North-West Frontier Province
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa , formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province and various other names, is one of the four provinces of Pakistan, located in the north-west of the country...
(NWFP). At the time, even the Jamiat i Ulema i Islam of Maulana Mufti Mahmud (father of Maulana Fazlur Rehman) thought it fit to join hands with the ethnic nationalists to espouse the parochial cause.
Emboldened by the stand taken by Sheikh Mujib, the ethnic nationalists of the two provinces demanded their "provincial rights" from Zulfikar Ali 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...
in exchange for a consensual approval of the 1973 constitution. But while Mr. Bhutto admitted the National Awami Party to a NAP-JUI coalition, he refused to negotiate with the provincial governments led by chief minister Ataullah Mengal
Ataullah Mengal
Sardar Ataullah Khan Mengal , popularly known as Sardar Ataullah Mengal, is a well-known political and feudal figure of Pakistan hailing from Balochistan. He has been campaigning a nationalist and separatist movement in Pakistan for over four decades. He is the head of the Shahizai Mangal tribe...
in Quetta and Mufti Mahmud
Mufti Mahmud
Maulana Mufti Mahmud , an ethnic Marwat Pashtun hailing from Abdul Khel, was born in January 1919 in Paniala, Dera Ismail Khan District, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, province of Pakistan. He was an Islamic scholar and political activist. Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman is his son and was the leader of opposition in...
in Peshawar. Tensions erupted.
Within six months, the federal government had sacked the two provincial governments, arrested the two chief ministers, two governors and forty-four MNAs and MPAs, obtained an order from the Supreme Court banning the NAP and charged everyone with high treason to be tried by a specially constituted Hyderabad tribunal
Hyderabad tribunal
The Hyderabad tribunal , also known as Hyderabad conspiracy case, is the name of a former judicial tribunal used in Pakistan to prosecute opposition politicians of the National Awami Party on the charges of treason and acting against the ideology of Pakistan.The tribunal was set up on the orders of...
of handpicked judges. In time, an ethnic nationalist insurgency erupted and sucked the army into the province, pitting the Baloch tribals against Islamabad.
The 1970s conflict with the separatists, which manifested itself in the form of an armed struggle against the Pakistani army in Balochistan
Balochistan (Pakistan)
Balochistan is one of the four provinces or federating units of Pakistan. With an area of 134,051 mi2 or , it is the largest province of Pakistan, constituting approximately 44% of the total land mass of Pakistan. According to the 1998 population census, Balochistan had a population of...
, was provoked by federal impatience,brought about by Bhutto's desire to monopolize as much power as possible,and high-handedness and undemocratic constitutional deviation. Mir Hazar Khan Marri headed the separatist movement under the Baluch People's Liberation Front
Baluch People's Liberation Front
Baluch People's Liberation Front, also known as Baluch Awami Azadi Mahaiz or BPLF, was founded in the 1965. its aim was the independence of...
(BPLF). Marri
Marri
Marri ) is one of the largest ethnic Baloch tribes in Balochistan and Sindh provinces of Pakistan. Marri was considered to be a clan of the Rind tribe in the early history of Baloch and Balochistan...
and the BPLF fled to Afghanistan, along with thousands of his supporters. Baluch separatists often fight today under related nicknames such as BLA, BLM, BLO, etc.
The irony was that Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti served the federal government when 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...
appointed him Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
of Balochistan throughout the time of the insurgency; during this time, Bugti spoke not a word in favour of provincial autonomy. The greater irony was that the insurgency came to an end following the army coup of General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq
Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq
General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq , was the 4th Chief Martial Law Administrator and the sixth President of Pakistan from July 1977 to his death in August 1988...
against Mr. Bhutto's civilian government.
Soon thereafter, Gen. Zia unfolded plans to desensitize the alienated Baloch and Pashtun separatist leadership by a multi-faceted strategy aimed at co-opting the leaders into office while providing jobs and funds from the federal government to the alienated, insecure tribal middle classes. More significantly, Zia created maximum political space for the mullah parties in the NWFP and Balochistan so that they could be galvanized in the jihad
Jihad
Jihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...
against the USSR in neighbouring Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
.
Divided, fatigued and shorn of its ideological moorings or avowed enemies such as Bhutto, the Greater Balochistan movement melted into memory over the next two decades.
Rahimuddin Khan's reign
The uprising itself had suffered from a lack of direction. Some Baloch wanted independence, most only greater autonomySelf-governance
Self-governance is an abstract concept that refers to several scales of organization.It may refer to personal conduct or family units but more commonly refers to larger scale activities, i.e., professions, industry bodies, religions and political units , up to and including autonomous regions and...
within Pakistan. Attacks were organised by individual Baloch separatist chiefs, rather than an organised Baloch-wide attack. Also, the Baloch separatists hoped to get the support of the USSR], which never happened. Also, the large Pashtun and Brahvi minorities in Balochistan did not take part and were hostile to the idea of a separate Balochistan.
Another Pathan who was hostile to the idea of a separate Balochistan was Rahimuddin Khan
Rahimuddin Khan
Rahimuddin Khan Afridi is a retired four-star general of the Pakistan Army who was the fourth Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee from 1984 to 1987. He was also the longest-serving Governor and martial law administrator of Balochistan, from 1978 to when he resigned in 1984...
, a distinguished Lieutenant General at the time (later General). Soon after Zia's assuming power, Rahimuddin was appointed Martial Law
Martial law
Martial law is the imposition of military rule by military authorities over designated regions on an emergency basis— only temporary—when the civilian government or civilian authorities fail to function effectively , when there are extensive riots and protests, or when the disobedience of the law...
Governor of Balochistan, a position that headed all affairs to do with the province, and thus was, for the Pakistani government, a phenomenally powerful post.
Rahimuddin's unprecedented long rule (1978–84) crushed any armed uprisings within the province with an iron fist. His completely isolating Baloch Sardars from provincial policy was a move that, over time, gained increasing controversy], due to the unheard of nature of Rahimuddin's style of government.Past rulers had tried to appease the feudal lords; Rahimuddin went out of his way to isolate them from any position of provincial power,and tried to appease the common masses of the province by promoting economic growth.
This, in retrospect, ultimately led to the most stable period Balochistan has ever witnessed after the British left. Economic expansion was also impressive during Rahimuddin's reign.
Old grievances
The causes of grievances in Balochistan are twofold. On one side there are tribal leaders who want no development in the area; on the other side is the government, who is reluctant to go against tribal leaders. Natural gas development in the city of SuiSui (Balochistan)
Sui is a sub-district of Dera Bugti District in Balochistan, Pakistan. The Sui gas field is located near Sui town.-Administration:The town of Sui serves as the administrative centre of Sui tehsil, a subdivision of the district, the town of Sui itself functions as a Union Council....
has never benefited the people of Balochistan. Huge royalties are paid to Sardar
Sardar
Sardar is a title of Indo-Aryan origin that was originally used to denote feudal princes, noblemen, and other aristocrats. It was later applied to indicate a Head of State, a Commander-in-chief, and an Army military rank...
of Sui, but the money fails to reach the area's poor; Gwadar is in the clutches of a land-grab mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
of Pakistan; the federal government earns billions from gas extracted from the province, but gives only a fraction back to Balochistan for development, and this fraction is largely improperly spent; the provincial autonomy promised in the 1973 constitution is nonexistent, etc.
Balochistan] remains a neglected backwater of Pakistan largely due to internal and external politics. Balochistan's internal politics have been factionalised by federal interference and meddling in the pursuit of dubious strategic regional interests. The province's drought-stricken pastoral economy cannot even provide for its small population.Government neglect,and growing support for tribal leaders has strengthened the ranks of the separatists and increased their clout.
The danger in Balochistan is twofold. The nascent but alienated middle class in the few towns of Balochistan is now rallying behind the nationalists and accepts the sardars spearheading PONM as genuine leaders. At the same time, the developmental lag in the province is sufficient to substantiate the anti-centre stance of the PONM. That is why any military action in the province may perhaps completely lack local support. Locals may support military action if it is against the sardars who are eating their resources, but this is unlikely as the federal government does not want to create any more problems in Balochistan. Even the PONM is not representing all of Balochistan, as its ideology is very narrow and its leader rarely delivers.
The other destabilizing factor relates to the ongoing battle against the combined forces of the Taliban and Al Qaeda in the area. The Pashtuns in Balochistan also have serious problems with the federal government's policy on the Pakistani-Afghan frontier. This could be troublesome, since Pashtun nationalism has also been responsible for the internationally-reported presence of the Taliban in the province.
Recent development projects
Many development projects are underway in Balochistan, including the GwadarGwadar
Gwadar also known as Godar is a developing port city on the southwestern Arabian Sea coast of Pakistan. It is the district headquarters of Gwadar District in Balochistan province and has a population of approximately 50,000.Gwadar is strategically located at the apex of the Arabian Sea and at the...
deep sea port which is being built by the help of China. The Makran Coastal Highway
Makran Coastal Highway
Makran Coastal Highway is a 653 km-long coastal highway along Pakistan's Arabian Sea coastline. It runs primarily through Balochistan province between Karachi and Gwadar, passing near the port towns of Ormara and Pasni....
was also constructed on the coastline between Gwadar and Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
by National Highway Authority
National Highway Authority
The National Highway Authority is responsible for building and maintaining highways and motorways in Pakistan. The objective of the NHA is to "plan, promote and organize programmes for construction, development, operation, repairs & maintenance of National Highways, Motorways & strategic roads."-...
, and has reduced travelling time considerably. The Government is also making several water filled dams in Balochistan, including Mirani dam. Furthermore since 1947 till 2002 the total development budget allotted to Baluchistan was Rs.152 Bn and the development budget allotted to Balochistan since 2002 to 2008 in the last seven years only is Rs.302 Billion. It is to be noted that this amount is only the amount allocated for developmental projects and is separate from the money allotted for other things.
War on terror
Since at least 2006, the US Central Intelligence AgencyCentral Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
has allegedly been operating MQ-1 Predator drones out of Shamsi airfield
Shamsi airfield
PAF Base Shamsi, also called Bandari is a Pakistan Air Force airbase located near Washki in the Balochistan province of Pakistan....
in Balochistan to assassinate militants
Drone attacks on Pakistan by the United States of America
The United States government, led by the Central Intelligence Agency's Special Activities Division, has made a series of attacks on targets in northwest Pakistan since 2004 using drones . These attacks are part of the US' War on Terrorism campaign, seeking to defeat Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants...
in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas
Federally Administered Tribal Areas
The Federally Administered Tribal Areas are a semi-autonomous tribal region in the northwest of Pakistan, lying between the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, and the neighboring country of Afghanistan. The FATA comprise seven Agencies and six FRs...
.
In December 2009, Balochistan itself became a target as well, as the command of ISAF
ISAF
ISAF may refer to:* International Sailing Federation, the world governing body for Olympic and other competitive sailing.* International Security Assistance Force, the NATO-led security mission operating in Afghanistan since 2001....
operating in Afghanistan, announced that 30,000 soldiers – a third British, the rest mostly American – would be based across the border in Helmand. From there the US had to "target Taliban leaders in Balochistan" through a drone strike campaign.
See also
- Balochistan conflictBalochistan conflictThe Balochistan conflict is an ongoing conflict between Baloch nationalists and the Government of Pakistan over Balochistan, the country's largest province...
- Iraqi support of Baloch rebels
- Dad ShahDad ShahMir Dad Shah or Mir Daad Shah was a farmer who lived in Nillag village of Iranian Balochistan in the fifties. He hated Mohammad Reza Pahlavi an oppressive administration which made him to pick up arms against shah. Daad Shah's wife Bibi Hatun also fought with him against his enemies...
- Iran–Iraq War
- ParatarajasParatarajasThe Pāratarājas were a dynasty of Indo-Scythian kings who ruled in the Baluchistan region of Pakistan and Iran, from the 1st century to the 3rd century CE....
- The Coin Galleries: Pāratarājas