Most Repeated Pakistan Study MCQs in Exams
Major events of Pakistan movement history (1857-1947)
Pakistan’s political landscape has witnessed numerous
fluctuations since its independence in 1947, with power struggles between
civilian and military leaders shaping the country’s political dynamics. Only
three governments have completed their full terms.
Pakistan headed to the polls on July 25 for the second
democratic transition of power in seven decades. The South Asian nation has
been under military rule for about half of its history since independence in
1947. As we approach this historic election, let’s review some significant
events that have shaped Pakistan’s politics.
August 14, 1947 – Muslim
League leader Mohammad Ali Jinnah, known as Quaid-e-Azam (Father of the
Nation), is sworn in as the first governor-general of Pakistan after the
division of British India into two independent states – the Muslim-majority
Pakistan (comprising East and West wings) and Hindu-majority India. Liaquat Ali
Khan becomes the first prime minister.
October 16, 1951 – Liaquat
Ali Khan, who drafted the Objectives Resolution – a preamble to the current
constitution – is assassinated in Rawalpindi.
1951-1954 – Several
prime ministers are dismissed due to conflicts over drafting the constitution
and defining the role of various governing institutions.
March 23, 1956 – Military
strongman Iskander Mirza, who played a crucial role in the ousting of
Governor-General Sir Malik Ghulam, is sworn in as the first president and
approves Pakistan’s first constitution.
October 7, 1958 – Iskander
Mirza declares martial law.
October 27, 1958 – Army
Commander General Ayub Khan dismisses Mirza in the first successful coup of the
country.
January 2, 1965 – Ayub
Khan defeats Fatima Jinnah, sister of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, and is re-elected as
president in an election marred by allegations of political rigging by the
powerful military.
March 25, 1969 – Ayub
hands over power to Army Chief General Yahya Khan, who imposes martial law for
the second time and dissolves all assemblies after protests led by politician
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
December 7, 1970 – The
first general elections are held, resulting in the victory of East Pakistani
leader of the Awami League, which raises tensions with the country’s West wing.
March 26, 1971 – Tensions
between East Pakistan and West Pakistan over the election outcome lead to a
war, resulting in one of the heaviest setbacks for the Pakistan military.
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the founder of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), assumes
power as the country’s only civilian martial law administrator after Indian intervention
in Bangladesh leads to separation.
December 20, 1971 – Zulfikar
Ali Bhutto is elected president.
August 14, 1973 – The
new constitution comes into effect, transferring the power of decision-making
to the prime minister and rendering the president as a figurehead. Bhutto, who
formulated the constitutional change, becomes the prime minister, and Fazal
Ellahi is appointed president.
March 7, 1977 – General
elections see a victory for Bhutto’s party amid allegations of rigging.
July 5, 1977 – Bhutto
is deposed by then army chief General Ziaul Haq and arrested on charges of
authorizing the murder of a political opponent. Zia declares martial law.
April 4, 1979 – Bhutto
is hanged in Rawalpindi after a controversial trial on charges of corruption and
extrajudicial killings.
February 28, 1985 – General
elections were held on a non-party basis. Zia became president, while Muhammad
Khan Junejo was appointed prime minister. The new national assembly ratified
Zia’s actions over the last eight years.
August 17, 1988 – Zia
died, along with 31 others, including the US ambassador, in a plane crash.
November 16, 1988 – Benazir
Bhutto, daughter of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, won the elections, becoming the
country’s first female prime minister.
August 6, 1990 – President
Ghulam Ishaq Khan sacked Benazir’s government on charges of corruption.
October 24, 1990 – Nawaz
Sharif became prime minister after the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI), a
coalition of religious parties and the Pakistan Muslim League widely believed to
have been engineered by the military, won the elections.
April 19, 1993 – Ghulam
Ishaq Khan dismissed Sharif’s government on charges of corruption.
July 18, 1993 – Ghulam
Ishaq Khan and Sharif resigned.
October 6, 1993 – Benazir
was elected prime minister once again.
November 14, 1993 – Farooq
Leghari was elected president.
November 5, 1996 – Leghari
dismissed Benazir’s government on corruption charges.
February 3, 1997 – Sharif
became the prime minister for the second time after his party won a landslide
in general elections.
October 12, 1999 – Chief
of Army Staff General Pervez Musharraf staged a coup to topple the civilian
government of Sharif.
May 13, 2000 – Supreme
Court justices who took their oath under a Provisional Constitutional Order
validated the military coup in the country.
June 20, 2001 – General
Musharraf became president while holding the post of chief of army staff.
April 30, 2002 – Musharraf
held a referendum on staying on as president for another five years and won the
majority.
October 10, 2002 – General
elections were held under Musharraf’s military government. The Pakistan Muslim
League-Q won the most seats, and Zafarullah Khan Jamali was sworn in as prime
minister.
August 28, 2004 – Shaukat
Aziz, then the finance minister, replaced Jamali as prime minister.
October 18, 2007 – A
bomb blast targeted a PPP reception rally for Benazir as she returned to the
country for an election bid after an eight-year exile and a reconciliation deal
with Musharraf.
December 27, 2007 – Benazir
was assassinated in a gun and bomb attack after addressing a campaign rally in
Rawalpindi.
February 18, 2008 – Yousuf
Raza Gilani was elected prime minister as the PPP won general elections.
September 6, 2008 – Asif
Ali Zardari, the widower of Benazir Bhutto, was elected president.
April 8, 2010 – Zardari
handed over power to dissolve assemblies to the prime minister, shifting the
country from a semi-presidential system to a complete parliamentary system.
June 19, 2012 – Pakistan
Supreme Court disqualified Gilani from his post after finding him in contempt
of court.
June 22, 2012 – Raja
Parvez Ashraf of the PPP was sworn in as prime minister.
May 11, 2013 – General
elections were held, and Sharif became prime minister after his PML-N won the
polls.
July 28, 2017 – Sharif
resigned from office after the Supreme Court disqualified him in a corruption
case related to the ownership of luxury flats in London.
August 1, 2017 – Shahid
Khaqan Abbasi, a member of the PML-N, became the new prime minister.
May 24-27: The
Parliament of Pakistan and the Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP)
approved the twenty-fifth amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan, leading to
the merger of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas into the Province of
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
July 14, 2018 – Sharif
and his daughter Maryam Nawaz were arrested upon their return to Lahore from
London, where they were attending to Sharif’s ailing wife and mother, Kulsoom
Nawaz.
July 25, 2018 – Elections
were scheduled to be held in Pakistan.
February 26, 2019: Pakistan
officially rejected Indian claims of the Balakot airstrike.
February 27, 2019: The
Pakistan Air Force shot down two Indian warplanes in a skirmish and captured
Indian pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman.
March 2, 2019: Pakistan
released Abhinandan Varthaman and returned him to India in a simple ceremony
via the Wagah border.
August 5, 2019: India
revoked Article 370 of the constitution and divided the state of Jammu and
Kashmir.
December 14, 2019: Pakistan
was named the top holiday destination for travelers in the year 2020 by the
United States-based luxury and lifestyle publication Conde Nast Traveler.
