Muhammad Ayub Khan

Field Marshal Muhammad Ayub Khan
محمد ایوب خان
Khan in West Germany in 1961
2nd President of Pakistan
In office 27 October 1958 – 25 March 1969
Preceded by	Iskandar Ali Mirza
Succeeded by	Yahya Khan
4th Minister of Defense
In office 28 October 1958 – 21 October 1966
Preceded by	Muhammad Ayub Khuhro
Succeeded by	Afzal Rahman Khan
In office 24 October 1954 – 11 August 1955
Prime Minister	Mohammad Ali Bogra
Deputy	Akhter Husain (Defence Secretary)
Preceded by	Mohammad Ali Bogra
Succeeded by	Chaudhry Muhammad Ali
Minister of Interior
In office 23 March 1965 – 17 August 1965
Deputy	Interior Secretary
Preceded by	K. H. Khan
Succeeded by	Ali Akbar Khan
3rd Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Army
In office 23 January 1951[1] – 26 October 1958
President	Iskander Mirza
Governors General	Khawaja Nazimuddin Ghulam Muhammad Iskander Mirza Office abolished; succeeded by President
Prime Minister	Liaquat Ali Khan Khawaja Nazimuddin Mohammad Ali Bogra Muhammad Ali H. S. Suhrawardy I. I. Chundrigar Feroz Khan Noon
Deputy	Chief of General Staff See list Maj-Gen. Yusuf Khan (1951–53) Maj-Gen. M. H. Din (1953–55) Maj-Gen. Sher Khan (1955–57) Maj-Gen. Yahya Khan (1957–58)
Preceded by	Sir Douglas Gracey
Succeeded by	Musa Khan
Chief Martial Law Administrator
In office 7 October 1958 – 27 October 1958
President	Iskander Mirza
Preceded by	Feroz Khan Noon
Succeeded by	Nurul Amin (1971)
Personal details
Born	(1907-05-14)14 May 1907 Rehana, North-West Frontier Province, British India
Died	19 April 1974(1974-04-19) (aged 66) Islamabad, Pakistan
Resting place	Rehana, Haripur, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Nationality	British Indian (1907–1947) Pakistani (1947–1974)
Political party	Convention Muslim League (before 1974)
Other political affiliations	Pakistan Muslim League (1962)
Spouse	Begum Ayub Khan[2]
Children	2, including Gohar Ayub Khan, Grandchildren: Omar Ayub Khan, Arshad Ayub Khan
Cabinet	Ministry of Talents
Military service
Allegiance	British India (1928–47) Pakistan (1947–58)
Branch/service	British Indian Army Pakistan Army
Years of service	1928–1958[a]
Rank	Field Marshal[b]
Unit	15th Punjab Regiment
Commands	Adjutant-General, GHQ GOC, 14th Infantry Division, Dacca
Battles/wars	Wars as a Soldier:- Waziristan campaign Second World War Pacific War Burma campaign Wars after Becoming Martial administrator:- Bajaur Campaign Ran of Kutch Conflict Indo-Pakistani war of 1965

This article is part of a series about Muhammad Ayub Khan
Early life Military career 1958 military coup d'état Death Political views Militarism Secularism Elections Referendum 1965 President of Pakistan 1962 Constitution Economic reforms Bajaur Campaign 1965 Indo-Pakistani War Tashkent Declaration Afghan Confederation plan 1969 East Pakistan uprising Political Affiliations Armed Forces Convention Muslim League Gallery: Picture, Sound, Video
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Muhammad Ayub Khan^[c] (14 May 1907 – 19 April 1974), widely known as Ayub Khan was a Pakistani army officer who served as the second president of Pakistan from 1958 to 1969. He previously served as the third Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Army from 1951 to 1958.

Born in the North-West Frontier Province, Khan was educated from the Aligarh Muslim University and trained at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. He fought in the Second World War on the British side against the Imperial Japanese Army. After the partition of India in August 1947, he joined the Pakistan Army and was posted in East Bengal. In 1951, he became the first native commander-in-chief, succeeding General Sir Douglas Gracey. From 1953 to 1958, he served in the civilian government as Defence and Home Minister and supported president Iskandar Ali Mirza's decision to impose martial law against prime minister Feroze Khan's administration on 7 October 1958. Two weeks later, after a breakdown in civil–military relations, Khan seized presidency in a military coup, the first in the country's history.

As president, Khan controversially appointed Gen. Muhammad Musa to replace him as commander-in-chief, superseding decorated senior officers such as Gen. Adam Khan, Gen. Sher Ali Khan Pataudi and Gen. Latif Khan.^[4][5] He aligned Pakistan with the United States, and allowed American access to air bases inside Pakistan, most notably the airbase outside of Peshawar, from which spy missions over the Soviet Union were launched. Relations with neighboring China were strengthened but his alignment with the US worsened relations with the Soviet Union in 1962. He launched Operation Gibraltar against India in 1965, leading to an all-out war. It resulted in a stalemate and peace was restored via the Tashkent Declaration. Domestically, Ayub subscribed to the laissez-faire policy of Western-aligned nations at the time. Khan privatised state-owned industries, and liberalised the economy generally. Large inflows of foreign aid and investment led to the fastest-growing economy in South Asia. His tenure was also distinguished by the completion of hydroelectric stations, dams, and reservoirs. Under Ayub, Pakistan's space program was established, and the country launched its first uncrewed space-mission by 1962. However, the failure of land reforms and a weak taxation system meant that most of this growth landed in the hands of the elite. In 1965, Khan entered the presidential race as the Convention Muslim League's candidate to counter the opposition candidate Fatima Jinnah. Ayub won the elections and was re-elected for a second term. In 1967, disapproval of price hikes of food prompted demonstrations across the country led by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Following protests in East Pakistan, Ayub resigned in March 1969 and appointed Yahya Khan. Later, fighting a brief illness, he died in 1974.

Khan remains the country's longest-serving president and second-longest serving head of state. His legacy remains mixed; his era is often dubbed the "Decade of Development". Khan is credited with economic prosperity and industrialisation. He is denounced by critics for beginning the first of the intelligence agencies' incursions into national politics, for concentrating wealth in a corrupt few hands, and for geographically discriminatory policies that later led to the Bangladesh Liberation War.

On 13 May 2024 the Minister of Defence (Pakistan) Khawaja Asif delivered a speech on the floor of the National Assembly of Pakistan in which Minister Asif stated that Ayub was the first dictator who violated the Constitution of Pakistan and overthrew a democratically elected government, hence, Minister Asif labeled Ayub as the root cause of all confusion and chaos which ensue.^[6] Minister Asif supported the demand(s) for Article 6 proceedings against violators of the Constitution of Pakistan.^[7] Consequently, Minister Asif called for the corpse of dictator Ayub to be dug out of his grave and be hung for the offence of high treason in accordance with Article 6 of the Constitution of Pakistan.^[8][9]

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