Ayub Khan Era (1958 – 1969) – Development, Dictatorship & Seeds of Dismemberment |

Political History of Pakistan (1958 – 1969): Era of Ayub Khan

General Muhammad Ayub Khan declared himself President on 27 October 1958, only twenty days after President Iskander Mirza had imposed Pakistan’s first nationwide martial law. Ayub swiftly exiled Mirza to London, ended all talk of power-sharing, and ushered in a decade that mixed headline-grabbing economic growth with deep political repression.

This article builds on the turmoil and experiments of Pakistan’s first eleven years. For complete context, read the earlier chapters:

• Liaquat Ali Khan Era (1947–1951)
• Political History of Pakistan 1951-55 – Instability Before the Martial Law
• Chaudhry Muhammad Ali (1954–1956) – First Constitution & One-Unit Scheme
• Political History of Pakistan 1956-1958 – Suhrawardy, Chundrigar & Feroz Khan Noon

1 | Prelude: How Ten Years of Instability Paved Ayub’s Path

Pakistan’s first decade was scarred by four revolving prime ministers, two dissolved assemblies and an unfinished constitution. The military-bureaucratic alliance that Ayub helped build as Commander-in-Chief quietly prepared the ground for a “strong-man solution.” When Mirza pulled the trigger in October 1958, Ayub was ready to step in—and push his patron aside.

2 | Early Consolidation: Martial Law & Presidential Power

Ayub banned political parties, censored the press and enacted two notorious laws—EBDO and PRODA—that disqualified or jailed over 7,000 politicians, including ex-premiers Feroz Khan Noon and H. S. Suhrawardy. He argued Pakistan “wasn’t mature enough” for Westminster democracy and instead introduced Basic Democracies: 80,000 local councillors who served as an electoral college for the presidency and legislatures.

3 | Economic “Decade of Development”

• US Alliance & Aid: Pakistan entered the American camp, receiving military hardware and economic grants that launched mega-projects like Tarbela and Mangla dams.
• Green Revolution: Ayub’s land reforms capped holdings at 500 irrigated or 1,000 unirrigated acres; tube-well subsidies and high-yield seeds boosted wheat output.
• Industrial Push: Agro-based sectors—sugar, fertilizer, cement, textiles—grew rapidly; Karachi Stock Exchange boomed; a new industrial elite emerged.

4 | Strategic Crises: U-2 Incident & Indus Waters Treaty (1960)

In May 1960 a U-2 spy-plane launched from Peshawar was shot down over the USSR, nearly provoking Soviet retaliation. Ayub’s Moscow visit cooled tensions. Four months later, Pakistan, India and the World Bank signed the Indus Waters Treaty, granting Indus–Jhelum–Chenab to Pakistan and Ravi–Beas–Sutlej to India—still hailed as a rare piece of South-Asian water diplomacy.

5 | New Capital & 1962 Constitution

Seeking distance from volatile Karachi (and closer proximity to GHQ), Ayub relocated the capital: first to Rawalpindi (1959) and then to purpose-built Islamabad (February 1960). In June 1962 he promulgated a new constitution, renaming the state Republic of Pakistan, installing a presidential system with a unicameral National Assembly, and retaining sweeping reserve powers. Fierce backlash forced him to restore the title Islamic Republic within months.

6 | Language & Regional Fault-Lines

The 1956 decision to make only Urdu the national language had already enraged Bengali speakers. Under Ayub, economic and tariff policies further alienated East Pakistan. Products from East paid duties in West Pakistan, while West’s goods entered Dhaka duty-free—fueling a “colony” narrative.

7 | War of 1965 – Triumph or Pyrrhic Victory?

Pakistan’s Operation Gibraltar in Kashmir spiralled into full-scale war on 6 September 1965. Pakistanis hailed their army’s battlefield performance, but U.S. arms were used in defiance of prior agreements, souring Washington. The Tashkent Declaration (10 Jan 1966)—brokered by the USSR—returned forces to pre-war lines. Foreign Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto branded it a “negotiated defeat,” igniting mass protests against Ayub.

8 | 1965 Presidential Election: Ayub vs Fatima Jinnah

In Pakistan’s first presidential poll (2 Jan 1965), the opposition drafted Fatima Jinnah. Despite huge crowds—especially in East Pakistan—Ayub prevailed via the Basic Democracies electoral college. State media and clerical fatwas vilified the “Mother of the Nation,” but her campaign exposed the regime’s democratic deficit.

9 | Rise of Bhutto & Urban Unrest

Bhutto resigned and founded the Pakistan People’s Party (1967). Students, labour unions and regional activists rallied against Ayub’s educational reforms, three-year degree plan and perceived pro-West tilt. Nationwide strikes shook the regime.

10 | Endgame & Transfer to Yahya Khan (1969)

By early 1969, protests spanned Karachi to Dhaka. On 25 March 1969 Ayub surrendered power to Army Chief General Yahya Khan, ending a ten-year, six-month rule. Ayub’s modernizing ambitions could not offset political repression and East–West inequities that soon culminated in the 1971 secession of East Pakistan.

11 | Legacy: Progress Tumbling into Partition

• Pros: Mega-infrastructure, Green Revolution, first long-term industrial policy.
• Cons: Democratic rollback, Basic Democracies sham, regional alienation, sowing seeds of 1971 dismemberment.

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💬 Share Your View: Did Ayub Khan’s economic leap outweigh his political repression, or did it pave the way for Pakistan’s greatest loss? Comments are open!