Unfortunate events like the murders of Nawab Mohammad Ahmad Kasuri and Hayat Mohammad Khan Sherpao, the Indian nuclear blast, and a changing world scenario besieged Z.A. Bhutto in a host of problems that he had to tackle from the beginning of 1975. Most of the issues did not appear all of a sudden, but gathered over time.
The turbulence in party ranks began in early 1973 when Bhutto’s close associate and confidant, Ghulam Mustafa Khar, the then governor of Punjab, started behaving in a way that Bhutto didn’t like. It is said that Khar was trying to become an independent administrator. He made many crucial decisions without Bhutto’s previous approval or even his knowledge, which Bhutto disliked. In February he was replaced by Hanif Ramay, a writer, intellectual, painter-turned politician.
After the adoption of the 1973 Constitution when Bhutto became the prime minister, Khar was given the portfolio of chief minister. As the chief minister of the country’s largest province Khar was conveyed the message to behave but perhaps, misled by his unqualified popularity, he began calling himself Sher-i-Punjab (Lion of Punjab) and even criticised Bhutto. He also took more serious decisions than he had as governor, which created groups within the Peoples Party in Punjab, the then largest party of the country. Bhutto had his own ears and eyes which kept him aware of the affairs being handled at various stages, especially at the higher ranks. Khar also knew Bhutto’s workings.
However, Bhutto did not react directly, perhaps to allay the impression that he was acting against Khar on his personal information. Instead he used to send messages to Khar through various means. Following a brief battle of wills Khar left Bhutto and his party on March 15, 1974, after the Islamic Summit, making room for Hanif Ramay to take over as Punjab’s chief executive.
The country’s overall situation, marred by killings and lawlessness, soon convinced Bhutto to bring Khar into the fold as governor once again while retaining Ramay as chief minister. This time Khar should have been more cautious because of the political developments. But from the date of his re-entry on March 14, 1975, Khar acted in a more reckless style, especially creating problems for the soft-spoken chief minister Hanif Ramay and damaging the provincial administration. Thus, after only a brief association Bhutto dismissed him on July 13 the same year.
The removal of Khar as governor Punjab created many speculations about a change in the party structure but it was nothing radical. With Khar’s removal, two new men, Nawab Sadiq Hussain Qureshi and Mohammad Abbas Abbasi, were brought in as chief minister and governor respectively. With the change in the upper hierarchy of Punjab, Bhutto became a little more settled as he wanted a docile government in the country’s largest province, which had become unthinkable in the days of Khar as governor or chief minister.
Sadiq Hussain Qureshi, hailing from Punjab’s feudal class, was not really a suitable choice for this position. He did not have any interest in administration nor would he indulge in these matters. He had a reputation of keeping away from the people and disliked attending the assembly. He brought in a few officers of his choice who would brief him on all issues and he would act on their advice. Even the ministers found it difficult to meet him. His only concern was to enjoy himself. This made the administration weak and prone to irregularities.
The case of the new governor, Mohammad Abbas Abbasi, the former ruler of Bahawalpur State, was also not too different and the duo’s presence did not improve the political conditions or general atmosphere. While Khar handled every situation according to his political upbringing, Sadiq Hussain Qureshi and Mohammad Abbas Abbasi were too lenient which encouraged the centre’s interference more frequently, which was not appreciated by the Punjab bureaucracy.
Many PPP workers and leaders became embittered due to Bhutto’s policies, especially the approach of handling every political situation in his own way. During the PNA movement in 1977, Khar bitterly criticised Bhutto for his ‘ill-timed’ policies. Many years later when the PPP again came to power, a dejected Khar joined the Pakistan Muslim League’s Pir Pagara faction in 2012.
No doubt Bhutto and his Peoples Party came to power mostly through the Punjab vote in the 1970 elections, but his tenure in office for five years distorted his image, that too generally because of Punjab’s opposition.