Left in Pakistan...a debate to understand pitfalls

Left’s role in Pakistan

With agricultural reforms, nationalisation and socialist programme of the PPP, religious right was mobilised against secularism

http://dailytimes.com.pk/opinion/31-May-16/lefts-role-in-pakistan

I penned my Remarks in Red. A Riaz

After partition of the subcontinent, the Communist Party of India (CPI) sent some of its Muslim members led by Marxist intellectual, Sajjad Zaheer, to Pakistan with a view to fostering ties with labour leaders, student union leaders and leftist politicians to pave the way for communist revolution in Pakistan. Zaheer formed the Communist Party of Pakistan (CPP) in 1948, and made contacts with labour and peasants’ leaders and trade unionists.

The party was there and Lhor was centre of activity along with Rawalpindi. Karachi was developed among left areas later. As par 1951 census Karachi was a small city as compare to Lhore so was the politics.

 He also created the Democratic Students Federation (DSF), which was the party’s student wing. However, it was not proclaimed as a wing of the CPP. 

DSF was a wing of the party and was formed in Rwalpindi and Lhor and later in Karachi. A pre-partition communist leader Prof Khwaja masood confirmed it in his Interview to Awami Jumhori Forum no 5.

Some of the members joined political parties like the Azad Pakistan Party launched by Mian Iftikhar-ud-din, National Awami Party and the Pakistan People’s Party. 

In this line writer has covered 20 years period as Azad Pakistan Party was formed before the ban on CPP (1954) and its year of birth was 1950. NAP was formed in 1957 while PPP was formed in 1967. Progressive elements were in those parties yet there were other left formations too. For further details about early days of left politics in Pakistan you can read interviews of C R Aslam, Eric Raheem, Tufail Abbas, at www.ajfpk.org

Though the CPP was active in organising industrial workers and peasants for a communist uprising, it tried to expedite revolutionary process in Pakistan by unwittingly getting involved in a military coup by Major-General Akbar Khan.

There is a debate on the genesis of R C case. On the one hand it was an attempt to attract US by the Pakistani authorities who wanted to join US camp while at domestic front Liaqat Ayub nexus used it against their enemies in army and politics. 
After taking some officers from military and the police in confidence, Khan had approached his friends in the CPP to benefit from influence the party had over progressive/leftist student groups, labour unions and the intelligentsia. 
As par Khwaja Masood Party had already refused the plan of M G akbar khan. Some authors like civil servant Hassan Zaheer tried to give the events a twist by linking it with 3.5 year old Kashmir issue but it looks like an after thought. Editor dawn Ahmad Ali Khan too followed Hassan Zaheer but timing of exposing the conspiracy just one day before the first provincial election in the Punjab is enough to understand the game plan. 
Another purpose was to seek their help in post-coup period for running the country. However, in 1951, some officers divulged the secret plan, and thus the coup was aborted. 
If writer gave some concrete example and penned names in the article then he could make a point. 
Many CPP members included Zaheer were arrested and the party was banned. Zaheer and those who had come along with him from India were deported back to India.
Was there any one else other than Sajjad Zaheer who went back to India ? Writer used lofty claims which looks strange.
 In 1954, the DSF was also banned, which was later rechristened as National Students Federation (NSF).
before the ban of CPP, the party had formed All Pakistan Student Organization (APSO) in 1953 and DSF was merged in it along with various left student groups. So DSF was not banned. As apr interview of Hussain Naqi (Published in Punjab University special issue of its mgazine Mahvar at 100th birthday ) NSF was formed by government yet in later years left students had captured it in West Pakistan only.
Hassan Nasir, a scion of aristocratic family but ardent believer in communism came back to Pakistan.
He came to Pakistan in 1948 or 49 and in the interview of Eric raheem ( who was in karachi since Jan 1948) one can read details about him 
He was arrested and tortured to death on 13th November 1960. In 1960s, there was an ideological rift between the Soviet Union and China.

In Pakistan, CPP members Zain-ud-din Lodhi, Tufail Abbas and Rashid Hassan Khan were in pro-China group, whereas Dr Aizaz Nazir, Syed Jamal-ud-din Naqvi and others were in pro-Soviet Union group.

CPP was banned in 1954 and after that in 1955 prisoners of P C Case released but what was the situation of CPP is a secret. In early 1960s we witnessed formation of different groups. Tufail abbas had a separate group while Imam ali Nazish had different group. pro Moscow and pro China groups came into existence after 1966 . there were many variations in it. C R aslam was initially in pro-china group but later he shifted in pro-moscow group. Tufail abbas was in pro-china group but later on he developed his support with Albanian communists. So in late 1960s there were numerous pro chinse and pro moscow groups

CPP’s pro-Soviet members joined the then NAP, whereas pro-China members either joined NAP-Bhashani or Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto’s PPP. 

NAP was formed in 1957 and Pro-china and Pro-Moscow divergent came in 1966. Professor group. as well as groups formed by Major ishaq, C R Aslam and Tufail Abbas were pro-china but C R Alam never supported PPP but NAP Bhashani. 

Unfortunately, party leaders could not make a mark in Pakistan’s politics, because of their flawed strategy, and state repression. Some activists during their discourse with labourers were critical of religion with the result many workers considered them working against their faith. Communists more often than not looked for some ‘prince’ or a politician with charisma, and sent its cadres to different political parties.

Making greater alliances was part of communist politics all over the world. Lenin and Mao both made alliances and Chinese communists had known love affair with comentange. Indian communists worked in Congress and Muslim League too. In that tradition many left groups supported PPP before 1970 elections. Progressive people were supporting NAP (Waali), NAP (Bhashani) and PPP at that time. 

 In 1968, the Ayub government was celebrating a decade of reforms with much fanfare while there were countrywide protests going on against sugar price hike.
protests were against wheat and flour. Jalib's famous ......20 rupayee mann atta hai....es pay bhi sannatta hai  

At the same time, there was a spontaneous students’ movement, and in November 1968, police opened fire on National Students Federation’s rally in Rawalpindi, killing three protesters. Bhutto’s PPP and the NAP had also participated in the movement of radical trade and labour unions. 

Pro-moscow left started love affair with Ayub after Tashgand agreement which proved fatal for them in late 1960s politics

Seeing public unrest, Ayub decided to call it a day, and instead of handing over power to the Speaker of national assembly, he asked army chief Yahya Khan to take charge.

Ayub was not ready to leave but it was Yahya who pulled him back. In recent years Kyani did same with Musharaff. From late 1968 Ayub was practically in house arrest till 25 March 1969 when Yahya formally removed him. Wali e Swat mentioned Ayub's house arrest in his book smartly.

Yahya Khan promulgated martial law in the country. Fast forward a bit, 1970 elections were held and the Awami League came out victorious as a single majority party, but power was not transferred to the Awami League. There was anarchy and civil war in the then East Pakistan, and the country disintegrated. However, the causes of disintegration and details of those events are beyond the scope of this article.

The PPP being the majority party in West Pakistan formed the government. Working classes had supported the PPP because of its programme and slogan of “roti, kapra and makaan” (bread, clothing and housing). With nationalisation of industries, banks, insurance companies and even ginning factories, industrialists and business class had turned against Bhutto. In 1972, there was unrest among factory workers especially in Sindh Industrial Trading Estates, firstly due to the reaction of workers who had been ruthlessly exploited during the Ayub era. Secondly, some textile factories had laid off their workers and closed down their factories as they were not allowed to continue thakedari (contractual) system whereby workers were employees of the person who gave them the job. The PPP government had formed a committee comprising the then minister of state for public affairs, Mairaj Muhammad Khan, and provincial labour minister, Abdul Sattar Gabol to pacify the workers.

This scribe was head of the negotiating team in the SITE, and after negotiations with factory owners thousands of workers were reinstated, and many got their dues like gratuity, which was not paid by employers while sacking of workers. After nationalisation, workers got a fair deal but many nationalised industries collapsed, as those were run mostly by bureaucracy’s section officers who had no experience in industry and commerce.

Riots in 1972 and demands of left groups who supported PPP in elections needs rethinking. it was the first people's government yet left groups were in hurry. Miraj was a leader of Tufail Abbas Communist group yet he left them and got a ticket from PPP. From mukhtar rana till Miraj and from all the three left groups who supported Bhutto till socialists within PPP, we need to analysis their positions separately . There were conflicting demands from various left groups from Karachi to Lhore and on top of it Bhutto was busy in negotiations regarding constitution and Pakistani prisoners in India. Timing of those strikes remained questionable.  nationalization was neither an economic decision nor ideological but it had basis in post 1971 political scenario where state was in constant fear of further disintegration and wanted to overcome post 16-December defeat. 

Bhutto organised the Islamic summit, and the US and the West were unhappy with him because of his desire to develop nuclear arsenal. The US allegedly had vowed to make a horrible example out of him. With agricultural reforms, nationalisation and socialist programme of the PPP, religious right was mobilised against secularism. 

Who was who against Bhutto government since 1972 till 5th July 1977 is no secret. was NAP religious right? From Miraj Mihammad Khan, Mukhtar rana till various left groups including Professor group, Imam Ali Nazish and his CPP faction, Qummi mahaz e Azadi etc had conflicts against Bhutto and someof them even participated in PNA too. Khan Abdul Qyum Khan was from religious right but he remained with ZAB till 1977. If some important figures of religious right alone oppose ZAB then they could not mobilize people. NAP leaders were engaged with Afghanistan and Iraq and as par Confessions of a Pukhtoon Revolutionary NAP wali group and Nazish's CPP were involved in subversive activities too. Commitment with democratic question was largely ignored by the left during ZAB times.

After charges of rigging on 35 National Assembly seats, Pakistan National Alliance launched a nationwide movement, which culminated in promulgation of martial law by General Zia-ul-Haq in 1977.

i think PNA had claim of ringing on 26 seats

After Bhutto was hanged in 1979, his wife Nusrat Bhutto and daughter Benazir Bhutto were in a state of shock for some time. However in 1980, Mrs Bhutto started holding meetings with leaders of left-oriented parties — the Awami National Party,
At that time ANP was not formed 
Qaumi Mahaz-e-Azadi (QMA) of Mairaj Muhammad Khan and Mazdoor Kissan Party. A few centre-right parties — Pakistan Muslim League (Khwaja Khair-ud-din group and Malik Qasim group), Pakistan Democratic Party and Tehrik-e-Istaqlal also joined the party. An alliance, Movement for Restoration of Democracy (MRD), was formed in February 1981. Chairman QMA had nominated this scribe to head the delegation at 90 Clifton comprising him, Iqbal Haider, Taj Haider and others, because Mairaj held her in very high esteem and did not like to disagree with her over Tehrik-e-Istaqlal joining the MRD. Nevertheless, struggle between the haves and haves-not would continue.

The writer is a freelance columnist. He can be reached at mjamil1938@hotmail.com
further reading
An Article about AWP London meeting