S. M. Ahsan

Syed Mohammad Ahsan (21 November 1910 – 4 August 1989) was a Pakistani retired three-star rank naval officer who served as the fourth Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Navy from 1966 to 1969, the eighth Finance Minister of Pakistan in 1969, and eleventh Governor of East Pakistan from 1969 until 1971 when he was removed for refusing to support military action there. He later served as the fourth chairman of the Port Qasim Authority from 1978 to 1980.

Early life

Syed Mohammad Ahsan was born on 21 November 1920 in Hyderabad. His father, Mahomed Saif-ud-Din, was a former Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Public Works Department.

Ahsan appeared for the HMIS Dufferin Competitive Qualifying Examination in Bombay from October 29 to 31, 1935, and successfully qualified. He was subsequently invited for an interview and selection for admission in December 1935. Ahsan, along with his first cousin Muhammad Jalaluddin Sayeed, left their hometown in 1936 to board the Indian Mercantile Marine Training Ship HMIS Dufferin, which sailed from Bombay Harbour.

Personal life

Ahsan had three children with his wife Nighat.

Air Commodore Mian Ata Rabbani, who served alongside Ahsan and Gul Hassan Khan as aide-de-camps (ADC) to Pakistan's founder and Governor-General Muhammad Ali Jinnah, as the air force, naval, and army ADCs respectively, described Ahsan as "the most serious, serene, and sober." among the three. He noted that Ahsan was deeply fond of books and spent most of his free time reading with a cigar in his mouth. He rarely left the Governor-General House, preferring to spend even his designated rest days in his room or on the lawns, with a book always in hand.

Ahsan was fond of sailing and while serving as Commander-in-Chief, by chance discovered the area for what would become Port Qasim.

Service years

Royal Indian Navy and World War II Service

Ahsan joined the Royal Indian Navy as an executive cadet in 1936 and became a cadet in 1939. On 26 August 1939, he was abroad HMS Royal Soverign. He was commissioned as Midshipman on 1 April 1940.

On 19 December 1942, the 55th R.I.N.M.L. Flotilla, which was the first of its kind to be commissioned, sailed for Chittagong to undertake operations against Japanese forces and gave flank support to the 14th Indian Infantry Division. The flotilla's senior officer was Lieutenant Commander J. H. Heather of the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve, and Ahsan was among the commanding officers of its Motor Launches.

In January 1943, Lieutenant Ahsan led Motor Launches 440 and 441 up the Naaf River in search of a Japanese vessel and successfully destroyed the enemy ship. For his gallantry, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. By June 1943, he was on a Specialist Navigation Course.

Specialised in Signals, Ahsan was an instructor at the Combined Cadet Force in Liverpool, England.

Pakistan Navy

Following the Partition of British India on 14 August 1947, the Royal Pakistan Navy was formed on 15 August. Lieutenant Ahsan was appointed as the first naval aide-de-camp to Governor General Muhammad Ali Jinnah. After partition, Jinnah said to Ahsan, "Do you know, I never expected to see Pakistan in my lifetime. We have to be very grateful to God for what we have achieved." Notably, Jinnah relied on Ahsan and on his promotion to Lieutenant Commander and time to go back to sea, the parting was not easy.

Acting Lieutenant Commander SM Ahsan was appointed on PNS Tippu Sultan on 30 September 1949. In 1950, he was the aide-de-camp to Governor General Nazimuddin. Acting Commander Ahsan was appointed Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (Operations) on 1 January 1951 and on 28 September 1952.

In December 1952, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) requested that service headquarters gather and report the reactions of military personnel to the Basic Principles Committee report. In response, Naval Intelligence Commander S. M. Ahsan relayed that many within the Pakistan Armed Forces were concerned that giving religious scholars the authority to overrule elected representatives would give too much power to unelected hands and make the state appear theocratic. He also reported their concerns that limiting the head of state to being a Muslim could foster distrust among minority communities, emphasising that leadership should be chosen freely by the populace without religious restriction. Additionally, they favoured a single house be elected based on population rather than regional balance, warning that maintaining parity between East and West Pakistan could deepen divisions and ultimately threaten national unity. This prediction proved accurate with the secession of East Pakistan in 1971.

From 1 January 1952 to 12 June 1955, Ahsan served as Principal Staff Officer at the Naval Headquarters (NHQ). By 1955, he was the Naval Attaché to the Embassy of Pakistan, Washington, D.C.. On 5 July 1957, he became the first commanding officer of PNS Babur. He was appointed Chief of Staff of the Pakistan Navy on 1 March 1959.

Commodore Ahsan was appointed as the first Deputy Chief at the Military Planning Office of Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO), under Chief Major General JGN Wilton on 31 July 1960. Rear Admiral Ahsan succeeded Wilton as Chief on 29 June 1962. On 1 July 1964, Major General Hugh Anthony Prince succeeded Ahsan as Chief.

Subsequently, Rear Admiral Ahsan took over as the Chairman of the East Pakistan Inland Water Transport Authority from his predecessor Bakhteyar Husain. During the India–Pakistan war of 1965, over 100 Indian coastal vessels with valuable cargo were seized in East Pakistan on Ahsan's orders.

Commander-in-Chief (1966-1969)

Following the retirement of Admiral Afzal Rahman Khan in October 1966, President Ayub Khan appointed Rear Admiral S. M. Ahsan as the fourth Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Navy. From 1966 to 1968, he served as the Chairman of the Board of Governors of Cadet College Petaro.

Vice Admiral Ahsan conducted surveys of areas west of the city of Karachi and along the Balochistan coast to identify potential sites for a second Pakistani port. Fond of sailing, Ahsan discovered the area of Phitti Creek which is east of Karachi while cruising the Arabian Sea. Impressed with the natural depth of its main channel, Ahsan established a "Phitti Creek Cell" in the Naval Headquarters in 1968. The Pakistan Navy paid the British Hydraulics Research Station close to £1,000 (1968) (equivalent to £19,857.14 in 2024) to conduct a naval survey of the area.

On 25 March 1969, General Abdul Hamid Khan, Vice Admiral Ahsan, and Air Marshal Nur Khan, were appointed Deputy Chief Martial Law Administrators.

Governor of East Pakistan (1969-1971)

On 1 September 1969, Vice Admiral Ahsan was succeeded by Vice Admiral Muzaffar Hassan. That evening, Ahsan was sworn in as Governor of East Pakistan at the Durbar Hall of the Governor House with the oath administered by Justice Salahuddin, a judge of the Dhaka High Court.

Although Governor Abdul Monem Khan's administration (1962-1969) was unsuccessful in resolving the issue concerning whether the Dhaka Museum should continue to be part of Dhaka University or be converted to the level of a provincial government operated institution, Governor Ahsan took decisive action and established it as a provincial independent authority and promulgated the Dhaka Museum (Board of Trustees) Ordinance, 1970. This Ordinance established the Museum as a separate authority and satisfied those who did not want it to be a government museum.

According to journalist Humayun Akhtar, Governor Admiral Ahsan much like former Governor General Azam Khan, was "respected by all and sundry". Akhtar recalled that during the 1970 finals of the Aga Khan Gold Cup in Paltan Maidan when Admiral Ahsan walked onto the field for the prize-giving ceremony, the entire crowd gave him a standing ovation, an experience Akhtar described as "simply unbelievable."

1970 Bhola cyclone relief efforts

After the devastating November 1970 Bhola cyclone, Governor Ahsan took over relief operations on the islands of Bhola and Hatiya, and set up his headquarters in the disaster zone, Manpura Island, to personally oversee relief efforts.

American diplomat Archer Blood in his memoirs, The Cruel Birth of Bangladesh, wrote: "Ahsan was thought to be a well-informed and caring friend of the Bengalis, and his work in the aftermath of the cyclone was well known and greatly appreciated. In my opinion Governor Ahsan was the true hero of the disaster relief operation."

Opposition to Assembly Postponement and Military Action

During a meeting on 22 February 1971 with high-level officials including Governor Ahsan, President General Yahya Khan revealed that he would be postponing the National Assembly session scheduled for 3 March. One reason cited for this postponement was the Pakistan Peoples Party leader Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's refusal to attend the session. The session was intended to draft a new constitution and transfer power to elected representatives, specifically the Awami League led by Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, which won a majority in the 1970 general election. Admiral Ahsan strongly opposed the postponement of the session, warning that if that were to happen, it would create immediate unrest in East Pakistan. He argued that both law enforcement and the East Pakistan Rifles were mostly composed of Bengalis who were sympathetic to the Awami League, would not have the ability or the willingness to control the situation. He believed that once protests spilled into the streets, things would spiral out of control and pose a risk to the state's unity.

The next morning, Admiral Ahsan called General Rao Farman Ali for a meeting. Ali wrote: "General Yakub Khan [Martial Law Administrator of East Pakistan] was sitting there with Admiral Ahsan. It looked as if they had not slept the whole night. They told me that the National Assembly session had been postponed. I told them that this would now lead to major agitation, and that army action was bound to follow. Both his seniors agreed with him.

Admiral Ahsan then decided to write an urgent handwritten note to the President, warning him that this action would eventually lead to the Indians becoming directly involved in East Pakistan. Upon receiving the note, Yahya Khan immediately summoned Ahsan. The President informed Ahsan that he agreed with the views expressed in his note. Yahya Khan then told Ahsan to meet with Bhutto and try to convince him to turn up at Dacca."

On 28 February, Ahsan called Sheikh Mujibur Rehman and his close advisers to his residence to inform them that President Yahya Khan was going to announce the postponement of the assembly session. According to Rao Farman Ali, who was present, "The Governor, General Yakub and I represented the government side and Mujib brought along Tajuddin Ahmed and Kamal Hossain. Tajuddin told us that he knew about the postponement in advance. According to him, the West Pakistanis would never let us come into government. So we will have to find ourselves another way to get power." Mujib, visibly shaken, pleaded for calm, telling his colleagues to "Speak with a cool head." It was a very sad meeting resembling a funeral. Mujib later sent his companions outside and then told us, "For God's sake get me a new date for the Assembly meeting. Even now I can control some of my people." Mujib was begging for a new date for the meeting. If one applied Bhutto's test [the one he had suggested to Yahya Khan as a test for Mujib's intentions] then Mujib proved to be a patriot otherwise [as the troops from West Pakistan had yet to arrive at this stage] there was nothing to stop him from announcing the creation of Bangladesh."

Ahsan sent an urgent telex to President Yahya Khan, saying: "I beg you even at this late hour to give a new date for the summoning of the Assembly and not to postpone it sine die, otherwise … we will have reached the point of no return." Within half an hour, Admiral Ahsan received his reply, he had been sacked from his position as Governor of East Pakistan.

Dismissal

On 1 March 1971, thousands of Bengalis protested by surrounding the Governor's residence and chanted "Admiral Ahsan Na Javey" (Admiral Ahsan, do not leave) which forced Ahsan to be evacuated via helicopter. That day, President Yahya Khan had publicly announced his decision to postpone the National Assembly session. According to The New York Times correspondent Sydney Schanberg, who was in Dacca, "scores were killed by West Pakistani troops stationed here" during demonstrations against the decision.

The media aired reports that Ahsan refused to open fire on citizens if they were to go on strike and was replaced with General Sahibzada Yaqub Khan, who resigned when his advice of a political settlement instead of a military solution were ignored. Similarly, Air Commodore Zafar Masud had also resigned when President Yahya Khan refused his advice to go for a political solution.

Later life

In 1972, Ahsan welcomed the formation of the War Enquiry Commission which was chaired by Chief Justice Hamoodur Rahman and testified in front of the commission. He described the hostile mood of the military leadership when they decided to postpone the assembly session and launch a military operation in the eastern province. Ahsan stated:

"On arrival in Rawalpindi, I was alarmed to notice the high tide of militarism flowing turbulently.... There was open talk of a military solution according to plan. I was caught quite unaware in this atmosphere for I know of no military solution which could possibly solve whatever crisis was supposed to be impending in the minds of the authorities. It was evident from the statement that the decision to launch a military operation was taken without consulting the Governor of East Pakistan who was the only sane voice in the government. The President presided over the meeting of the governors and martial law administrators attended as usual by the military and the civilian officers of the intelligence community. It is relevant to record that among the tribe of governors and MLAs, I was the only non-army governor and the only active naval officer in the midst of active service men. I was the only person, though a non-Bengali, who had to represent the sentiments of seventy million Bengalis to a Pakistani government. During the past 17 months, in meetings and conferences, my brief ran counter to the cut-and-dried solutions of Pakistan representatives and civil servants. The president invariably gave decisions which accommodated East Pakistan's viewpoint, at least partially. This made me unpopular with my colleagues who probably thought I was "difficult at best" and "sold" to the Bengalis at worst."

Retd Vice Admiral S. M. Ahsan was appointed Chairman of the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation on 22 April 1974. On 29 February 1976, he opened the first post-graduate course in computer science organised by the Institute of Marine Engineers at PNS Karsaz.

In July 1977, the Council of the Chartered Institute of Transport approved the setting up of its Pakistan Centre. According to its Journal: "Admiral S. M. Ahsan, whose tireless and dedicated efforts brought on a single platform a group of prominent men from various fields of transport and thus laid the foundation of the Pakistan Centre." On 27 June 1978, he succeeded Commodore I. H. Malik as the fourth Chairman of the Port Qasim Authority.

Ahsan wrote the foreword of the 1988 book, Navigation in port Qasim: A professional treatise, authored by retired Commander Syed Mazhar Husain.

Death

Syed Mohammad Ahsan died on 4 August 1989 in Karachi at the age of 68 and his funeral was held the next day.

Legacy and Commemorations

On the day of his death, Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto arrived at Port Qasim to inaugurate the Ahsan Channel, the port’s primary navigational route. During her speech, she said: "I am sorry to learn that Admiral Ahsan passed away on the eve of my arrival in Port Qasim. I believe he had gone on a sailing trip when he had sighted this area of Port Qasim. He had met with the then Prime Minister and explained to him that he knew and had seen this place and, according to Admiral Ahsan the then Prime Minister said within five minutes of hearing him: "Admiral Ahsan! You have the second port that the country is looking for".

The Pakistan & Gulf Economist, reporting on his death, wrote: "Admiral Ahsan was known as one of the noblest soldier-gentleman who devoted his later part of his life in human service. He was a Trustee of Layton-Rehamatullah Benevolent Trust (LRBT) which was running charitable hospitals and dispensaries in Karachi and other parts of Sindh. He used to visit remote places like Tando Bagho to see the charitable health services being rendered by the Trust. Doctors serving LRBT held him in highest esteem for his concern for ailing and suffering humanity. In his death Pakistan has lost a noble crusader engaged in healing the wounds of the poor and suffering fellow country-men. May God in His infinite Mercy bless his soul."

Dates of Rank

Awards and decorations

• Sitara-e-Quaid-e-Azam (1958)
• Legion of Merit (1958)
• Sitara-e-Pakistan (1966)
• Medalha de Mérito Militar (Class 2)

Legion of Merit Citation

US Secretary of Defence Neil H. McElroy read out the citation at a ceremony in Karachi attended on 26 August 1958 attended by Commander-in-Chief, Rear Admiral HMS Choudri:

CITATION CAPT SYED MOHAMMAD AHSAN (PN/7)“The Legion of Merit (degree of officer) has been awarded to Capt. Syed Mohammad Ahsan, Pakistan Navy for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services as Naval Attache to the Embassy of Pakistan in the United States from August, 1955, to July, 1956. Throughout this period, Capt. Ahsan discharged his responsibility with excellent judgment and diplomacy and co-operated wholeheartedly with the Department of the Navy on all occasions. Displaying a sincere friendship toward the United States and a thorough understanding of current international problems, he contributed materially to the strengthening of the bonds of amity existing between the navies of Pakistan and the United States.”

Notes