Page 3 - Rawalpindi The News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

(L) A news item reporting hundreds of Indian tanks slashed deep into Pakistan in a bid to sever the vital communication artery linking Lahore and the capital, Rawalpindi (The Australian, September 13, 1965). It was the East Bengal Regiment that saved Lahore from being over-run by Indian troops. The years 1968-1969, were a tumultuous period in the political history of the state of Pakistan. My father a Bengali civil servant from East Pakistan, was an official in the then central government in Islamabad. I was a schoolboy in the 10th grade. In February, 1968, President Ayub Khan suffered a near fatal heart attack in Rawalpindi. I distinctly remember that there was this 48 hours of gripping silence in Islamabad, especially at the government level. There was a complete blackout of news on the fate of Ayub. Nobody knew who exactly was running the country. There was widespread speculation that the self-styled Field Marshal had actually died. Meanwhile, as death danced at Ayub s door, the

Jammu and kashmirUnited statesToshkent shahriUnited kingdomAyub khanNorth west frontierEast pakistanLal bahadur shastriJoi bangabandhuMitro bahiniYahya khanRalph ellisonAlbert memmiMohiuddin ayubJoi banglaWaqara khanapril