General Jehangir Karamat ( ; born 20 February 1941) is a retired military officer, diplomat, public intellectual, and a former professor of political science at the National Defense University. Prior to serving as a Chief of Army Staff, he also served as the 9th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee from 1997 to 1998.
After joining the Pakistan Army in 1958, he entered in the Pakistan Military Academy at Kakul, and passed out in 1961 to later serve in the combat in conflicts with India in 1965 and in 1971. In 1995, he came into national prominence after he notably exposed the attempted coup d'état against Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, and eventually appointed as an army chief and later Chairman joint chiefs. His tenure is regarded as his pivotal role in enhancing the democracy and the civilian control when he staunchly backed Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's authorisation of atomic-testing programme in 1998.
On 6 October 1998, Karamat was forcibly relieved from his four-star commands by Prime minister Nawaz Sharif over a disagreement on national security and reforms of the intelligence community. He is also one of very few army generals in the military history of Pakistan to have resigned over a disagreement with the civilian authorities.
After his resignation, he accepted the professorship at the Stanford University in California and appointed as to head Pakistan's diplomatic mission as an Ambassador but was later removed due to strong advocacy for democracy.
Karamat has been credited for foresight prediction of the dangers of unbalanced civil-military relations and the rise of foreign-supported homegrown terrorism in the country. Many of his recommendations on national security eventually became part of counterterrorism policy by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in 2013.
Early life and education Jehangir Karamat was born on 20 February 1941 in Karachi into a Pashtun Kakazai family who initially hailed from Sahiwal, Punjab.
His father, Ahmad Karamat, was an officer in the British Indian Civil Service who would later embarked his career as a bureaucrat in the Government of Pakistan in 1947.
After educating and graduating from the St. Patrick's High School in Karachi in 1958, Karamat joined the Pakistan Army when accepting at the Pakistan Military Academy (PMA) in Kakul in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
In 1961, Karamat was commissioned as a 2nd-Lt in the 13th Lancers of the Corps of Armoured.
In 1969, Capt. Karamat attended the Command and Staff College in Quetta where he was noted for his intellect and competence at any level of courses he took as required in the curriculum. In 1971, Capt. Karamat graduated and qualified as the psc.
After the third war with India in 1971, Major Karamat was one of the last military officers who were sent to the United States to study at the U.S. Army's Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas.
Upon his graduation from the U.S. Army's Command and General Staff College, Major Karamat was then attended the National Defence University where he graduated and gained the MSc in the International Relations in 1976–77.Constance Hale. "International Hallway Dedication Ceremony" U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, 14 September 2000 In 1976, Karamat completed his MSc in International Relations from there; and following his return, Karamat completed his master's programme at the National Defence University. In 1978–80, Major Karamat attained the MSc in War studies where his master's thesis argued and enlightened on the failure of performance of armed forces in third war with India 1971.
Military career
During the Indo-Pakistani wars
In 1963, Lt. Karamat was posted in his Armoured Corps to initially commanding a formation of main battle tanks. In 1965, Lt. Karamat commanded an infantry platoon during the second war with India in the Akhnur Sector in the Indian-administered Kashmir. Lt. Karamat's platoon was the first unit that had penetrated into the enemy territory, which encouraged backup military companies to move forward into the enemy territory. In war performance, the 13th Lancers had suffered death of fourteen soldiers, including three officers, while twenty eight were wounded. For this action, the 13th Lancers was awarded the battle honour, Dewa— Chumb and Jaurian of 1965, and was also awarded the title of The Spearhead Regiment. Although the 1965 war ended in a defeat for Pakistan, the regiment's performance was excellent.
He progressed well in the army, eventually promoted to captain in 1966; and elevated as major in 1971. In 1971, Major Karamat commanded the company of the Aromoured Corps on the Western Front of the third war with India, defending the territories of Punjab, Pakistan against the approaching Indian Army.
During this time, Maj. Karamat was the commanding officer in the 15th Lancers attached to the Baloch Regiment, along with the 13th Lancers that was fighting in the Shakargarh area of Sialkot Sector, which is now known as Battle of Barapind. The regiment was awarded battle honour of Bara Pind 1971.
Staff and war appointments
In 1979–80, Lt-Col. Karamat was posted as an instructor at the Armed Forces War College (afwc) of the National Defence University (NDU), instructing on courses War studies. In 1981–83, Col. Karamat was moved at the Air War College, and did not take participation in the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan during his teaching assignments beforing promoting as one-star rank army general in the Pakistan Army.
In 1983–88, Brig. Karamat was appointed officer commanding of the Pakistan Armed Forces–Middle East Command, consisting of the joint armed branches in the Saudi Arabia. Initially stationed to cover the area of responsibility of Tabuk and Khamis Mushait in Saudi Arabia, Brig. Karamat Pakistan Armed Forces–Arab Contingent during the height of the Iran–Iraq War, protecting the territorial sovereignty of the Saudi Arabia. In 1988, Brig. Karamat returned from his combat duty, promoting to the two-star rank assignment at the Army GHQ. From 1988 to 1991, Major-General Karamat served as the DGl of the Directorate-General of the Military Operations (DGMO), where he was credited with playing a crucial role in advancing the fighting capabilities of the Pakistan Army while he planned numerous military exercises for Pakistan Army, and reviewed the contingency operations in Kargil sector.
In 1991, Maj-Gen. Karamat was appointed as Director-General of the Pakistan Army Rangers in Sindh but this appointment was short-lived when he was promoted to the three-star rank in 1992.
In 1992, Lieutenant-General Karamat was appointed as field command of the II Strike Corps, stationed in Multan, which he commanded until 1994. In 1994, Lt-Gen. Karamat was eventually elevated as the Chief of General Staff (CGS) at the Army GHQ under then-chief of army staff General Abdul Waheed Kakar. From 1993 to 1996, Karamat continued to serve as honorary Colonel Commandant, and then Colonel-in-Chief—both ceremonial posts—of the Armoured Corps from 1996 to 1998.
In 1995, Lt-Gen. Karamat rose to public prominence when he had the Military Intelligence (MI) to infiltrate within the Pakistan Army to apprehend the rogue culprits for attempting a coup d'état. Acting under orders from the General Karamat, DG MI Major-General Ali Kuli Khan monitored the activities of Major-General Zaheerul Islam Abbasi who himself was posted at the Army GHQ. The MI tapped the conversations and tracked down the culprits behind the coup. Upon revelation, Lieutenant-General Karamat forwarded the case and facilitated the high-ranking joint JAG court hearings at the specified military courts, and convened many proceedings while the hearings were heard by the military judges led by a Vice-Admiral. His actions were widely perceived in the country, and for his efforts, General Karamat was conferred with national honours in public conventions and state gatherings.
Chief of Army Staff After approving the retirement papers of General Kakar, Lieutenant-General Karamat was appointed the Chief of Army Staff by Prime Minister Benazir who approved the paperwork for this appointment on 18 December 1995. As per Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto's approval, President Farooq Leghari confirmed the promotion of Lieutenant-General Karamat to the four-star rank and was appointed as the Chief of Army Staff when General Kakar was due to retire on 12 January 1996.
At the time of his promotion, he was the senior most general at that time, and therefore at promotion to four-star general, he superseded no one.Ihtashamul Haque. "Karamat named COAS" Daily Dawn, 12 December 1995 At the time of his promotion, there were four senior generals in the race to replace Kakar as Chief of Army Staff: Lieutenant-General Jehangir Karamat, chief of general staff (CGS); Lieutenant-General Nasir Akhtar, quartermaster general (QMG); Lieutenant-General Muhammad Tariq, inspector-general training and evaluation (IGT&E) at the GHQ; and Lieutenant-General Javed Ashraf Qazi, commander XXX Corps stationed in Gujranwala.Shuja Nawaz. Crossed Swords: Pakistan, Its Army, and the Wars Within (Oxford University Press, 2008) As Chief of Army Staff, General Karamat tried to work with the Prime minister and President at once, but soon came to understand that the misconducts of politicians and bureaucrats would eventually lead to the dismissal of Benazir Bhutto's final government.
General Karamat reached to then-Speaker of the National Assembly Yousaf Raza Gillani and "leaked" an intelligence information and tried convincing Benazir Bhutto and President Leghari to resolve their issues, and emphasised to focus on good governance. At one point, General Karamat wrote:
Chairman of Joint Chiefs
In 1997, Chairman joint chiefs Air Chief Marshal Farooq Feroze Khan was due retirement. On immediate basis, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif appeared in news channels to confirmed General Karamat as the new Chairman joint chiefs. The appointment was met no resistance in the military, and General Karamat appointed as Chairman joint chiefs; he supersedes no one.
General Karamat drove Pakistan Armed Forces to focus on more professional duties rather than playing politics. Karamat worked on integrating Pakistan's military on a common platform, and had his staff worked on inter-services coordination in the battlefield. Karamat strengthened the joint work coordination and joint logistics of the military at the war time situations, resolving many issues that would hamper the performances of the inter-services in the war or peacetime situations.
As an aftermath of India's nuclear tests in 1998, General Karamat acted as principal military adviser to the government, aiding the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on military platform. At the telephonic meeting with the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, President Bill Clinton offered lucrative aid to Pakistan for not testing its devices; Prime Minister Sharif's response was inconclusive. President Bill Clinton described the meeting with the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to Strobe Talbott: "You can almost hear the guy [Sharif] wringing his hands and sweating."
With requests made by Strobe Talbott CENTCOM commander, General Anthony Zinni and US Chairman Joint chiefs General Henry Shelton, met with General Karamat to withdraw the decision to conduct nuclear test. Zinni'e meeting with Karamat was described by Strobe Talbott as less contentious. General Karamat and General Zinni were able to draw "soldier–to–soldier" bond. General Karamat made it clear that the final decision would be carried out by the civilian government. At the NSC cabinet meeting, the Pakistani government, military, scientific, and civilian officials were participating in a debate, broadening, and complicating the decision-making process. Although, General Karamat debated towards presenting the national security and military point of view, the final decision was left on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's say.