Pakistani Instrument of Surrender
Instrument of Surrender of Pakistan | |
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Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 |
The Pakistani Instrument of Surrender (
The ratification of the agreement by all sides also marked the end of the Bangladesh genocide, perpetrated by Pakistan during the conflict. Bangladesh and the Indian Armed Forces celebrate Pakistan's 1971 defeat and surrender on an annual basis, observing 16 December as Victory Day.
Surrender ceremony
The surrender ceremony took place at the Ramna Race Course in Dacca, East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), on 16 December 1971: A. A. K. Niazi of the Pakistan Army formally surrendered to Jagjit Singh Aurora, an Indian Army officer and joint commander of the Bangladesh Forces. A. K. Khandker, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Bangladesh Forces, represented the Provisional Government of Bangladesh at the ceremony.[7]
Also present from the Pakistani Eastern Command were Mohammad Shariff of the Pakistan Navy and Patrick Desmond Callaghan of the Pakistan Air Force, both of whom signed the agreement alongside Niazi.[citation needed] Sagat Singh, Commander of the Indian IV Corps; Hari Chand Dewan, Commander of the Indian Eastern Air Command; and J. F. R. Jacob, Chief of Staff of the Indian Eastern Command; all acted as witnesses on behalf of India.[citation needed]
Niazi accepted the surrender while the crowd on the race course promptly erupted in celebrations.[8]
Text of the instrument
The document is now public property under the governments of India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, and can be seen on display at the
INSTRUMENT OF SURRENDER
The PAKISTAN Eastern Command agree to surrender all PAKISTAN Armed Forces in BANGLA DESH to Lieutenant-General JAGJIT SINGH AURORA, General Officer Commanding in Chief of the Indian and BANGLA DESH forces in the Eastern Theatre. This surrender includes all PAKISTAN land, air and naval forces as also all para-military forces and civil armed forces. These forces will lay down their arms and surrender at the places where they are currently located to the nearest regular troops under the command of Lieutenant-General JAGJIT SINGH AURORA. The PAKISTAN Eastern Command shall come under the orders of Lieutenant-General JAGJIT SINGH AURORA as soon as this instrument has been signed. Disobedience of orders will be regarded as a breach of the surrender terms and will be dealt with in accordance with the accepted laws and usages of war. The decision of Lieutenant-General JAGJIT SINGH AURORA will be final, should any doubt arise as to the meaning or interpretation of the surrender terms. Lieutenant-General JAGJIT SINGH AURORA gives a solemn assurance that personnel who surrender shall be treated with dignity and respect that soldiers are entitled to in accordance with the provisions of the GENEVA Convention and guarantees the safety and well-being of all PAKISTAN military and para-military forces who surrender. Protection will be provided to foreign nationals, ethnic minorities and personnel of WEST PAKISTAN origin by the forces under the command of Lieutenant-General JAGJIT SINGH AURORA. | |
<signed> | <signed> |
(JAGJIT SINGH AURORA) |
(AMIR ABDULLAH KHAN NIAZI) |
Sources
- "Instrument of Surrender of Pakistani forces in Dacca", Hosted by Ministry of External Affairs, India
- "The Separation of East Pakistan"
References
- ^ a b "The Surrender Document". The New York Times. 17 December 1971. Archived from the original on 16 December 2021. Retrieved 19 June 2021.
- OCLC 234380949.
...continuing deadlock over the release of some 93,000 Pakistani prisoners of war, including 15,000 civilian men, women and children, captured in East Pakistan (the few hundred prisoners captured by each side on the Western front were exchanged on December 1, 1972).
- OL 30677644M. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
- ^ "Flashback: From behind the barbed wire". Dawn. 16 December 2012. Archived from the original on 16 December 2021. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
- ISBN 978-981-15-6537-3. Archivedfrom the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
More than 90,000...., the largest ever since World War 2.
- from the original on 26 January 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
It was the largest military surrender after the Second World War and the Indian armed forces, along with Mukti Bahini, liberated Bangladesh in a span of just 13 days and also the surrender of 93,000 Pakistani soldiers, the largest surrender of armed forces post Second World War.
- S2CID 246007433.
- Indian Express. Archived from the originalon 17 May 2014. Retrieved 17 May 2014.
- ^ "The Instrument of Surrender". Virtual Bangladesh. 2015. Archived from the original on 17 March 2018. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
- ^ "The Separation of East Pakistan". Story of Pakistan. 1 June 2003. Archived from the original on 2 October 2018. Retrieved 28 July 2020.