Earlier Islamabad was not the capital of Pakistan, do you know?

Do you know? After separation from India in 1947, Pakistan made Karachi its capital but on 1 August 1960, the capital of Pakistan was changed from Karachi to Islamabad. Although Islamabad officially became the capital of Pakistan on 14 August 1967. The capital of Pakistan was earlier Karachi. Very few people know this.

Mon, 31 Jul 2023 04:22 PM (IST)
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Earlier Islamabad was not the capital of Pakistan, do you know?

Do you know? After separation from India in 1947, Pakistan made Karachi its capital, but on 1 August 1960, the capital of Pakistan was changed from Karachi to Islamabad. However, Islamabad officially became the capital of Pakistan on 14 August 1967.
The capital of Pakistan was earlier Karachi. Very few people know this. Even those who know, they do not know the reasons behind it. It is said that one of the motives behind shifting the capital to Islamabad was to get Kashmir from India. Islamabad was the right city for the army.
Karachi was chosen by Muhammad Ali Jinnah as the capital of Pakistan. Jinnah was very attached to Karachi because after the partition of India-Pakistan, a large number of Muslims from UP, and Bihar came and settled in Karachi. These people came to be known as Muhajirs in Pakistan.
Mohammad Ali Jinnah was emotionally attached to the Indian Muslims. Till his stay, the condition of Indian Muslims in Karachi was very good. But there came a time when the Indian Muslims settled in Karachi, Pakistan were removed from the system by calling them Muhajirs.
Jinnah's motive behind making Karachi the capital of Pakistan was that Karachi is the largest and oldest city. There is a port adjacent to Karachi, which was very important in terms of trade at that time, but after Jinnah, Pakistan's army kept this thinking of Jinnah aside.
Pakistani Army wanted that Islamabad is the right city for the capital. The headquarter of the Pakistan Armed Forces was in Rawalpindi, adjacent to Islamabad. While Islamabad became the capital of Pakistan, Rawalpindi also remained the capital, but mainly Islamabad was made the capital of Pakistan because of its proximity to Rawalpindi and Kashmir.
It is also said that then-President General Ayub Khan is responsible for changing the capital of Pakistan. It is said about him that he did not like the weather in Karachi located in South Sindh. He wanted to stay close to his power base in Rawalpindi. It was also close to General's hometown Rehana. There is also a reason that General Ayub Khan used to visit his house every week while the President.
Muhajirs are also called Panahgujir in Pakistan. 73% of the Punjabis who migrated from India to Pakistan were Muslims. Karachi had a large population of Muhajirs. Gradually, with the passage of time, the Muhajirs started getting opportunities. He started making his mark in Pakistan.
Apart from this, the population of Hindus in Karachi was also much higher than that of Muslims. Many Muhajirs had become bureaucrats when Jinnah was the Prime Minister. Because Jinnah himself was a Muhajir. He had come from Karnal, but after Jinnah, when General Ayub Khan came to power in Pakistan. Then they started discriminating against the Muhajirs.
He agreed to change the capital of Pakistan to remove the Muhajir bureaucrats from the system. It was from here that the backwardness of the Muhajirs started in Pakistan.
Islamabad was divided into 8 zones to make it the capital of Pakistan. Separate arrangements were made for Diplomatic Enclave, Commercial District, Education Sector, and Industrial Area. In 1968, Islamabad became ready as the capital. After that, Islamabad officially became the capital of Pakistan.

Muskan Kumawat Journalist & Writer