Sawar Khan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
General Mohammad Sawar Khan is an ex-four star general of the Pakistan Army who was the Governor of the largest province, Punjab and the vice chief of army staff during the era of General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq when Zia was simultaneously the chief of army staff and the President of Pakistan. When Zia imposed martial law, the then Lt. Gen. Sawar Khan was sent as the governor of Punjab province, in addition to his responsibilities as Commander IV Corps, Lahore. He was part of small coterie of generals under General Zia ul-Haq, who determined the national security policies in the martial regime. The other generals were Lt Gen Faiz Ali Chishti (Commander X Corps, Rawalpindi), Lt Gen Jehanzeb Arbab (Governor of Sindh and Commander V Corps, Karachi), Lt Gen Iqbal Khan (CJCSC), and other military governors of NWFP and Balochistan.[1]
After two year stint, he was replaced with Lt. Gen. Ghulam Jilani Khan and promoted to four star general.
In April 1980, when the post of the deputy chief of army staff (created by Zia-ul-Haq) was redefined and re-designated as the vice chief or army staff, General Sawar replaced Lt. Gen. Iqbal Khan, the first deputy chief of army staff who took over in 1978. General Sawar was replaced by the Zia's deputy General K.M. Arif in March 1984 after completing the four-year term. Sawar was a professional soldier and hailed from the Potohar plateau of north Punjab, which had been a traditional recruitment area for the British and the Pakistani armies.[2]
[edit] References
- ^ Rizwan Hussain. "Pakistan and the Emergence of Islamic Militancy in Afghanistan" Ashgate Publishing, 2005, ISBN:0754644340
- ^ Pakistan under Zia, 1977-1988 By Shahid Javed Burki Asian Survey, Vol. 28, No. 10 (Oct., 1988), pp. 1082-1100
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Aslan Riaz Hussain |
Governor of Punjab September 1978–March 1980 |
Succeeded by Lt. Gen. Ghulam Jilani Khan |
| Military offices | ||
| Preceded by Lt. General Iqbal Khan |
Vice Chief of Army Staff April 1980–March 1984 |
Succeeded by General K.M. Arif |
