Rao Farman Ali

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Rao Farman Ali bigraphy, stories - Pakistani general

Rao Farman Ali : biography

1923 – January 21, 2004

Major general Rao Farman Ali Khan (Urdu: راؤ فرمان علی; English IPA: Rəoʊ Fərmən ɑlɪ; 1923 – January 21, 2004) was a senior and high profile officer who commanded combatant assets and elements of the Corps of Military Police during the Bangladesh Liberation war and following the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. As commander of Military police and senior military adviser as well, Ali executed and oversaw the internal and external deployment and operations of military police in East-Pakistan and security forces including the Volunteers unit. Initially a forward observer in Regiment of Artillery and later as military adviser in East Pakistan.

Though Ali has denied such allegations, the Hamoodur Rahman Commission proved the involvement of misconducts and atrocities of Pakistan Armed Forces personnel but not on his part. Ali remains a controversial figure with many of his colleagues and his superior officers accusing Ali for being a "conspirator" of the war in East Pakistan. He gracefully retired from Pakistan Army in 1974, later in he joined Fauji Foundation and FFC is one of his product. However, after Bhutto’s death in 1979, General Zia-ul-Haq appointed him as MD Fauji Foundation and Minister for Oil and Gas till 1985. He died in 2004 after a brief illness in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.

Rao on Mukti Bahini and General Niazi

In his book, How Pakistan got divided, Maj. Gen. Rao Farman does express the fear that "orders countermanding the earlier orders were perhaps not issued and some people were arrested. I do not till this day know where they were kept. Perhaps they were confined in an area which was guarded by mujahids. The corps or the Dacca garrison commander lost control over them after surrender and they ran away out of fear of the Mukti Bahini who were mercilessly killing mujahids. The detained persons might have been killed by Muktis or even by the Indian army to give the Pakistan army a bad name. Dacca had already been taken over by the Indians."

Maj. Gen. Rao Farman Ali, Adviser to the Governor of East Pakistan said, in (HCR) regarding General Niazi "Harrowing tales of rape, loot, arson, harassment, and of insulting and degrading behaviour were narrated in general terms…. I wrote out an instruction to act as a guide for decent behaviour and recommended action required to be taken to win over the hearts of the people. This instruction under General Tikka Khan’s signature was sent to Eastern Command. I found that General Tikka’s position was also deliberately undermined and his instructions ignored…excesses were explained away by false and concocted stories and figures."

Brief career

He took commission in an Regiment of Artillery of Indian Army in 1941, and served in the Burmese front of World War II. After the war, Ali opted for Pakistan and commanded the "26th Field Artillery Regiment" of Regiment of Artillery. In 1950s and early 1960s, Ali held the desk assignment by commanding the Directorate-General for Military Operations (DGMO) in the Generals Combatant Headquarter (GHQ). Ali also served as the Directing Staff on special warfare operations and joint operations, in the Command and Staff College and Armed Forces War College Now called the National Defence University respectively.

In late 1960s, he was forward observer in the Regiment of Artillery in East-Pakistan and elevated to the rank of Major-General in 1970. Ali was relieved as the forward observer, and served as the military adviser to East-Pakistan government, advising the government on key deployment of Military police on internal and external fronts of the country. As per Hamood Ur Rehman commission report he was not convicted with any charges and was only Maj Gen Rank officer not being charged.

However in the middle of war, Ali took a hastily transferred to West-Pakistan, and assuming the command of Special Forces directing major black ops against India in 1971. He is most remember for authorizing the military police as its commander for conducting atrocities and war crimes. Though Ali strongly denied his allegations, but the senior commanders and his superior officers upheld the allegations against him, and this was also not proved in Hamood Ur Rehman Commission report.