The First Balochistan Conflict was a rebellion instigated by Prince Agha Abdul Karim and Prince Muhammad Rahim of

Kalat Qalat, Qelat, Kalat, Kalaat, Kalut, or Kelat, may refer to: * Qalat (fortress), a fortified place or fortified village Afghanistan * Qalat, Afghanistan, capital of Zabul Province * Kalat, Badakhshan, a small village in the Kuran wa Munjan Dist ...

in response to the

accession of Kalat The princely state of Kalat in Balochistan acceded to the Dominion of Pakistan on 27 March 1948, after having declared independence earlier on 15 August 1947. It was accepted by the Governor General Muhammad Ali Jinnah on 31 March, making Kalat a ...

and with the aim of establishing Kalat as a sovereign state, independent of

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

. With the arrest of the princes and the loss of many men, the rebellion came to an end in 1950 as Pakistan recaptured all territories.

Background

Balochistan contained a

Chief Commissioner's province Chief Commissioner's Province refers to a middle-level and minor type of province in British India and in the post-colonial successor states, not headed by a ( lieutenant-)governor but by a Chief commissioner, notably : * in present India : ** ...

and four princely states under the British Raj. The province's Shahi Jirga and the non-official members of the Quetta Municipality opted for Pakistan unanimously on 29 June 1947. Three of the princely states,

Makran Makran (), also mentioned in some sources as ''Mecran'' and ''Mokrān'', is the southern coastal region of Balochistan. It is a semi-desert coastal strip in the Balochistan province in Pakistan and in Iran, along the coast of the Gulf of Oman. I ...

, Las Bela and

Kharan Kharan can refer to: * Kharan, Pakistan, city in Balochistan. * Kharan District, district of Balochistan, Pakistan * Kharan (princely state), former princely state * Kharan Desert * The upper Halil River Halīl River or HalīlRood (also ''Halir ...

, acceded to Pakistan in 1947 after

independence Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of ...

. The ruler of the fourth princely state, the

Khan of Kalat The Khanate of Kalat, also known as the Brahui Confederacy, was a Brahui Khanate that originated in the modern-day Kalat region of Pakistan. Formed in 1666 due to the threat of Mughal expansion in the region,"Baluchistan" ''Imperial Gazet ...

, Ahmad Yar Khan, who used to call Jinnah his 'father', declared

's independence as this was one of the options given to all of the 535 princely states by British Prime Minister

Clement Attlee Clement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee (3 January 18838 October 1967) was a British statesman who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955. At ...

Conflict

Kalat finally acceded to Pakistan on 27 March 1948 after the 'strange help' of All India Radio and a period of negotiations and bureaucratic tactics used by Pakistan. The signing of the Instrument of Accession by Ahmad Yar Khan, led his brother,

Prince Abdul Karim Prince Agha Abdul Karim Ahmedzai was the younger brother of the last Khan of Kalat, Mir Ahmedyar Khan. See also *History of Balochistan The history of Balochistan refers to the history of the Balochistan region of Pakistan, Iran and ...

, to revolt against his brother's decision in July 1948. Princes Karim Khan and Muhammad Rahim refused to lay down their arms and led the Dosht-e Jhalawan (numbering around 1000 militants) in unconventional attacks on the army.

Battle of Jhalawan

The Baloch militants captured the area of

Jhalawan Jhalawan ( Brahui: جھالاوان) was an administrative division of the Khanate of Kalat, a princely state of Brahui that acceded to Pakistan in 1947. It was established in the 17th century and its boundary was fixed with Sindh in 1853. ...

and used it as a base to stage further operations against Pakistani armed forces; after an offensive Pakistani forces were able to recapture this area. The militants suffered heavy casualties and were demoralised which ultimately contributed to their surrender.

Foreign involvement

Prince Karim Khan and some other Baloch separatist leaders such as Qadir Bakhsh Nizamani, Muhammad Hussain Anqa, Malik Saeed Dehwar, and Moulvi Muhammad Afzal, went to Afghanistan in May 1948, to obtain material and financial support from the

Afghan government The government of Afghanistan, officially called the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and informally known as the Taliban government, is the central government of Afghanistan, a unitary state. Under the leadership of the Taliban, the government is ...

and the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

, but they failed to obtain any financial or military assistance although Prince Abdul Karim was granted refuge in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

Afghan government wanted to rather annex Balochistan as it was in desperately in need of a sea port. Prince Karim failed to get any support from the Afghan government and the local Balochs, who were not interested in rebelling against the government of Pakistan.

Aftermath and Surrender

In 1950, they returned to

upon being granted amnesty by some Baloch statesmen and Pakistani government however on their return, they were arrested against the truce and sentenced to ten years in Haripur jail. Jinnah and his successors allowed Yar Khan to retain his title until the province's dissolution in 1955.

References

{{reflist Insurgency in Balochistan Baloch nationalism Wars involving Pakistan History of Balochistan Khanate of Kalat