The Intelligence Bureau ( ; IB) is an
intelligence
Intelligence has been defined in many ways: the capacity for abstraction, logic, understanding, self-awareness, learning, emotional knowledge, reasoning, planning, creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving. It can be described as t ...
and
security agency
A security agency is a governmental organization that conducts intelligence activities for the internal security of a state. They are the domestic cousins of foreign intelligence agencies, and typically conduct counterintelligence to thwart other ...
in Pakistan, focused primarily on non-military intelligence. Established in 1947, the IB is Pakistan's oldest intelligence agency. It is led by the Director General (DG IB), who is usually an officer from the
Police Service of Pakistan.
The
government of Pakistan
The Government of Pakistan () (abbreviated as GoP), constitutionally known as the Federal Government, commonly known as the Centre, is the national authority of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, a federal republic located in South Asia, con ...
elevated the Intelligence Bureau status from a semi-autonomous agency to a Division, upgrading it to the equivalent of a Federal Ministry, under oversight of a
federal secretary. Appointments and supervision of its operations are authorized by the
Prime Minister of Pakistan
The prime minister of Pakistan (, Roman Urdu, romanized: Wazīr ē Aʿẓam , ) is the head of government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen Cabinet of Pakistan, cabinet, desp ...
.
History
The Intelligence Bureau traces its origin to the Central Special Branch, established on 23 December 1887 by the
British government in India to gather intelligence on political unrest. Its creation followed Secret Dispatch No. 11, dated 25 March 1887, in which
R. A. Cross, the
Secretary of State for India
His (or Her) Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for India, known for short as the India secretary or the Indian secretary, was the British Cabinet minister and the political head of the India Office responsible for the governance of ...
, sanctioned the proposal by
Lord Dufferin, the
Viceroy of India
The governor-general of India (1833 to 1950, from 1858 to 1947 the viceroy and governor-general of India, commonly shortened to viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom in their capacity as the Emperor of ...
, to create a system for the "collection of secret and political intelligence in India".
Dufferin proposed utilizing the
police forces
The police are a constituted body of people empowered by a state with the aim of enforcing the law and protecting the public order as well as the public itself. This commonly includes ensuring the safety, health, and possessions of citize ...
in British India and
political officers in
princely states for the "collection of intelligence on political, social and religious movements". He recommended the establishment of "special agencies" at both
central and
provincial headquarters. The Provincial Special Branches, under local government control, were tasked with sharing intelligence with the Central Special Branch.
Dufferin modelled the agency after the
Third Section of
Imperial Russia
Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor/empress, or imperialism.
Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to:
Places
United States
* Imperial, California
* Imperial, Missouri
* Imperial, Nebraska
* Imperial, Pennsylvania
* ...
. To reduce expenses, the agency shared the manpower and facilities of the existing
Thuggee and Dacoity Department
The Thuggee and Dacoity Department, also called Thagi and Dakaiti Department, was an organ of the East India Company, and inherited by British India, which was established in 1830 with the mission of addressing '' dacoity'' (banditry), highway r ...
. The General Superintendent of the Department was entrusted with the supervision of the Central Special Branch.
The Provincial Special Branches were attached to the offices of either the
Inspector General of Police
An inspector-general of police is a senior police officer in the police force or police service of several nations. The rank usually refers to the head of a large regional command within a police service, and in many countries refers to the most ...
or the
chief secretary of the respective provinces.
In 1904, based on the recommendations of the Indian Police Commission (1902 – 1903) chaired by
Andrew Fraser, the
Central Criminal Intelligence Department
The Department of Criminal Intelligence (DCI), originally called Central Criminal Intelligence Department (CCID), was the central foreign and domestic intelligence agency of the Government of India during the British Raj. It was established by ...
—also known as the Department of Criminal Intelligence (DCI)—was established. This reorganization led to the abolition of the Thuggee and Dacoity Department and the merger of the Central Special Branch into the DCI. Additionally,
Criminal Investigation Departments (CID) were created in the provinces. Initially, Provincial Special Branches were incorporated into the CIDs, but they were later separated as their functions evolved.
Section 40(2) of the
Government of India Act 1919
The Government of India Act 1919 ( 9 & 10 Geo. 5. c. 101) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was passed to expand participation of Indians in the government of India. The act embodied the reforms recommended in the report ...
stated that "the Intelligence Bureau should keep the Government posted with matters relating to the security of the Indian Empire." Reflecting this directive, the DCI was renamed the Intelligence Bureau in 1920, a year before the Act formally came into force in 1921.
In the aftermath of the
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 ...
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# ...
by the
British Crown
The Crown is a political concept used in Commonwealth realms. Depending on the context used, it generally refers to the entirety of the State (polity), state (or in federal realms, the relevant level of government in that state), the executive ...
, the IB, like the armed forces was partitioned, with a Pakistan IB created in Karachi.
Since, the IB is the oldest
intelligence community; others being the
Military Intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis List of intelligence gathering disciplines, approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist Commanding officer, commanders in decision making pr ...
(MI) of Pakistan's
military
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
.
The IB was initially Pakistan's only and main intelligence agency with the responsibility for strategic and foreign intelligences, as well as counter-espionage and domestic affairs.
Its poor performance with the
MI and unsatisfactory detailing of the
war with
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
in 1947 was however considered less than exemplary. Due to the fact, IB was concerned with internal security matters, and was not set up for foreign intelligence collection. These considerations ultimately led to the creation of the
ISI in 1948 as it quickly took the charge of gathering strategic and foreign intelligence at all levels of command.
Appointment for IB's
Director-General
A director general, general director or director-general (plural: ''directors general'', ''general directors'', ''directors-general'', ''director generals'' or ''director-generals'') is a senior executive officer, often the chief executive officer ...
are made by the
Prime Minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
but the appointment has to be confirmed by the
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*'' Præsident ...
.
The IB is a civilian intelligence agency, and its
DG have been appointed from the
civil bureaucracy and the
police
The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...
; as well as retired
military
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
officials have also served as DG IB.
Operations
Since the 1950s–1980s, the IB was running active operations to monitor politicians, political activists, suspected terrorists, and suspected foreign intelligence agents. Right after Dhaka Fall in 1971, the IB apprised the then Prime Minister of Pakistan,
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (5 January 1928 – 4 April 1979) was a Pakistani barrister and politician who served as the fourth president of Pakistan from 1971 to 1973 and later as the ninth Prime Minister of Pakistan, prime minister of Pakistan from 19 ...
of coup discussions between the
Commander-in-Chief,
Gul Hassan Khan
Gul Hassan Khan (9 June 1921 – 10 October 1999) known secretly as ''George'', was a Pakistani former three-star rank general and diplomat who served as the sixth and last Commander in Chief (Pakistan), Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Army ...
and
Air Chief Marshal
Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many Commonwealth of Nations, countries that have historical British i ...
Abdul Rahim Khan. Bhutto and his close aides, including
Ghulam Mustafa Khar, in a counter-coup invited both Generals to the President House under false pretenses and obtained their resignations. The IB keeps tabs on political operatives from countries it considers hostile to Pakistan's interests. In the 1990s, the IB gained international reputation when its agents had successfully infiltrated many of the terrorist organizations.
In 1996, the IB was granted control of government censorship programs, controlling information dissemination via mail, wire, or electronic medium.
In the 1990s, the IB remained actively involved to curb
sectarianism
Sectarianism is a debated concept. Some scholars and journalists define it as pre-existing fixed communal categories in society, and use it to explain political, cultural, or Religious violence, religious conflicts between groups. Others conceiv ...
and the
fundamentalism
Fundamentalism is a tendency among certain groups and individuals that are characterized by the application of a strict literal interpretation to scriptures, dogmas, or ideologies, along with a strong belief in the importance of distinguis ...
in the country. Many of its operations were directed towards infiltration, conducting
espionage
Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information ( intelligence). A person who commits espionage on a mission-specific contract is called an ...
,
counterespionage, and providing key information on terrorist organizations.
After the disastrous
9/11 terrorist attacks in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, the IB played its
role as a stakeholder of the
government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...
.
IB's successful infiltration techniques has led to the capture and detainment of many of high-profile terrorists and sectarian militants.
Moreover, it has been instrumental in efforts to break terrorist networks and organised crime rackets throughout the country especially Karachi through its sophisticated human and technical intelligence apparatus.
The agency had also been blamed for its belligerent role in
Operation Clean-up
Operation Clean-up, also known as Operation Blue Fox, was an armed military intelligence program led by the Sindh Police and Pakistan Rangers, with an additional assistance from the Pakistan Army and its related intelligence agencies. Plann ...
at Karachi in 1991–92 and 1994–96.
The IB is considered to be a main tool of the government to pacify opposition elements and is sometimes viewed as a government toppling machine. One case under discussion in the
Supreme Court of Pakistan
The Supreme Court of Pakistan (; ''Adālat-e-Uzma Pākistān'') is the apex court in the Judiciary of Pakistan, judicial hierarchy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
Established in accordance witPart VIIof the Constitution of Pakistan, it h ...
is for the alleged involvement of the agency in destabilizing the Punjab Government in 2008.
In 2019 after
Indian airstrikes in Pakistan's
Balakot
Balakot (; ; ) is a town in Mansehra district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The town was significantly damaged during the 2005 Kashmir earthquake but was later rebuilt with the assistance of the Government of Pakistan.
Geography
Balakot is l ...
, IB managed to bust whole ring of local informers that mapped and provided crucial operations to Indian
RAW which helped
IAF in locating its targets.
In January 2021, the IB caught a former militant, Salimullah, filming a strategic military installation in Kashmir for RAW.
IB successfully foiled
ISIS-K plan to assassinate
President Arif Alvi during president's
Sibi
Sibi (; ;) is a city situated in the Balochistan (Pakistan), Balochistan Subdivisions of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. The city serves as the administrative headquarters of the Sibi District, district and Sibi Tehsil, tehsil of the same name ...
visit in 2022.
RAW's nefarious plan to infiltrate spies into prominent military installations 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# ...
was countered by IB in 2022. The IB unmasked 25 Indian agents and successfully thwarted India's attempt to infiltrate
Pakistan security apparatus.
In yet another highly secretive and successful operation, a retired-
Rangers commando, Muhammad Ali who was working as a hitman for
RAW by running an assassination cell within Pakistan that aimed to eliminate prominent Kashmiri militants was nabbed along with his accomplices in 2023. His entire cell was dismantled by IB. Later, it was revealed that Muhammad Ali was tasked by Indian agencies to eliminate
Hafiz Saeed and other Kashmiri militant leaders residing inside Pakistan after
RAW's failed assassination bid to eliminate Hafiz in 2021.
Constitutionality and powers
The IB agents have no formal arrest powers, and its suspects are often apprehended and interrogated by the
FIA agents at the request of the IB officials.
The IB also passes on intelligence gained through infiltration between other Pakistan's
intelligence community,
police
The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...
, and other
Law enforcement
Law enforcement is the activity of some members of the government or other social institutions who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by investigating, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules and norms gove ...
units. The Bureau also grants the necessary security clearances to Pakistani diplomats and judges before they take the oath. Powers granted by the government, the IB also intercepts and opens regular mails and letters on a daily basis.
Designations
Organization
List of IB officers killed in the line of duty
*1993: Abdul Latif Baloch
*1983: Aman-Ullah Khan, Director General
*2008: Khaliq uz zaman, Inspector
*2009: Qamar Anees Shaheed, Assistant Sub Inspector
*2010: Saif Ullah Khalid, Inspector
*2010: Kashif Khan
*2011: Hassan Raza
*2011: Alam Khan, Sub Inspector
*2011: Abdul Razzaq, Inspector
*2011: Arshad Ghayas, Assistant Sub Inspector
*2011: Siraj, Deputy Director
*2012: Qamar Raza
*2012: Bashir Khan, Inspector
*2013: Muhammad Ali, Sub-Inspector
*2013: Khawaja Abdul Wahab, Inspector Sargodha
*2013: Mazhar Awan, Sub Inspector Sargodh''a
*2013: Mazhar Ali, Sub Inspector Sargodha
*2013: Agha Aatif Khan, Assistant Sub Inspector Sargodha
*2013: Abdul Mueed Hamirani, Assistant Director
*2013: Sajid Hussain Zahidi, Assistant Director
*2014: Manan Shah, Inspector
*2014: Rana Saad Noorani
*2016: Usman Gul, Inspector
*2021: Khan Bahadur, Sub Inspector
*2022: Muzahir Hussain Bangash, APS
*2022: Amjad Khan, Assistant Sub inspector
*2022: Najeeb Khan, Assistant Sub inspector
List of IB chiefs
#Major Tayyab Raza, November 1982
#Brig.
Imtiaz Ahmad, 1990–1993
# Maj.(R) Masood Shareef 1993–1996
# Ch. Manzoor Ahmed (PSP) 1997 – August 1998
# Col (R) Iqbal Niazi, August 1998 – October 1999
# Major Gen Rafi Ullah Niazi 1999 – ?
# Maj Gen (R) Talat Munir, ? – October 2002
# Col (R) Bashir Wali Mohmmand, October 2002 – February 2003
# Brig (R)
Ijaz Shah, February 2004 – March 2008
# Tariq Ahmed Lodhi (
PSP), March 2008 – August 2008
# Shoaib Suddle (
PSP), August 2008 – May 2009
# Javed Noor (
PSP), May 2009 – October 2011
#
Akhter Hassan Gorchani (
PSP), July 2012 – March 2013
#
Aftab Sultan (
PSP), June 2013 – June 2018
# Dr. Suleman Khan (
PSP), May 2018 – July 2018
# Ihsan Ghani (
PSP), July 2018 – August 2018
# Shujaat Ullah Qureshi (
IB-cadre), August 2018 – September 2018
# Dr Suleman Khan (
PSP), September 2018 – April 2022
#
Fuad Asadullah Khan (IB-cadre) S(ST), T(ST), nsc, April 2022
References
Bibliography
* Gauhar, Altaf. "How Intelligence Agencies Run Our Politics". ''The Nation''. September 1997: 4.
External links
Thirteen spymasters gather to stare at each otherFormer IB chiefs meet 'secretly' over dinnerPakistani Defence Overview of IntelligenceIB deputy director shot dead in Karachi* Supreme Court hearing case for involvement of IB in toppling Provincial Government
{{Domestic national intelligence agencies
Pakistani intelligence agencies
Pakistan federal departments and agencies
1947 establishments in Pakistan
Government agencies established in 1947