Muzzafar Hassan (; b. 1920–24 May 2012) , was a

Pakistan Navy The Pakistan Navy (PN) (; ''romanized'': Pākistān Bahrí'a; ) is the naval warfare branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The Chief of the Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy and is a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Com ...

senior

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

who served as the last Commander-in-Chief of

from 1969 until 1972, serving under first

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 ...

Yahya Khan Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan (4 February 191710 August 1980) was a Pakistani army officer who served as the third president of Pakistan from 1969 to 1971. He also served as the fifth Commander-in-Chief, Pakistan, commander-in-chief of the Pakistan ...

and then under President

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 ...

. He is notable for commanding the Pakistan Navy in naval events in the

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

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 1971 and was dismissed from his

military service Military service is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, air forces, and naval forces, whether as a chosen job (volunteer military, volunteer) or as a result of an involuntary draft (conscription). Few nations, such ...

and relieved from the command of the Navy over the allegations proved in the light of War Enquiry Commission by the Judge Advocate General of Navy. His termination came along with the commanders of

army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normall ...

Gul Hassan Gul or GUL may refer to: Places * Gul, South Khorasan, Iran * Gul, West Azerbaijan, Iran * Gul Circle, Singapore Other uses * Great Liberal Union (Spanish: '; GUL), a Nicaraguan political party * ''Gul'' (design), a design element in orien ...

and

air force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

Air Marshal A.R. Khan in 1972. He was succeeded by the Vice-Admiral Hasan Hafeez Ahmed following his termination.

Biography

After attending the

Rashtriya Indian Military College The Rashtriya Indian Military College (abbreviated RIMC; formerly known as Prince of Wales Royal Indian Military College) () is a military school for boys situated in Doon Valley, Dehradun in India. The RIMC is a feeder institution for the Nation ...

(RIMC), he gained commissioned as a

Midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest Military rank#Subordinate/student officer, rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Royal Cana ...

in the

Royal Indian Navy The Royal Indian Navy (RIN) was the naval force of British Raj, British India and the Dominion of India. Along with the Presidency armies, later the British Indian Army, Indian Army, and from 1932 the Royal Indian Air Force, it was one of the ...

in 1941 in the Executive Branch. He participated in the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

as an officer in the Royal Indian Navy on the behalf of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

on the

European front The European Front (, , ) is a political alliance in North Macedonia led by the Democratic Union for Integration The Democratic Union for Integration (, ) is the largest ethnic Albanian political party in North Macedonia and the third largest ...

, and was sent to attend the

Britannia Royal Naval College Britannia Royal Naval College Dartmouth, also known as Dartmouth, is the naval academy of the United Kingdom and the initial officer training establishment of the Royal Navy. It is located on a hill overlooking the port of Dartmouth, Devon, En ...

after the

end End, END, Ending, or ENDS may refer to: End Mathematics *End (category theory) * End (topology) * End (graph theory) * End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous) * End (endomorphism) Sports and games *End (gridiron football) *End, a division ...

in 1945. After graduating in the staff course degree, he returned to

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

and subsequently promoted as

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

in the Royal Indian Navy and decided to opt for

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# ...

as an aftermath of partition of British India, also the same year. Hassan was among the first twenty naval officers who decided to join the

Royal Pakistan Navy The Pakistan Navy (PN) (; ''romanized'': Pākistān Bahrí'a; ) is the naval warfare branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The Chief of the Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy and is a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Commi ...

(RPN) as a Lieutenant with a

Service number A service number or roll number is an identification code used to identify a person within a large group. Service numbers are most often associated with the military; however, they also may be used in civilian organizations. National identificati ...

PN.0073 that was listed in the seniority list sent by the Royal Indian Navy to Pakistan's

Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...

. He was said to be an excellent

hockey ''Hockey'' is a family of List of stick sports, stick sports where two opposing teams use hockey sticks to propel a ball or disk into a goal. There are many types of hockey, and the individual sports vary in rules, numbers of players, apparel, ...

player in the navy where he captained the navy's hockey team against the Indian Navy's hockey team; the RPN's hockey team won by a margin of five goals to one secured against RIN's team. In 1952, he was promoted as

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

and commanded the

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived i ...

, the PNS ''Tughril'' along with PNS ''Tippu Sultan'' commanded by

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

M.A. Alvi. There, he accompanied Governor of Punjab,

Abdur Rab Nishtar Sardar Abdur Rab Nishtar (13 June 1899 – 14 February 1958) was a Pakistani independence activist and politician from the North-West Frontier Province (present-day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa). He served as the first Minister of Communications o ...

, on a Hajj mission led by Pakistan Navy in

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

. His career in the Navy progressed in the 1960s when he was promoted as

Rear-Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

in 1965 after participating in the second war with India. In 1967, he was appointed as Commander of

Western Naval Command The Western Naval Command is one of the three command–level formations of the Indian Navy. It is headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. As the senior–most of the three formations, the command is responsible for the all naval forces in the A ...

and

Commander Karachi The Commander Karachi (COMKAR) is a formal designation in the Pakistan Navy, typically held by a three-star Vice admiral (Pakistan), vice admiral. The COMKAR heads the Pakistan Karachi Command, overseeing the Command (military formation), admini ...

(COMKAR) in 1968 at the Navy NHQ. In 1969, his nomination to

command Command may refer to: Computing * Command (computing), a statement in a computer language * command (Unix), a Unix command * COMMAND.COM, the default operating system shell and command-line interpreter for DOS * Command key, a modifier key on A ...

the Navy was approved when Admiral S.M. Ahsan was promoted as

Governor of East Pakistan The Governor of East Pakistan, formerly known as the Governor of East Bengal, served as the appointed Head of state, head of province of the Government of East Pakistan, provincial government and the representative of President of Pakistan in Ea ...

with a promotion to the rank as

Vice-Admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of vic ...

. As Commander-in-Chief of Navy, he frequently paid visit to

East Pakistan East Pakistan was the eastern province of Pakistan between 1955 and 1971, restructured and renamed from the province of East Bengal and covering the territory of the modern country of Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Burma, wit ...

to review the operational readiness of the Navy in 1969–71. During this time, he also served as military adviser to the

Southeast Asia Treaty Organization The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) was an international organization for collective defense in Southeast Asia created by the Southeast Asia Collective Defense Treaty signed in September 1954 in Manila, Philippines. The formal insti ...

(SEATO). In 1971, he led the Pakistan Navy against the

Indian Navy The Indian Navy (IN) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Navy, maritime and Amphibious warfare, amphibious branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of the Naval Staff (India), Chief ...

but the

ended with the devastating effects on Pakistan Navy which lost the number of warships off the coast of Karachi with no cover from the

Pakistan Air Force The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) (; ) is the aerial warfare branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces, tasked primarily with the aerial defence of Pakistan, with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and Pakistan Navy when re ...

(PAF). The Navy NHQ was located in

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

which came under intense attacks by the

and the

Indian Air Force The Indian Air Force (IAF) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the air force, air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during armed conflicts. It was officially established on 8 Octob ...

which crippled the Navy. The casualties inflicted to Navy included the 408 personnel dead at sea and ~3,000 personnels including 1300 naval officers were held as

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

. Many of his requests to retaliate against the Indian Navy were rebuffed by the Air Marshal Abdul Rahim Khan who reportedly quoted: "Well, old boy, this happens in war. I am sorry your ships have been sunk. We shall try to do something in the future." After the

, he was subsequently dismissed from his

and relieved from the command of the Navy on 22 December 1971 along with the chiefs of army and the air force. He, along with

and Air Marshal Abdul Rahim Khan were forcefully retired from their commission on 3 March 1972 in a stand up military trial led by the combined JAG Branch. After his dismissal from the military service, Hassan permanently settled in DHA Society in

and was the first president of the Defence Society Residents Association (DSRA)–a

neighborhood watch A neighborhood watch or neighbourhood watch (see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences), also called a crime watch or neighbourhood crime watch, is an organized group of civilians devoted to crime a ...

– from 1981 to 1990. Throughout his retirement, he avoided the

news media The news media or news industry are forms of mass media that focus on delivering news to the general public. These include News agency, news agencies, newspapers, news magazines, News broadcasting, news channels etc. History Some of the fir ...

to offer any comments on the

fall of Dhaka The Pakistani Instrument of Surrender () was a legal document signed between India (alongside the Provisional Government of Bangladesh) and Pakistan to end the Bangladesh Liberation War and the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. Per the trilateral agr ...

and died of an old age from a prolonged illness and died on 24 June 2012. The news of his death went unnoticed in the media and was buried in

Karachi War Cemetery The Karachi War Cemetery was created to receive World War II dead from cemeteries scattered across the country, as it was felt that their proper maintenance could not be assured. In 2016, British Deputy High Commissioner Ms Belinda Lewis, Defen ...

References

External links

Official website of Pakistan Navy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hassan, Muzaffar 1920 births 2012 deaths Military personnel from Lucknow Rashtriya Indian Military College alumni Indian military personnel of World War II Royal Indian Navy officers Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College Pakistan Navy vice admirals Chiefs of Naval Staff (Pakistan) Admirals of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 Military personnel from Karachi Indian emigrants to Pakistan