Separation of East Pakistan was the culmination of a two-decade-long process |
Relations between Pakistan and Bangladesh have shown signs of improvement since the ouster of former Bangladeshi prime minister Sheikh Hasina Wajid in August 2024. Yet, the passage of time has not diminished the importance of understanding the forces that led to the creation of Bangladesh on December 16, 1971.
Before independence, present-day Bangladesh formed the eastern wing of Pakistan — a federation that was structurally fragile from the outset. The separation of East Pakistan was not the result of one leader’s ambition or a single political decision, but rather the outcome of deep-rooted political, economic and constitutional failures that unfolded over more than two decades.
Pakistan’s geography posed a fundamental challenge: its two wings were separated by more than a thousand miles of Indian territory. This lack of geographical contiguity not only complicated governance but also made the federation strategically vulnerable. India,........