What's new

Imagine Scenario: If Pakistan had continued to be united and not got divided in 1971

.
Okay we have the new constitution in 73 with senate and National Assembly. So the problem of east and west would have been solved. President of Pakistan would have been Mamnun Hussain and may be Khalida Zia the Prime Minister.Nawaz Sharif would have been CM punjab. M1 M2 would have been called WM1 and WM2 , 3 4 etc. EM1 would have been been between Dacca and Chittagong.
Urdu would have been different with lots a bengali words and Bengalis would have been swearing in punjabi .
Lots have pushtun would have settled in East making Afghani tikka, kandhari naan as a staple food there.
Lots a Bengali would have settled in Lahore and would have know that we west pakistanis especially the punjabis are not at all racially biased and don't give a rats about the language, culture etc. any thing which suits us is welcome :-)
@asad71, the ex army officer would have a 1000 sq yard house in Askari 5 Rawalpindi and Raheal Sharif would have invested all his retirement money in DHA Dacca phase 5 and Chittagong DHA Phase 4 on sea side would have been real estate dream.
Dacca Metro Purple would have been the talk of the day. Pakistan Observer would still be publishing from Dacca and Islamabad. Salt and Pepper village would have opened a branch in Moti Jheel area of Dacca
 
.
It would never stayed united their divide was inevitable,besides the major Muslim leaders did wanted kpk Punjab sindh and balochistan as Pakistan and they wanted Bangladesh as a independent country
 
.
The whole idea was ridiculous from the word go.

Any real democratic state would have meant permanent Bengali domination over the rest of the country and that is something that the rest of the country would not have accepted forever. Let us not get into the issue of 1000 miles that also separated the two wings.

BD and Pakistan are best going it alone and co-operating where there is mutual interests.
 
.
1. We need to be aware that here are two Pakistans - the ideological Pakistan and the current geopolitical Pakistan. we

2. In Rahmatullah's Pakistan, BD was not included. Pakistan was envisaged as a Muslim nation spanning the Hindu Kush, the Indus valley and later flowing into C Asia as inferred by "stan". As Afghans, Punjabis, Kashmiris ,etc are nations recognized as such, so is the case of Bangladesh. We are an ancient people - Vango, Bangala, Bengal and finally Bangladesh. As a people we have a unique history, shared heritage, culture and common experience that have bound us for centuries. We do not find any contradiction in our being Muslims as well as Bengalis. Therefore, the adoption of the name BD was a historical necessity and demand of the people.

3. Here let us not ignore the terms of the historic Lahore Resolution. BD should have encompassed present West Bengal and NE states making it the eastern Muslim majority state. Yes, the results of the 1946 elections had made it necessary to take out the "s" to justify the Muslim demand of the Two Nation Theory. The leaders should have seconded their greed for power to the true feelings of the people.

4. The Two Nation Theory also envisaged not only Muslim majority areas to separate from the Hindu majority, but also an area like the Nizam's State of Hyderabad which was, and still is, highly influenced by Muslim socio-culture.

5. You may like to know that Sheikh Mujib, upon return from confinement in Pakistan, had stated that we, Bengalis have more claim to that name because we had been the majority. However, he uttered that only once when he was not well informed about what had occurred during his absence.

6. Existence of an united/confederated Pakistan and BD, would have ensured the run of economic growth experienced till 1971. We would have been the most powerful nation in Asia after China. India would definitely disintegrated under the pressure of our growth.
 
. .
The situation was unique and perfect for a peaceful divorce, it's rather unfortunate that it ended in such a bloody way. No way Pakistan and Bangladesh could remain together, separated by a 1,000 miles with a hostile territory in between.
 
.
Regarding categories :

1 Tourism
Pakistan has one of the most magnificent landscapes found anywhere else in the world . From the hottest places in the world to the coldest . Ancient civilizations and the tallest peaks .So many different cultures , languages and ethnicities. Pakistan's diversity is truly mind boggling . I don't know what we would have gained with the flat lands of Bangladesh with no diversity whatsoever.

2. Sports

It wouldn't have made any difference bangladesh is historically a very weak sporting nation and hasn't excelled in any sports at all . Our side dominated Hockey , Squash , Cricket for decades .

3. Economy

This is one place where we would have gained things . Our economy would have been near $ 500 billion .
 
. .
I am going to sleep it's 1.46 pm so not writing much a united Muslim country with nearly 40 crore population out of most of them young with nuclear weapons and 500 billion GDP we would be one of most influential Muslim country after Saudi Arabia.
 
.
Had Pakistan continued to remain united with 'Bangladesh', may be the relations between the two wings would have gradually improved and a genuine unity may have emerged. May be there would have been mass movement of people between the two wings for jobs and even marriages. Who knows the final provocations like military action etc was actually the doings of CIA to trigger an Indo-Pak war.

Anybody interested to imagine how the scenario would have looked like?

The cricket team composition, the film industry, the economy, the politicians, tourism, the military etc.

It might have been more possible than Pakistanis think. You know exchange of fraction of population between the two wings. The two communities (Bengalis and West Pakistanis) complementing each other economically. And lo and behold - a synthesis!
Would have never, repeat never worked. Find me one example in the world where a country has two wings separated by 1,200 miles of hostile country with one wing having 195 million and other wing with 160 million. Even the English who moved to North America separated from their brothers in England to make USA and that was one family - the English.

You can have one large part (planet) with small adjunct satellite (moon)


vanessa-paradi-129.jpg



But you can't have two planets


planets_collide_by_thornerose.jpg



As both will strive to be dominant and both will be two large to give ground. Recipe for trouble which is why there is no country on earth that has "planet and planet" although many have "planet and moons".

And there are too much differances in the ethnic groups. I know the ummah brigade ignore this and think Islam can plaster over anything. How long do you think Turkey and Pakistan union would last. The distance is about the same from Turkey to Pakistan. Both are Muslims.

Turkey-pakistan.svg
 
Last edited:
. .
Would have never, repeat never worked. Find me one example in the world where a country has two wings separated by 1,200 miles of hostile country with one wing having 195 million and other wing with 160 million. Even the English who moved to North America separated from their brothers in England to make USA and that was one family - the English.

You can have one large part (planet) with small adjunct satellite (moon)


vanessa-paradi-129.jpg



But you can't have two planets


planets_collide_by_thornerose.jpg



As both will strive to be dominant and both will be two large to give ground. Recipe for trouble which is why there is no country on earth that has "planet and planet" although many have "planet and moons".

Non contiguous states are possible provided there is a cultural cohesion b/w the two and both are semi autonomous. However this has been attempted only on a smaller scaler with island provinces.

The other option is domination with inside help as was done by British Empire and other colonial powers stretching back to dawn of modern civilization.

Had India not intervened then there is a high probability that united Pakistan would still have existed with current BD population split b/w loyalists and insurgents.

A ruthless tactical commander on the Indian side would have built a wall on India - E Pakistan border to stop refugees and let Pakistan bleed with an ever open festering wound. Pakistan in such a state would be eternally internally occupied and India left free to dominate the region.
 
.
Non contiguous states are possible provided there is a cultural cohesion b/w the two and both are semi autonomous.
Planet on Planet is not possible even if there is "cultural cohesion". In fact even if they are the the same people. England versus English settlers in America. Water divided them. Despite being the same people John split from John making USA in war of independance. Canada was British colony with British settlers dominating it. Yet is is independant even if it has nominal allegiance to the crown. Ditto Australia

On the other hand Planet on Moon variations are possible. But Bengal was no moon as it was actually more populous than West Pakistan. In addition Bengali are entirely another stock dustal by 1,200 miles from Pakistan the same distance Turkey is from Pakistan.

And yes your right. Had India not intervened Pakistan would have eventually subdued the rebellion but all the energy would than be invested in keeping it garrisoned and by now Pakistan worn out. It would be in danger of falling apart like USSR into 5 or six parts.
 
. .
Back
Top Bottom