Why is Pakistan's Independence Day celebrated one day before India's Independence Day?

 More than seventy years have passed since Pakistan became independent. During this long period of time, we have been unaware of many aspects of our history. We celebrate our Independence Day on 14th August every year and our neighboring country India, which became independent with us, celebrates the same on 15th August every year and every year the question arises that on the Independence Day of two countries How did the difference of one day come about? In this article, we have tried to solve this dilemma. The elders tell us that Pakistan became independent on the 27th night of Ramadan and that the day Pakistan became independent was the blessed day of Jumu'ah al-Wada '. Then we are told that this day was August 14, 1947, and we are 'one day older' than the country that became independent with us. But when we look at the calendar of August 14, 1947, it is clear that this day was Thursday and the Hijri date was not 27 but 26 Ramadan. Then we see the first stamps of Pakistan which were issued on July 9, 1948, 11 months after the independence of Pakistan. These stamps clearly bear the imprint of Pakistan's Independence Day on 15 August 1947. Then we come to the conclusion that Pakistan's Independence Day is not 14th but 15th August 1947, then why the first anniversary of Independence Day was celebrated on 14th August 1948? Thus the mind is once again confused as to when Pakistan became independent: on August 14, 1947, or on August 15, 1947. If we became independent on 14th August 1947 then why the date of Independence Day was written on the postage stamps issued 11 months after independence 15th August 1947 and if Pakistan became independent on 15th August 1947 then we celebrated the first anniversary of independence instead of 15th August Why celebrate August 14, 1948? And most of all, why are these birthdays still being celebrated on August 14 instead of August 15?   Independence Act 1947) which was passed by the British Parliament and ratified by the British Emperor George VI on 18 July 1947. A copy of this law was sent to Quaid-e-Azam on 24 July 1947 by the Secretary-General of Pakistan, Chaudhry Muhammad Ali (who later became the Prime Minister of Pakistan). This law was enacted on page 234 of volume 12 of The Transfer of Power, a document published by the British Government in 1983 and its translation was published by Jinnah Papers published by Quaid-e-Azam Papers Project, Cabinet Division, Government of Pakistan, Islamabad. (Urdu translation of K) can be seen from page 45 to page 72 of volume III. This is clearly stated in the law. * From August 1947, two independent sovereign states will be established in British India, which will be named India and Pakistan respectively. Later in the law, 'these states' means new states and 'fixed day' means August 15. Here are a few more orders issued in continuation of this law, the excerpts and translations of which were published by Zia-ud-Din Lahori in his article 'Independence Day: Happy Friday 27th Ramadan or 15th August'. The Department of Authorship, Compilation and Translation has been included in Karachi University. August 1947: Foreign Office wire to the British Permanent Representative to the United Nations "Now the viceroy has sent a message that Muslim leaders recognize the need to apply for UN membership. He said the UK should immediately file a petition on behalf of Pakistan and when Pakistan becomes an independent state on August 15, it would ratify it directly.  ١٢ August: 1947 An excerpt from the press release of the UN Secretariat Memorandum on the Privilege of Membership of India and Pakistan

"The Indian Independence Act states that on August 15, 1947, two independent states will be established in India under the names of India and Pakistan respectively." The British government announced that both Pakistan and India would be free at the same time, on August 15, 1947, at zero hours, but the problem was that Lord Mountbatten visited India in New Delhi on the night between August 14 and 15, 1947. Was to declare independence. The elected government was to transfer power and become the first Governor-General of independent India. The solution was for Lord Mountbatten to visit Karachi on August 13, 1947, and address the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan on the morning of August 14, 1947, to complete the transfer of power and announce that on that night, August 14 and 15. By the middle of 1947, Pakistan would become an independent state. So that's what happened. On August 13, 1947, Lord Mountbatten visited Karachi and on the same night, dinner was given in his honor at the Governor General's House in Karachi. Addressing the gathering, Muhammad Ali Jinnah said: "I am very happy to suggest a health jam for the country. This is a very important and unique opportunity. Today, full power is about to be transferred to the people of India and on the appointed day of 15th August 1947, two independent and sovereign states Pakistan and India will come into being. This decision of the Prime Minister's Government will achieve the lofty goal that was declared the sole purpose of the Commonwealth. The next day, Thursday, August 14, 1947, according to the 26th of Ramadan 1366 AH, a special session of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan began at 9 am in the present Sindh Assembly Building in Karachi. Enthusiastic people had gathered in front of the building since morning. When Pakistan's nominee for Governor-General Muhammad Ali Jinnah and Lord Mountbatten arrived in the Assembly Hall in a special carriage, the people greeted them with enthusiastic slogans and applause. All the seats in the assembly were full. Lord Mountbatten and his wife, Edwina, ride in a chariot in the midst of a crowd after their August 14 address in Karachi.

The gallery was attended by a large number of prominent citizens, politicians and local and foreign journalists. The chair was presided over by the President of the Constituent Assembly, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, and next to him was Lord Mountbatten. The operation was formally launched when the two dignitaries took their seats. First, Lord Mountbatten read out a message from the King of Britain, addressing Jinnah: "I extend my heartfelt congratulations to you on the great occasion of the founding of the new Commonwealth of Independent States of Britain. The way you have achieved freedom is an example to freedom-loving people all over the world. I hope that all members of the British Commonwealth will support you in upholding democratic principles. After the message, Lord Mountbatten delivered a farewell speech and prayed for the security of Pakistan and the Pakistani people. In his speech, Lord Mountbatten made it clear:  "Today I am addressing you as your Viceroy. Tomorrow the reins of the new Dominion Government of Pakistan will be in your hands and I will be the constitutional head of your neighboring Dominion of India. The leaders of both governments have invited me to be the neutral chairman of the Joint Defense Council, an honor I will strive to fulfill.

Tomorrow, two new sovereign states will join the Commonwealth. These will not be new nations, but they are the inheritors of an ancient proud civilization. The leaders of these completely independent states are brilliant, respected in the eyes of the world. His poets, philosophers, scientists and forces have rendered unforgettable services to humanity. The governments of these states are not inexperienced and weak but have the potential to live up to their responsibilities for peace and development around the world. After Lord Mountbatten, Jinnah began his speech. He first thanked the King of England and the Viceroy and assured them that:  "We will never lose the spirit of better and more friendly relations with our neighbors and we will remain friends all over the world." Mountbatten announces India's independence in front of the Legislative Assembly in Delhi on August 15  After the proceedings of the Assembly and the Declaration of Independence, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, accompanied by Lord Mountbatten, returned to the Governor General's House in the royal carriage. At two o'clock in the afternoon, Lord Mountbatten left for New Delhi, where he was to assume the office of Governor-General of India at 12 o'clock that night, with the proclamation of India's independence. According to Lord Mountbatten's Declaration of Independence, at midnight between 14 and 15 August 1947, at 12 midnight, a free and independent and the largest state in the Islamic world appeared on the world map. Whose name was Pakistan At the same time, Pakistan's independence was announced from Lahore, Peshawar, and Dhaka by the Pakistan Broadcasting Service Earlier, on the night between 14 and 15 August 1947, the All India Radio Service had broadcast its last announcement from Lahore, Peshawar and Dhaka stations at 11 pm.  A few moments before twelve o'clock, the introductory tune of Radio Pakistan was played and in the voice of Zahoor Azar, an announcement was heard in the air in English that at midnight the independent and sovereign state of Pakistan would come into being. At exactly 12 o'clock in the night, thousands of listeners heard the words, first in English and then in Urdu, "This is Pakistan Broadcasting Service."  The announcement was made in English by Zahoor Azar and in Urdu by Mustafa Ali Hamdani. Immediately after this announcement, Maulana Zahir Al-Qasimi recited the verses of Surah Fath of the Holy Quran, after which his translation was broadcast.

Later, a special composition composed by Khawaja Khurshid Anwar was played, then Santo Khan and his companions performed a few stanzas of Allama Iqbal's poem 'Saqi Nama' in Qawwali. These broadcasts ended with a speech by Hafeez Hoshiarpur. At midnight, Aftab Ahmad Bismal from Radio Pakistan Peshawar announced the establishment of Pakistan in Urdu and Abdullah Jan Maghmoom in Pashto, while Qari Fida Muhammad received the honor of reciting the Holy Quran. The broadcast ended with a song written by Mr. Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi, which read, "Congratulations to Pakistan, the maker of Pakistan." At the same time, a similar announcement was made in English by Kaleemullah from Radio Pakistan Dhaka, which was translated into Bengali. ١٥ On August 1947, a Pakistani government delegation presented the Pakistani flag to British officials at Lancaster House in London.

* On the morning of August 1947, the transmission of Radio Pakistan Lahore started at 8 o'clock with selected verses of Surah Al-Imran. After the recitation of Quranic verses, English news started which was read by newsreader Nubi. Following the news, at 8:30 a.m., a message was heard in Jinnah's voice that had already been recorded. (An audio clip of this speech is available on YouTube.)

Jinnah's speech began with these words:

"It is with feelings of greatest happiness and emotion that I send you my greetings. August 15 is the birthday of the independent and sovereign State of Pakistan. It marks the fulfillment of the destiny of the Muslim nation which made great sacrifices in the past few years to have its homeland. "

Translation: I send you a message of congratulations with immense joy and feeling. August 15 is the birthday of an independent and sovereign Pakistan. It is a symbol of the destiny of the Muslim nation which has made great sacrifices in the last few years to achieve its homeland. In his address, Jinnah congratulated all the citizens of Pakistan on the establishment of an independent state of Pakistan and said that the creation of this new state imposes tremendous responsibilities on the people of Pakistan. It must prove how a nation, consisting of different elements, lives together in peace and harmony.

On the same day, the morning of August 15, 1947, the newspapers published special issues on the occasion of Pakistan's Independence Day and the popular English language newspaper Dawn started publishing from Karachi. The title of this special post was: May Pakistan prosper always - Lord Mountbatten. The headline quoted the full text of Lord Mountbatten's speech, quoted above. The Dawn also published a special 32-page appendix on the occasion, which is also preserved in our personal collection and can also be found on YouTube by typing Dawn 15/8/1947. The Dawn supplement also included a message from Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah issued from 10 Aurangzeb Road, New Delhi. Although the date of the issue of this message is not recorded, it is certain that this message was issued before August 7, 1947. In this message, Muhammad Ali Jinnah said: "The first issue, I am informed will appear from Karachi, the capital of Pakistan on the 15th of August, the appointed day." Translation: "I have been informed that the first issue (of Dawn) will be published on August 15 from Karachi, the capital of Pakistan."   On the same day, the 15th of August 1947, the first Gazette of Pakistan was issued which reported the appointment of Muhammad Ali Jinnah as the Governor-General of Pakistan and his assumption of office from the same day. On the same day, the Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court, Justice Abdul Rashid administered the oath of office to Jinnah as the first Governor-General of Pakistan and on the same day the members of the first cabinet of Pakistan headed by Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan also took oath of office. From all these objectives and documentary evidence, it is clear that Pakistan came into being not on August 14, 1947 but on August 15, 1947. In the first year of Pakistan's existence, no one had any ambiguity as to when Pakistan became independent. This is further strengthened by the fact that on 19 December 1947, the Home Department of Pakistan, in its letter 17/47, declared the annual holidays of 1948 to be 15 August 1948, ahead of the Pakistan Day holiday for 1948. The date was entered. This post is protected at the National Documentation Center, Islamabad. In the first quarter of 2012, the Pakistan Postal Department began designing and printing early Pakistani stamps. It was a set of four stamps, the first three of which were jointly designed by Rashiduddin and Muhammad Latif of the External Publicity Department, while the fourth stamp and accompanying folder were created by the country's greatest artist, Abdul Rehman Chughtai. Was  The stamps were printed by the British printing press Messrs. Thomas de Laro and went on sale on July 9, 1948. The date of Pakistan's Independence Day was also written on them on August 15, 1947. It seems that by the time these stamps were designed and sent to the UK for publication, it was certain that Pakistan had become independent on August 15, 1947. So when was Pakistan's Independence Day from August 15 to August 14? To solve this mystery, we knocked on the door of the National Documentation Center, Cabinet Division, Islamabad. There we met with Qamar Al-Zaman, the director of the center, who helped us access the files stored in the center, which have been kept secret for a long time and are now open to the public. From the study of these files, we came to know that a meeting of the Cabinet was held in Karachi on Tuesday, June 29, 1948 under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan. , Minister of Agriculture and Health and Minister of Home Affairs, Information and Broadcasting were present. The meeting decided that Pakistan's first Independence Day celebrations should be held on August 14, 1948 instead of August 15, 1948. Prime Minister Liaquat Ali told the cabinet that the decision was not final, he would bring the matter to the notice of the Governor-General and any final decision would be taken after Jinnah's approval. The file containing the details is numbered 196 / CF / 48 and the case number is 393/54/48. This file is written in English in action: "The Prime Minister has taken on the responsibility of conveying to Quaid-e-Azam the suggestion that our Independence Day celebrations be held on August 14 instead of August 15." The file does not say who motivated the proposal and what arguments were put forward to celebrate Independence Day on August 14 instead of August 15. At the end of the proceedings, it is written in brackets that "Quaid-e-Azam has approved the proposal." The file goes on and on the next pages under case no. Inform all the Ministers and the concerned Secretaries of their Ministries about the decision of the Cabinet Meeting to be held so that this decision can be implemented. The next order number in the file is 15/2/48 which was issued on 13 July 1948 and is signed by Ahmed Ali, Deputy Secretary to the Government of Pakistan. The order stated that the country's first Independence Day celebrations would be held on August 14, 1948. The day will be a public holiday across the country and national flags will be flown at all government and public buildings. In the same vein, there is another order signed by the Assistant Secretary to the Government of Pakistan, Muhammad Mukhtar, numbered 15/2/48 and repeating the same order which was given in the previous order. What is additional, however, is that this decision will affect all ministries, all divisions, Cabinet Secretaries, Constituent Assemblies, Quaid-e-Azam's Private and Military Secretaries, Accountant General of Pakistan Revenue, Auditor General of Pakistan and Pakistan's High Commissioner to India. Be notified. The next order preserved in the file was issued on July 14, 1948 and its DO number is 390 / CB / 48. In it, Shujaat Usman Ali (Deputy Secretary to the Cabinet) has addressed the Deputy Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs, Khan Bahadur Syed Ahmed Ali and informed him about this. "My dear Ahmed Ali, a few days ago you inquired about the decision of the Cabinet to celebrate Pakistan's Independence Day on August 14. Is this decision only for this year or forever?" ۔ I want to make it clear to you that not only this year but in the future, this event will always be celebrated on August 14. I am sure you will inform everyone concerned of this decision.

The Cabinet decision was implemented and Pakistan's first Independence Day celebrations were held across the country on August 14, 1948. However, the Dawn published its first Independence Day diary, which was published as a 100-page special appendix, on August 15 instead of August 14. One of the reasons for this may be that August 15 this year was a Sunday and this day was very suitable for publishing a newspaper supplement. The practice of celebrating Pakistan's Independence Day on August 14 instead of August 15 continues to this day and it has gradually become clear that Pakistan became independent on August 14, 1947, not August 15, 1947. However, a study of the above documents largely confirms that Pakistan's first cabinet did not change Pakistan's history of independence but only decided that Pakistan's Independence Day celebrations should be held on August 14 instead of August 15 each year. Jinnah had also endorsed the decision. We are sure that despite our research and publication of this article, there will be no official change in the history of Pakistan's Independence Day, but the fact cannot be denied or charged that Pakistan's Independence Day 15 It is August 1947. This day was Jumu'ah al-Wada 'and the Islamic date was 27 Ramadan 1366 AH. By declaring our Independence Day as August 14, 1947, instead of August 15, 1947, not only do we change the date of our Independence Day, but we also lose the honor of Jumu'ah al-Wada 'and the 27th of Ramadan.