Dhaka defence scheme (adhoc)

Following the March 1971 military crackdown under Operation Searchlight by Tikka Khan, Pakistan faced increasing resistance from the Mukti Bahini, the Bengali nationalist militia fighting for independence.{{Cite web |date=2014-12-16 |title=Genocide they wrote |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/genocide-they-wrote-55587 |access-date=2025-02-26 |website=The Daily Star |language=en}} The Indian military also provided support to the Mukti Bahini, further escalating the conflict.{{Cite web |date=2020-01-02 |title=India-Pakistan 1971 war: 13 days that shook the subcontinent |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/india-pakistan-1971-war-bangladesh-indira-gandhi-4429236/ |access-date=2025-02-26 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}

In anticipation of a full-scale war with India, the Eastern Command, under Lieutenant General A. A. K. Niazi, the commander of the Eastern Command formulated the Dhaka Defence Scheme as an emergency defensive plan.{{Cite book |last=Niazi |first=Amir Abdullah Khan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6remQgAACAAJ |title=The Betrayal of East Pakistan |date=1998 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-577727-7 |language=en}} The objective was to consolidate Pakistani forces in and around Dhaka, creating a last-stand defense against Indian forces should they attempt to capture the capital.{{Cite web |title=The Pakistan Army 1966-71 |url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/90459559-the-pakistan-army-1966-71 |access-date=2025-02-26 |website=Goodreads |language=en}}

The Dhaka Defence Scheme was a critical component of the broader Eastern Command strategy, designed to maintain control over East Pakistan amidst growing insurgency and external military intervention.{{Cite book |last=Nawaz |first=Shuja |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jKyfAAAAMAAJ |title=Crossed Swords: Pakistan, Its Army, and the Wars Within |date=2008 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-547660-6 |language=en}} The Eastern Command was tasked with overseeing all military operations in East Pakistan, and the Dhaka Defence Scheme was meant to be its final contingency plan for defending the administrative and military center of the region.{{Cite book |last=Cloughley |first=Brian |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qUffAAAAMAAJ |title=A History of the Pakistan Army: Wars and Insurrections |date=1999 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-579015-3 |language=en}} However, the rapid Indian advance and internal weaknesses led to the failure of the scheme, culminating in the surrender of 93,000 Pakistani troops on December 16, 1971.{{Cite book |last=Ṣiddīqī |first=ʻAbdurraḥmān |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WtHeAAAAMAAJ |title=The Military in Pakistan, Image and Reality |date=1996 |publisher=Vanguard |isbn=978-969-402-282-6 |language=en}}

By December 16, 1971, the scheme had completely collapsed, and Lieutenant General A. A. K. Niazi surrendered to the Indian Armed Forces and Mukti Bahini, marking the end of the Bangladesh Liberation War and the creation of independent Bangladesh.{{Cite book |last=Sātik |first=Siddīq |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2IO7xMd2T2cC |title=Witness To Surrender |date=1977 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-81-7062-108-9 |language=en}}

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Category:Dhaka in the Bangladesh Liberation War

Category:Bangladesh Liberation War orders of battle

Category:Indo-Pakistani war of 1971