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| {{short description|Pakistani military officer}}
| | #REDIRECT [[Aslam Khan (brigadier)]] |
| {{Use Pakistani English|date=April 2018}}
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| {{Infobox military person
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| |name = Muhammad Aslam Khan
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| |nickname = Colonel Pasha
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| | birth_date = {{Birth date|df=yes|1918|8|27}}
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| | birth_place = [[Jammu]], [[Jammu and Kashmir (princely state)|Jammu and Kashmir]], [[British Indian Empire|British India]] {{small|(now [[India]])}}
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| | death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|1994|10|12|1918|8|27}}
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| |death_place= [[Skardu]], [[Gilgit-Baltistan]], [[Pakistan]]
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| |image=Aslam Khan (Pakistani brigadier).jpg
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| |caption=
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| |relations= father: [[Rehmatullah Khan (Jammu and Kashmir)|Rehmatullah Khan]]<br/>
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| brother: [[Asghar Khan]]
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| |allegiance=[[File:Flag of Jammu and Kashmir (1936-1953).svg|23px]] [[Jammu and Kashmir (princely state)|Jammu and Kashmir]]<br/>{{flagicon|British India}} [[British India]]<br/>{{flagicon|PAK}} [[Pakistan]]
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| |branch=[[File:Flag of Jammu and Kashmir (1936-1953).svg|23px]] [[Jammu and Kashmir State Forces]]<br/>{{flagicon|British India|army}} [[British Indian Army]]<br/>{{flagicon|Pakistan|army}} [[Pakistan Army]]
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| |serviceyears= 1939–1963
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| |rank=[[Brigadier (United Kingdom)|Brigadier]]
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| |current position=
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| |commands=
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| |unit=
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| |battles=[[World War II]]
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| *[[Burma Campaign 1944]]
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| [[Indo-Pakistan War of 1947]]
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| *[[Siege of Skardu]]
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| |awards=[[Military Cross]]<br>[[Hilal-e-Jurat]]
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| |laterwork= [[Shangrila Resort]]
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| }} | | }} |
| [[Brigadier]] '''Muhammad Aslam Khan''' (1918–1994<ref name=Nation>Muqeet Malik, [https://nation.com.pk/21-Aug-2015/the-legend-of-baltistan-brigadier-muhammad-aslam-khan The Legend of Baltistan: Brigadier Muhammad Aslam Khan], The Nation, 21 August 2015.</ref>) was a Pakistani military officer, who led the [[Gilgit Scouts]] and Azad rebels in the [[First Kashmir War]]. Using the ''nom de guerre'' of ''''Colonel Pasha'''<nowiki/>', he organised a force of 1200 rebels and local recruits in [[Gilgit]], and led an attack on the [[Indian Army]] and the [[Jammu and Kashmir State Forces|State Forces]] from the north, conquering [[Skardu]] and [[Kargil]] and advancing within 30 miles of [[Leh]].{{sfn|India, 1947–50: External Affairs|1959|p=493}} Even though the Indian Army eventually repulsed the attack beyond Kargil, Skardu remained part of the rebel territory, coming under [[Pakistan]]i control at the end of the war.
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| == Early life ==
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| Aslam Khan was born in [[Jammu]] on 27 August 1918 into an [[Afridi]] family. His father, Brigadier [[Rehmatullah Khan (Jammu and Kashmir)|Rehmatullah Khan]] of the [[Jammu and Kashmir State Forces]], was instrumental in bringing [[Gilgit]], [[Hunza (princely state)|Hunza]] and [[Skardu]] under the control of the Jammu and Kashmir State.<ref name=remembers>[http://kashmirlife.net/pathan-remembers-issue-30-vol-09-154431/ Pathan Remembers], Kashmir Life, 28 October 2017.</ref>{{sfn|Dani, History of Northern Areas of Pakistan|2001|p=359}}
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| Aslam Khan was one of eight siblings, included among whom was Air Chief Marshal [[Asghar Khan]], who later served as the Chief of the [[Pakistan Air Force]].<ref name=remembers/>{{sfn|Dani, History of Northern Areas of Pakistan|2001|p=359}}
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| == Jammu and Kashmir State Forces ==
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| Aslam Khan was commissioned into the Jammu and Kashmir State Forces in 1939. He was part of the 4th Jammu and Kashmir Infantry battalion (also called the "Fateh Shibji" battalion) He was posted at [[Rattu]] in the Gilgit Wazarat for two years.{{sfn|Dani, History of Northern Areas of Pakistan|2001|p=359}}
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| With the outbreak of the [[World War II]], the 4th Jammu and Kashmir Infantry, was sent to [[Burma]] to fight the Japanese as part of the [[British Imperial Forces]]. Aslam Khan distinguished himself in the attack on the [[Kennedy Peak (Myanmar)|Kennedy Peak]] and was awarded a [[Military Cross]].{{sfn|Dani, History of Northern Areas of Pakistan|2001|p=359}}{{sfn|Brahma Singh, History of Jammu and Kashmir Rifles|2010|pp=189–190}} The victory celebrations were held jointly with the First Punjabis of the British Indian Army, and Aslam Khan danced with Major Daler Singh Bajwa of the State Forces and Major Gul Rehman of First Punjabis. The camaraderie between the men of all religions was taken for granted in 1945.<ref name="Bhattacharya2013">{{citation |last=Bhattacharya |first=Brigadier Samir |title=Nothing But!: Book Two: the Long Road to Freedom |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xj-VAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA455 |year=2013 |publisher=Partridge Publishing |isbn=978-1-4828-1474-3 |pages=455–}}</ref>
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| After returning from the war, Aslam Khan was posted to [[Jammu]] with the rank of a Major. Captain [[Mirza Hassan Khan]] at [[Bhimber]], another winner of Military Cross, mentions the formation of a 'revolutionary council' among the army officers, of which he was the chairman. Its members planned to overthrow the Maharaja's government after the departure of the British by attacking the local garrisons. Major Aslam Khan was said to have been part of the group, meant to take charge in Jammu.{{sfn|Dani, History of Northern Areas of Pakistan|2001|p=366}}
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| Soon afterwards, Aslam Khan decided to move to the [[British Indian Army]]. He was posted to [[Ranchi]] as G-II. During the [[Partition of India|Partition]], he opted for Pakistan.{{sfn|Dani, History of Northern Areas of Pakistan|2001|p=359}}
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| == Pakistan army and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir ==
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| === Tribal invasion of Kashmir ===
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| [[File:J&K02low.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Indian defence of the Kashmir Valley 27 October 1947 – 17 November 1947]]
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| While in the Pakistan Army, Aslam Khan is said to have gone on leave around 21 October 1947. On his way to Srinagar, at Lohar Gali, he ran into the [[Pakistani tribal invasion of Kashmir|Pashtun tribal invasion]] being led by [[Khurshid Anwar (Major)|Khurshid Anwar]]. He decided to join the invasion force and became the second-in-command.<ref>{{harvnb|Dani, History of Northern Areas of Pakistan|2001|p=359}}; {{harvnb|Zaheer, The Times and Trial of the Rawalpindi Conspiracy|1998|p=97}}</ref> Aslam Khan described himself as a deserter of the Pakistani Army to a reporter.<ref>{{harvnb|Jha, The Origins of a Dispute|2003|p=27}}: "The writer also stated that ''according to Smith'', their leader was one Khurshid Anwar, and that his second-in-command was Major Aslam Khan of the Pakistan army, whose accurate handling of 2 in mortars broke the (Patiala) Sikhs' first stand at Baramula. Aslam Khan Khan told Smith, who duly reported it in the London ''Daily Express'' of 10 November, 'you can describe me as a deserter from the Pakistan Army'."</ref> Scholar Andrew Whitehead remarks, "this is unlikely to be the full story",{{sfn|Whitehead, A Mission in Kashmir|2007|loc=Ch. 9, p. 167}} and Indian sources allege that such army officers were seconded to the invasion force by the Pakistan Army.<ref>{{harvnb|Whitehead, A Mission in Kashmir|2007|loc=Ch. 10, p. 188}}: "Decades later, Harbakhsh Singh still chortled at the memory of Pakistan army officers in civilian clothes coming to fight in Kashmir during their holidays. Unlikely as this may seem, a scheme to give leave to any Pakistani officers deployed to assist the invaders was one of the points agreed on at the Pakistan leadership’s crisis conference on Kashmir two days after the start of the Indian airlift."</ref>
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| Following the [[Instrument of Accession (Jammu and Kashmir)|accession]] of Jammu and Kashmir to India, Indian troops were airlifted on 27 October to repel the invasion. The 1st Sikh regiment of the Indian Army, under the command of Lt. Col. [[Dewan Ranjit Rai]], proceeded to Baramula immediately upon landing. Aslam Khan's "accurate handling of captured mortars" broke their first stand. Col. Ranjit Rai was killed.{{sfn|Government of India, White Paper on Jammu & Kashmir|1948|p=39}}{{sfn|Suharwardy, Tragedy in Kashmir|1983|p=120}} The 1st Sikhs withdrew to Patan where they set up a defensive position. As more troops were flown in each day, the Indians renewed their attack and beat back the invading tribes beyond [[Uri, Jammu and Kashmir|Uri]] by 7 November. The Kashmir Valley was secured.
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| === Gilgit and Baltistan ===
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| In the [[Gilgit Agency]] at the north of Jammu and Kashmir, the [[Gilgit Scouts]] under the command of [[William Brown (British Army officer)|Major William Brown]] rebelled on 1 November 1947 and imprisoned the State's governor Brigadier Ghansara Singh. The Muslim troops of the [[Bunji, Pakistan|Bunji]] garrison under the command of [[Mirza Hassan Khan]] joined them, and the non-Muslims were eliminated. On 16 November, Pakistan sent a Political Agent Khan Mohammad Alam Khan to take control, bringing Gilgit under the effective control of Pakistan.{{sfn|Dani, History of Northern Areas of Pakistan|2001}}
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| On 10 January 1948, Aslam Khan arrived in Gilgit to take command of the Gilgit Scouts. He presented the credentials the [[Pakistan-occupied Kashmir]] government.{{sfn|F. M. Khan, The Story of Gilgit, Baltistan and Chitral|2002|p=84}} Writer F. M. Khan states:
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| {{blockquote|He was very shrewd and intelligent officer. He was blunt and direct in his approach. In his first meeting with the political agent at the Agency House, he had made it very clear that he [would] not tolerate any interference from the political agent in the military matters. Sardar Alam and Major Brown looked at each other; their dreams had been shattered.{{sfn|F. M. Khan, The Story of Gilgit, Baltistan and Chitral|2002|p=84}}}}
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| The British High Commission in India immediately connected the name Aslam Khan with the erstwhile second-in-command of the tribal invasion.{{sfn|Jha, The Origins of a Dispute|2003|p=27}}
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| [[File:J&K04low.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Areas of control 25 November 1947 – 6 February 1948]]
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| Aslam Khan, apparently promoted to the rank of Lt. Col, used the ''nom de guerre'' 'Colonel Pasha', which kept his identity somewhat clouded. On 31 November he assembled all the officers of the 'Azad forces' (the Gilgit Scouts, the rebels from the Bunji garrison and other local recruits), and pointed out that their primary task was to capture and consolidate [[Skardu]] in [[Baltistan]] (part of the [[Ladakh]] Wazarat). He asked for volunteers to lead the expedition, but none came forward.{{sfn|Brown, Gilgit Rebellion|2014|p=268}} He then divided the available forces into three groups:{{sfn|Cheema, Crimson Chinar|2015|p=85}}{{sfn|Dani, History of Northern Areas of Pakistan|2001|pp=362, 364, 368}}
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| * ''Ibex Force'', consisting of 400 men under the command of Major Ehsan Khan, from the 6th Jammu and Kashmir Infantry. It was tasked with capturing [[Skardu]]. It was supposed to "hop, like an ibex of this area".
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| * ''Tiger Force'', consisting of 400 men under the command of Captain Mirza Hassan Khan, also from the 6th Jammu and Kashmir Infantry. It was tasked with attacking [[Gurais]] via Bunji and Kamri, and advance to [[Bandipora]], with the "growling noise of a tiger".
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| * ''Eskimo Force'', a force of equal strength under Lieutenant Shah Khan of Gilgit Scouts. It was tasked with advancing through the Deosai Plateau and attack [[Dras]]s, [[Kargil]] and the [[Zojila Pass]].
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| [[File:J&K07low.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Indian Spring Offensive 19 May 1948 – 14 August 1948]]
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| Scholar [[Ahmad Hasan Dani]] states:
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| {{blockquote|... Col. Pasha knew the significance of his strategy very well. He had deployed the Eskimo Force in this direction with the sole purpose of closing the Zojila route before summer set in and to achieve that end it was he who alone knew how best to use the soldiers fighting in different sectors.{{sfn|Dani, History of Northern Areas of Pakistan|2001|p=364}}}}
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| With the Zojila Pass cut off, India's link with [[Leh]] would be severed and the entire Ladakh Wazarat fall into the rebels' hands. These results were substantially achieved by 19 May 1948. India was able to save [[Leh]] only by raising a local militia, [[Ladakh Scouts]], and constructing an emergency airstrip for receiving armaments.
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| === Return to Pakistan ===
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| At this stage, Aslam Khan sent a wireless message to his commander in [[Rawalpindi]]. General [[Douglas Gracey]], the Commander-in-Chief, was "bewildered" and ordered him to report back at his office. Once returned, he was appointed as the private secretary to General Gracey, away from the land of adventure.<ref name=Nation/>
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| Meanwhile, his father Brigadier [[Rehmatullah Khan (Jammu and Kashmir)|Rehmatullah Khan]] was in prison in Kashmir, regarded as an "enemy agent".<ref name=remembers/> He was repatriated to Pakistan on 2 December 1948, as part of a prisoner exchange. Major Daler Singh Bajwa, Aslam Khan's dancing partner in the 1945 victory celebrations, gave him a send off.{{sfn|Bhattacharya, NOTHING BUT!, Book Three|2013|p=136}} The property of Rehmatullah Khan was seized by the State as evacuee property. The family's two cars were later used by [[Sheikh Abdullah]] and [[D. P. Dhar]].<ref>Masood Hussain, [http://kashmirlife.net/did-sheikh-abdullah-go-to-office-in-a-car-seized-from-air-marshall-asgar-khans-father-161318/ Did Sheikh Abdullah go to office in a car seized from Air Marshall Asgar Khan’s father?], Kashmir Life, 7 January 2018.</ref>
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| Aslam Khan was promoted to the one-star rank of [[Brigadier (United Kingdom)|Brigadier]] at an age of 36. He was not promoted further, and retired in 1963.<ref name=Nation/>
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| His younger brother [[Asghar Khan]] rose to be the Commander-in-Chief of the [[Pakistan Air Force]], retiring in 1965.
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| == Shangrila Resort ==
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| [[File:Shangrila, Lower Kachura Lake.jpg|thumb|right|Shangrila Resort on Lower Kachura Lake]]
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| After retirement, Aslam Khan eschewed "politics", and worked for the development of tourism in the trans-Himalayan region of Baltistan. He founded [[Shangrila Resort]] in Skardu, taking inspiration from James Hilton's novel ''[[Lost Horizon]]''. It is now a top tourist destination in Pakistan, and is currently managed by his son Arif Aslam Khan.<ref name=Nation/>
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| == Death ==
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| [[File:Shangrila Resort - The Founder (4947570421).jpg|thumb|Resting place of Khan]]
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| Muhammad Aslam Khan died of natural causes in 1994.<ref name=Nation/>
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| == Notes ==
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| {{notelist}}
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| == References ==
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| {{Reflist|30em}}
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| == Bibliography ==
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| * {{citation |last=Bhattacharya |first=Brigadier Samir |title=NOTHING BUT!: Book Three: What Price Freedom |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HESVAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA42 |date=2013 |publisher=Partridge Publishing |isbn=978-1-4828-1625-9 |ref={{sfnref|Bhattacharya, NOTHING BUT!, Book Three|2013}}}}
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| * {{citation |first=William |last=Brown |title=Gilgit Rebellion: The Major Who Mutinied Over Partition of India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=53BtBQAAQBAJ |year=2014 |publisher=Pen and Sword |isbn=978-1-4738-4112-3 |ref={{sfnref|Brown, Gilgit Rebellion|2014}}}}
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| * {{citation |last=Cheema |first=Brig Amar |title=The Crimson Chinar: The Kashmir Conflict: A Politico Military Perspective |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qc25BwAAQBAJ&pg=PA51 |date=2015 |publisher=Lancer Publishers |isbn=978-81-7062-301-4 |pages=51– |ref={{sfnref|Cheema, Crimson Chinar|2015}}}}
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| * {{citation |last=Dani |first=Ahmad Hasan |authorlink=Ahmad Hasan Dani |title=History of Northern Areas of Pakistan: Upto 2000 A.D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MOltAAAAMAAJ |year=2001 |publisher=Sang-e-Meel Publications |isbn=978-969-35-1231-1 |ref={{sfnref|Dani, History of Northern Areas of Pakistan|2001}}}}
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| * {{citation |last=India |first=Government of |title=India, 1947-50: External affairs |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Tsw5AQAAIAAJ |year=1959 |publisher=Oxford University Press |ref={{sfnref|India, 1947–50: External Affairs|1959}}}}
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| * {{cite book |last=India |first=Government of |title=White Paper on Jammu & Kashmir |date=1948 |publisher=Government of India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=obwBAAAAMAAJ |ref=CITEREFGovernment_of_India,_White_Paper_on_Jammu_&_Kashmir1948}}
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| * {{citation |last=Jha |first=Prem Shankar |title=The Origins of a Dispute: Kashmir 1947 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0kluAAAAMAAJ |year=2003 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-566486-7 |ref={{sfnref|Jha, The Origins of a Dispute|2003}}}}
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| ** {{citation |last=Jha |first=Prem Shankar |authorlink=Prem Shankar Jha |title=Kashmir, 1947: Rival Versions of History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fBORQgAACAAJ |year=1996 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-563766-3 |ref={{sfnref|Jha, Rival Versions of History|1996}}}}
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| * {{citation |last=Khan |first=F. M. |title=The Story of Gilgit, Baltistan and Chitral: A short history of two millenniums AD 7-1999 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y0BuAAAAMAAJ |year=2002 |publisher=Eejaz |ref={{sfnref|F. M. Khan, The Story of Gilgit, Baltistan and Chitral|2002}}}}
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| * {{citation |last=Palit |first=D. K. |title=Jammu and Kashmir Arms: History of the J & K Rifles |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KGZDnzqQj2QC |year=1972 |publisher=Palit & Dutt |ref={{sfnref|Palit, Jammu and Kashmir Arms|1972}}}}
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| * {{citation |last=Schofield |first=Victoria |authorlink=Victoria Schofield |title=Kashmir in Conflict |publisher=I. B. Taurus & Co |location=London and New York |year=2003 |origyear=First published in 2000 |isbn=1860648983 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rkTetMfI6QkC |ref={{sfnref|Schofield, Kashmir in Conflict|2003}}}}
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| * {{citation |last=Singh |first=K. Brahma |title=History of Jammu and Kashmir Rifles, 1820-1956: The State Force Background |url=http://www.brahmasingh.co.nf/books/history%20of%20jammu%20and%20kashmir%20rifles.pdf |publisher=brahmasingh.co.nf |year=2010 |origyear=first published Lancer International 1990 |isbn=978-81-7062-091-4 |ref={{sfnref|Brahma Singh, History of Jammu and Kashmir Rifles|2010}} |access-date=18 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306195332/http://brahmasingh.co.nf/books/history%20of%20jammu%20and%20kashmir%20rifles.pdf |archive-date=6 March 2016 |url-status=dead }}
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| * {{citation |last=Suharwardy |first=Abdul Haq |title=Kashmir: The Incredible Freedom-fight |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XFtuAAAAMAAJ |year=1991 |publisher=Jang Publishers |ref={{sfnref|Suharwardy, Kashmir: The Incredible Freedom-fight|1991}}}}
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| * {{cite book |last1=Suharwardy |first1=Abdul Haq |title=Tragedy in Kashmir |date=1983 |publisher=Wajidalis |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wjRuAAAAMAAJ |ref=CITEREFSuharwardy,_Tragedy_in_Kashmir1983}}
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| * {{citation |last=Whitehead |first=Andrew |title=A Mission in Kashmir |url=http://www.andrewwhitehead.net/full-text-a-mission-in-kashmir.html |year=2007 |publisher=Penguin |isbn=978-0-670-08127-1 |ref={{sfnref|Whitehead, A Mission in Kashmir|2007}}}}
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| * {{cite book |last1=Zaheer |first1=Hasan |title=The Times and Trial of the Rawalpindi Conspiracy 1951: The First Coup Attempt in Pakistan |date=1998 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-577892-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rjNuAAAAMAAJ |ref=CITEREFZaheer,_The_Times_and_Trial_of_the_Rawalpindi_Conspiracy1998}}
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| ==External links==
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| * [http://www.skardu.pk/shangri-la-mythical-place-from-james-hilton-novel-to-a-lake-resort-in-skardu/ Shangri La James Hilton Novel to Resort in Skardu], Skardu.pk, retrieved 18 April 2018.
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| {{Military of Pakistan}}
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| {{DEFAULTSORT:Khan, Muhammad Aslam}}
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| [[Category:1918 births]]
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| [[Category:1994 deaths]]
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| [[Category:People from Jammu and Kashmir]]
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| [[Category:British Indian Army officers]]
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| [[Category:Pashtun people]]
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| [[Category:Indian people of World War II]]
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| [[Category:Pakistan Army officers]]
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| [[Category:People of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947]]
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