The Assassination of Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan

Abstract

The fateful journey
Before embarking on his fateful journey on the morning of 16 October 1951, Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan said to his wife that he was going to make the greatest speech of his life. ‘What it would be about’? Begum Liaquat Ali asked him. ‘It would be a policy making speech’, replied the premier.1 He was certainly going to give a surprise to the nation.
Liaquat Ali Khan arrived at Rawapindi Chaklala air base in Governor General’s aircraft ‘Viking’ at 11:30 a.m. He was going to address a public meeting organized by Pakistan Muslim League, Rawalpindi. The Prime Minister arrived at around 4:00 p.m. in the Company Bagh. ‘A huge crowd of about 1,00,000 persons had assembled to welcome and listen to the Premier’.2