Admiral Karamat Rahman Niazi ( ur, ; usually shortened to K.R. Niazi) (died 4 May 2021) was a senior officer of Pakistan Navy who served as the Chief of Naval Staff (CNS) from 1979 to 1983 of Pakistan Navy. He was renowned for being the commander of the submarine PNS ''Ghazi'' during the second war with

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

in 1965, for which he was decorated. In 1979, he took over the command of the Pakistan Navy as its Chief of Naval Staff and worked in close coordination with

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Zia-ul-Haq General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq HI, GCSJ, ร.ม.ภ, ( Urdu: ; 12 August 1924 – 17 August 1988) was a Pakistani four-star general and politician who became the sixth President of Pakistan following a coup and declaration of martial ...

on the matters of national security throughout the 1980s.

Biography

Naval career and between wars

Karamat Rahman Niazi was born in

Hoshiarpur Hoshiarpur () is a city and a municipal corporation in Hoshiarpur district in the Doaba region of the Indian state of Punjab. It was founded, according to tradition, during the early part of the fourteenth century. In 1809, it was occupied b ...

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

, to a

Pashtun Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...

noble family who belonged to the Niazi tribe. After graduating from a local high school, he commissioned in the Pakistan Navy as a midshipman in 1948 in Operations Branch and initially did his training at the

Britannia Royal Naval College Britannia Royal Naval College (BRNC), commonly known as Dartmouth, is the naval academy of the United Kingdom and the initial officer training establishment of the Royal Navy. It is located on a hill overlooking the port of Dartmouth, Devon, En ...

in Dartmouth in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. Upon returning, he was promoted as sub-lieutenant and his career in the Navy progressed extremely well, eventually being promoted to

lieutenant-commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank i ...

in 1962. In 1963, Lieutenant-Commander Niazi was directed to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

to complete a training on the submarine operations, and qualified for his training from the , alongside then-

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

Ahmad Tasnim. Upon commissioning of PNS ''Ghazi'' in the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...

in 1963, Niazi was promoted as commander and was the first commanding officer of the nation's first submarine, ''Ghazi''. On 2 September in 1965, ''Ghazi'' was deployed to Bombay coast under Niazi's command, initially covertly patrolling the

Rann of Kutch The Rann of Kutch (alternately spelled as Kuchchh) is a large area of salt marshes that span the border between India and Pakistan. It is located in Gujarat (primarily the Kutch district), India, and in Sindh, Pakistan. It is divided into ...

coastal areas. However, his mission was to remain off the Bombay coast and engage only major warships of the

Indian Navy The Indian Navy is the maritime branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy. As a blue-water navy, it operates si ...

which were close to the

Karachi coast The Port of Karachi ( ur, , ''Bandar gāh Karāchī'') is one of South Asia's largest and busiest deep-water seaports, handling about 60% of the nation's cargo (25 million tons per annum) located in Karachi, Pakistan. It is located on the Karac ...

. After the naval shelling by the Pakistan Navy of

Dwarka Dwarka () is a city and a municipality of Devbhumi Dwarka district in the state of Gujarat in Western India. It is located on the western shore of the Okhamandal Peninsula on the right bank of the Gomti river at the mouth of the Gulf of Kut ...

, India, ''Ghazi'' again returned to patrol off the Rann of Kutch area and identified two warships, but did not engage them. On 17 September 1965, Commander Niazi ordered the firing of three Mk. 14 torpedoes at the INS ''Brahmaputra'' when it was identified by its navigator officers. He ordered an increase in depth to evade the counter attack, as there were three distant explosions heard. Niazi logged the explosions in the war logs, but ''Brahmaputra'' was not sunk nor had it released any depth charges, as no homing signals were detected by the submarine's computers. After a

ceasefire A ceasefire (also known as a truce or armistice), also spelled cease fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be between state act ...

was enforced by the two nations, Niazi decided to continue patrolling the

Arabian sea The Arabian Sea ( ar, اَلْبَحرْ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Bahr al-ˁArabī) is a region of the northern Indian Ocean bounded on the north by Pakistan, Iran and the Gulf of Oman, on the west by the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel ...

and safely reported back to its base on 23 September 1965. At Navy NHQ, Niazi submitted his mission report, but did not submit an inquiry report of three mysterious explosions that were heard during the course of the mission. Niazi and Lieutenant-Commander

Tasnim Tasnim (''Tasnīm'') or Tasneem may refer to: *a well of water in Paradise according to Islam Given name * Tasneem Essop, South African politician * Tasneem Motara (born 1982), South African politician * Tasneem Roc, Australian television and fi ...

were publicly decorated with Sitara-e-Jurat by

Ayub Khan for their actions. Niazi commanded ''Ghazi'' until 1967 before being promoted to captain and taking a staff assignment at Navy NHQ. In 1971, he was promoted to

commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore ...

and temporarily held the rank of

rear-admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

to assume the Submarine Command during the third war with

. In 1972, Commodore Niazi assumed the command of the Pakistan Fleet before being selected to attend the National Defence University in

Islamabad Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital ...

to complete a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in strategic studies, also in 1972. Upon graduating in 1976, his promotion in the Navy was extremely quick due to the dismissal of senior flag ranking officers. He was immediately promoted to two-star

, becoming the senior

fleet commander The Fleet Commander is a senior Royal Navy post, responsible for the operation, resourcing and training of the ships, submarines and aircraft, and personnel, of the Naval Service. The Vice-Admiral incumbent is required to provide ships, submarine ...

as the head of the Pakistan Fleet. In 1977, he was promoted as vice-admiral and appointed Vice Chief of Naval Staff (VCNS), where he was instrumental in incorporating new ideas on

anti-submarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are t ...

methods.

Chief of Naval Staff

Vice-Admiral Niazi was promoted as four-rank admiral in the Navy and assumed command of the Navy from Admiral

Mohammad Shariff Admiral Mohammad Shariff ( ur, ; 1 July 1920 – 27 April 2020), was a Pakistan Navy senior admiral, who served as the 2nd Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and a memoirist who was at the center of all the major decisions made ...

as its Chief of Naval Staff on 22 March 1979. Admiral Niaz was honored with

Nishan-i-Imtiaz The Nishan-e-Imtiaz (; ) is one of the state organized civil decorations of Pakistan. It is awarded for achievements towards world recognition for Pakistan or outstanding service for the country. However, the award is not limited to citizens o ...

(Military), which is awarded to all the services chiefs upon taking over their respective commands by the President. As Chief of Naval Staff, he played a crucial role in stabilizing the

administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal ** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, admini ...

and was appointed

martial law administrator Marcus Valerius Martialis (known in English as Martial ; March, between 38 and 41 AD – between 102 and 104 AD) was a Roman poet from Hispania (modern Spain) best known for his twelve books of '' Epigrams'', published in Rome between AD 86 an ...

under President Zia. Admiral Niazi worked in close coordination with Zia on the national security issues, including those involving internal security. After the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

intervened in neighboring

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

, Admiral Niazi gave authorization to the Navy's depot command in Karachi to store arms and weapons bought by the

under a covert operation to secretly arm the Afghan mujahideen fighting the Soviet Union. His interests in the country's

economy An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with the ...

was also noted when aiding in preparation of federal budgets. During the same time, he maintained close ties with the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

and held discussion on upgrading the existing naval infrastructure in the country., His tenure lasted only three years, and he retired on 22 March 1983, handing over command of the Navy to Admiral Tariq Kamal Khan.

Post-retirement

After his retirement, Admiral K.R. Niazi lived a very quiet life and lived on military pension. He did not seek public office, but became a member of ''

Tablighi Jamaat Tablighi Jamaat (, also translated as "propagation party" or "preaching party") is a transnational Deobandi Islamic Dawah, missionary movement that focuses on exhorting Muslims to be more religiously observant and encouraging fellow memb ...

'' in his later life serving on missionary activities throughout his life. On 23 January 2008, Admiral Niazi was among the retired senior military officers from the Ex-Servicemen Association who called for

Parvez Musharraf General (Pakistan), General Pervez Musharraf ( ur, , Parvez Muśharraf; born 11 August 1943) is a former Pakistani politician and General (Pakistan), four-star general of the Pakistan Army who became the tenth president of Pakistan after t ...

's resignation in order to pave the way for a complete restoration of

democracy Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which people, the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation ("direct democracy"), or to choo ...

and

law and order In modern politics, law and order is the approach focusing on harsher enforcement and penalties as ways to reduce crime. Penalties for perpetrators of disorder may include longer terms of imprisonment, mandatory sentencing, three-strikes laws a ...

in the country. In 2009 and 2014, it was reported that Admiral Niazi had been secretly monitored by the

FIA FIA is the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (English: International Automobile Federation), the world's governing body for all forms of motor sport where four or more wheels are used. Fia or FIA may also refer to: People * Fia Backs ...

for his alleged and controversial activities in the country, though no charges were ever leveled against him.

Awards and decorations

References

External links

Official website of Pakistan Navy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Niazi, Karamat Rahman Date of birth missing Pashtun people People from Karachi Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College Military personnel of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 Submarine commanders Pakistan Navy admirals Admirals of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 Pakistani military personnel of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 Chiefs of Naval Staff (Pakistan) Military government of Pakistan (1977–1988) People of the Soviet–Afghan War Pakistani Sunni Muslims 2008 controversies Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan politicians Pakistani Muslim activists Pakistani Islamists Controversies in Pakistan 2014 controversies People from Mianwali District 2021 deaths Year of birth missing