Admiral Mansurul Haq ( ur, ; 16 October 1937 – 21 February 2018) was a senior officer of the Pakistan Navy who was forcibly retired from his service in 1997 on the allegations leveled against him in the corruption and kickbacks resulting during the

technology transfer Technology transfer (TT), also called transfer of technology (TOT), is the process of transferring (disseminating) technology from the person or organization that owns or holds it to another person or organization, in an attempt to transform invent ...

of submarines from

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. Driving a policy on anti-corruption by the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

Nawaz Sharif Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (Urdu, Punjabi: ; born 25 December 1949) is a Pakistani businessman and politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms. He is the longest-serving prime minister of Pak ...

, the

Naval Intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist commanders in their decisions. This aim is achieved by providing an assessment of data from a ...

led by

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 ...

Tanvir Ahmad exposed his role that led to his resignation on 1 May 1997. His case attracted subsequent media attention in Pakistan after his extradition from 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 ...

by the joint teams of

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 ...

and NAB. He was held in Sihala Prison to face accountability."Former Pakistani navy chief arrested"
BBC News, 12 April 2001 However, Haq was later released after successfully negotiating a plea bargain. In 2013, he later filed a lawsuit against the

Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the four provinces, two autonomous territorie ...

at the

Sindh High Court The High Court of Sindh ( ur, ) is the highest judicial institution of the Pakistani province of Sindh. Established in 1906, the Court situated in the provincial capital at Karachi. Apart from being the highest Court of Appeal for Sindh in ...

, seeking to restore his rank and other privileges. The government restored his rank but not his privileges.

Biography

Mansurul Haq was born in

Sialkot Sialkot ( ur, ) is a city located in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the capital of Sialkot District and the 13th most populous city in Pakistan. The boundaries of Sialkot are joined with Jammu (the winter capital of Indian administered Jammu and Ka ...

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 ...

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 1937 into a Punjabi family. After his matriculation in Sialkot, he briefly attended the

Murray College Government Murray College Sialkot, (GMC Sialkot) often referred to as Murray College, formerly known as Scotch Mission College, is a government college located in Sialkot in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It was established by the Scottish missio ...

and commissioned in the Pakistan Navy in 1954 as Midshipman. In 1954, he was sent to 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 ...

where he attended 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

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, graduated in

geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, an ...

course in 1956. In 1957, he did his further military training at in

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

where he specialized as gunnery specialist, returned to

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

before being promoted as sub-lieutenant in the Navy in 1958. In 1964–65, Lt. Haq served in the second war with India, and was posted in

East Pakistan East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Myanmar, wi ...

after the war. In 1969–71,

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 ...

Haq was posted in East Pakistan where he was the

Director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

of the

, fighting a war against

in December 1971. He was taken as war prisoner by

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

and was repatriated back to Pakistan following the trilateral agreement signed in 1974. His career progressed extremely well in the Navy, and was sent to attend the

Naval War College The Naval War College (NWC or NAVWARCOL) is the staff college and "Home of Thought" for the United States Navy at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. The NWC educates and develops leaders, supports defining the future Navy and associ ...

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but it ...

in the

where he graduated in management course. In 1983, Captain Haq was promoted to one-star assignment in the Navy NHQ, and Cdre Haq briefly tenured as the ACNS (Ops).Economic Review, Volume 24, Page 94 – Economic & Industrial Publications., 1993 In 1985–89, Cdre Haq served in the Ministry of Defence and later as Director of Joint Training at the JS HQ before being promoted to two-star assignment, and

Haq was made a 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 Commander Pakistan Fleet (COMPAK), and later as Commander Karachi (COMKAR) in 1991–92. On 22 February 2018, his family's spokesperson reportedly announced in a

news media The news media or news industry are forms of mass media that focus on delivering news to the general public or a target public. These include news agencies, print media (newspapers, news magazines), broadcast news (radio and television), and ...

of his death in his estate in

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

and was buried in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates .

Chief of Naval Staff

In 1992,

Haq was promoted to three-star assignment, and was appointed as

secondment Secondment is the assignment of a member of one organisation to another organisation for a temporary period. Job rotation The employee typically retains their salary and other employment rights from their primary organization but they work close ...

at the National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) by then- Chief of Naval Staff Admiral S.M. Khan. However, his chairmanship was caught between the privatization policy led by then-

and Admiral S.M. Khan, when a civilian bureaucrat filed a petition against his tenureship at the

. Vice-Admiral Haq fiercely opposed any attempts of privatization policy, causing a stress on the civil-military relations with the civilian federal government. In 1992, Vice-Admiral Haq announced to sell off the old metal scrap that would raise the revenue of

US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

50–60 million to buy new cargo ships. In 1994,

Benazir Bhutto publicly announced to promote Vice-Admiral Haq as a four-star admiral in the Navy, appointing him as the Chief of Naval Staff. The promotion came with controversy since Vice-Admiral Mansur was due retirement a month before the change was due. Although, it was Admiral

Saeed Mohammad Khan Admiral Saeed Mohammad Khan NI(M) SBt (1 October 1935 – 4 December 2022), was a Pakistan Navy officer who served as the Chief of Naval Staff (CNS) of the Pakistan Navy from 9 November 1991 until retiring from his military service on 9 Nov ...

who had given a go-ahead of procuring the

of the Agosta 90B submarines in 1994 against his discretionary and wanting to directly procure the ''Victoria''-class submarines. Admiral Haq, nonetheless oversaw the financial deals closed in between the Benazir administration and the administrations of Mitterrand and Chirac in 1994–97. In 1995, Adm. Haq held additional talks with the

French Navy The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...

over the strengthening of the cooperation between two nations.

Dismissal and extradition

In 1996–97, the

led by

Tanvir Ahmed Tanvir Ahmed ( bal, تنويراحمد; born 20 December 1978) is a former Pakistani Test cricketer born in Kuwait. Ahmed is mainly a fast-bowler. He played for Pakistan in a first-class match against Worcestershire in the tour of England in ...

began investigating the allegations and rumors at the Navy NHQ surrounding the role of Admiral S.M. Khan and Admiral Haq. The whole nation became completely aware of the scandal in 1998, when the scandal was exposed. In driving the anti-corruption policy by then-

, Admiral Haq's role was exposed by R-Adm

, and was forced retired from his four-star commission in 1997. The

Naval Police Military police (MP) are law enforcement agencies connected with, or part of, the military of a state. In wartime operations, the military police may support the main fighting force with force protection, convoy security, screening, rear recon ...

and officials of the

led by R-Adm.

arrested Admiral Haq but no evidence came out to convict him in 1998. In 1998, Haq

emigrated Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

to the

and settled in Austin in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

where he bought a house. In 1999, the

National Accountability Bureau The National Accountability Bureau ( ur, ; abbreviated NAB) is an autonomous and constitutionally established federal institution responsible to build efforts against corruption and prepare critical national economic intelligence assessments ...

(NAB) announced to open the investigations on Agosta scandal, with French

Tracfin Tracfin (''Traitement du renseignement et action contre les circuits financiers clandestins'') is a service of the French Ministry of Finances. It fights money laundering. Tracfin is a unit of French Ministry for Economy, Finance and Industry an ...

aiding the investigations, where major breakthrough in the investigation was made in 2000–01. In 2001, the anti-corruption courts issued the

arrest warrants An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by a judge or magistrate on behalf of the state, which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual, or the search and seizure of an individual's property. Canada Arrest warrants are issued by a ...

, and

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 ...

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

negotiated with the

U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

George Bush for his extradition to Pakistan. The Texas Ranger detained him in Texas, and extradited him to Pakistan on 17 April 2001. While Haque had a right to fight for his extradition, he choose not to.

Lawsuits, imprisonment and release

In 2001, the Accountability Court inducted Haq in receiving commissions and kickbacks worth $3.369 million in defence deals. Civilian prosecution also leveled charges on him of being involved in financial deals made through selling the metal scrap through the National Shipping Corporation (PNSC), which caused the PNSC to lose $3 million in national exchequer. In 2004, the anti-corruption court sentenced him in rigorous seven-year rigorous imprisonment and fined ₨.2 million. Upon being convicted, the naval police shifted him in the Sihala Prison in

but soon began his negotiation with the

to return the money as plea bargain in exchange of light sentence and minimal jail time. In 2003–05, Haq returned a total sum of $7.5 million while in office, which were immediately shifted back to Navy's national account. The amount was said to be enough to pay the salaries of entire navy for two years. After transferring the amount back to Navy's account, Haq was released from the prison and all cases against him were closed as part of the deal, eventually settling in

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...

. He paid additional

2.5 million which were deposited to Pakistan Navy's account in two easy installment payments, after which, he was released as the NAB agents vacated his house in Karachi. In 2013, Haq filed a lawsuit against the

, seeking to restore his medical privileges, pensions, and four-star rank, at the

. Chief Justice of

, Justice Faisal Arab (now serving as

Justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

in the

Supreme Court of Pakistan The Supreme Court of Pakistan ( ur, ; ''Adālat-e-Uzma Pākistān'') is the apex court in the judicial hierarchy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Established in accordance to thePart VIIof the Constitution of Pakistan, it has ultimate a ...

), heard his appeal as Haq cited his 43 years of military service in the Navy who fought the two wars where he was taken war prisoner by India in 1971. In 2013, the

agreed to restore his rank (as former) and limited medical pensions but not all benefits that are enjoyed by four-star officers in the

Pakistani military The Pakistan Armed Forces (; ) are the military forces of Pakistan. It is the world's sixth-largest military measured by active military personnel and consist of three formally uniformed services—the Army, Navy, and the Air Force, which are ...

Aftermath of Agosta submarine scandal

Later revelation and subsequent knowledge

After the nationwide

general elections A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

held in 2008, which saw the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) forming the

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...

and

Asif Zardari Asif Ali Zardari ( ur, ; sd, ; born 26 July 1955) is a Pakistani politician who is the president of Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians and was the co-chairperson of Pakistan People's Party. He served as the 11th president of Pakista ...

elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population ...

, the knowledge on the Agosta submarines scandal became to emerge again, which brought several PPP politicians being involved in the scandal in public notice. Despite many investigative journalism reports and media airing the information gained on the Agosta submarines scandal, Haq remained silent and refused to appear on the

. Role of Adm. SM Khan and others were also implicated, including the role of Aamir Lodhi, an arms dealer based in France who is also brother of Maleeha Lodhi former Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

, she served from February 2015 to September 2019 . Though, Adm. SM Khan denied his role in such deals as the latter wanted to purchase the ''Victoria''-class submarines in 1994. In 2010, Cdre Shahid Ashraf, the DG NI under Admiral Haq, revealed on the

Dawn News Dawn News is one of Pakistan's 24-hour Urdu news channel. Based in Karachi, the station is a subsidiary of Pakistan Herald Publications Limited (PHPL), Pakistan's largest English-language media group. The test transmission of the station occ ...

that the submarine deal, for which Admiral Mansurul Haq pleaded guilty, was signed before he took charge as Chief of Naval Staff. Shahid Ashraf further claimed that Admiral Haq was not part of the selection team which recommended Agosta 90B for purchase from France. The selection was made during Admiral

. The selection committee included various Admirals including those who subsequently held senior positions after Admiral Haq was removed from his position. However, Shahid Ashraf did not put forward any evidence that proved Haq's innocence. In June 2010, French investigators raided the house of Amir Lodhi, and handed over the important documents relating the defence deals to the NAB. The reports confiscated by the French investigators revealed to have found in regards involvement of former

Asif Ali Zardari Asif Ali Zardari ( ur, ; sd, ; born 26 July 1955) is a Pakistani politician who is the president of Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians and was the co-chairperson of Pakistan People's Party. He served as the 11th president of Pakist ...

who had have received

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists ...

33 million while Amir Lodhi's share was

2.9 million."Zardari 'pocketed millions' in French subs deal: report"
''Nation'', 15 January 2011 About the case study and trial of the Haq, former chief of naval staff, Adm.

Abdul Aziz Mirza Admiral Abdul Aziz Mirza ( ur, ; born 1943) was a Pakistan Navy officer who served as the Chief of Naval Staff from 1999 until retiring in 2002, amid taking over the command of the Navy after the revolt and resignation Admiral Fasih Bokhari ...

reportedly quoted in the

that "former Naval Chief Mansurul haq was not convicted of Agosta kickbacks but for the bribes he had pocketed in other defence deals."

Awards and Decorations

Foreign Decorations

References

External links

* * * *

Media coverage

*Reporters aired by Dawn News
in a host of

Arshad Sharif Arshad Sharif ( ur, ; 22 February 1973 – 23 October 2022) was a Pakistani journalist, writer, and television news anchor. He specialised in investigative journalism and covered many political events in the country for national and internati ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Haq, Mansurul 1937 births 2018 deaths Punjabi people People from Sialkot Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College Pakistani military personnel of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 Pakistani prisoners of war Naval War College alumni Pakistan Naval War College alumni Pakistan Navy admirals Government of Benazir Bhutto staffers and personnel Pakistani civil servants Pakistani chief executives Chiefs of Naval Staff (Pakistan) Pakistani expatriates in the United States Controversies in Pakistan Corruption in Pakistan Pakistani prisoners and detainees Prisoners and detainees of Pakistan Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government Prisoners and detainees of Texas Pakistani expatriates in the United Arab Emirates People from Karachi