Brigadier Imtiaz Ahmed - Complete Details of Life and Controversies

Brigadier Imtiaz has suddenly emerged into the lime light of media for his statements giving insight into the murky politics of Pakistan in 1990’s. Since being a Pro-Pakistan, i personally hate the era of 1990’s when our politicians made fun of the democracy and brought misery into the life of common citizens of Pakistan. Even Musharraf can be termed an indirect product of the actions of the political governments of 90’s.

Brigadier Imtiaz, the men whose in the headlines these days, is also one of the insider to the dramas and corruption carried out in the same 90’s era by Benazir Bhutto PPP, Nawaz Sharif PML and Altaf Hussain MQM. Let’s see first whose Brigadier Imtiaz himself and how come he has so much insider info that he has attracted the attention of the whole country towards himself? Why he emerged now to clear his conscience and what is his point of view on the the said situation. I will try to quote as many sources as possible so that our readers have a clear idea about the whole scenario.

Brigadier Imtiaz Ahmed



Brigadier Imtiaz Ahmed is a former director of Pakistan’s Intelligence Bureau (IB) between 1990-1993 and former senior operative in the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). He earned notoriety for his role in the covert Operation Midnight Jackal to destabilize the government of Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in 1989. He was imprisoned on corruption charges in 2001 as part of the national accountability drive of former President Pervaiz Musharraf.

Brigadier Imtiaz Ahmed Revealations

Brigadier Imtiaz Ahmed emerged is best described by PassionateaboutPakistan blog site in the following words

”On August 23 he went on a live talk show joined on the phone by Lt. Gen. (Rtd.) Naseer Akhtar who was the Corps Commander Karachi overseeing the 1992 military operation against MQM. The two made several confessions and retracted past claims and eventually closed their double act by concluding that MQM never had any separatist designs and maps of the alleged independent state Jinnahpur were fake and were never found from MQM headquarters in Karachi. The MQM representative then put in a weak melodramatic performance and the show ended.
Since then Brig Imtiaz has been on every talk show on Pakistan’s news media. The matter has been spiced up by another former DG of ISI Lt. Gen. (Rtd.) Asad Durrani who has re-launched his story about bribing politicians.
This has taken over most of the air time on Pakistani news media, the little time remaining has been dedicated to sugar, flour, electricity and other ongoing crisis.

The same story has been narrated in different version by different media houses and blog sites. Some are trying to portray the story by taking side of one party and others are trying to take side of another party. Some even questioned as to why this whole drama emerged at this moment in history when everyone forgot it all together.

According to Pakistan Daily:
Brig (r) Imtiaz, the ghost of past, has suddenly appeared out of the blue to haunt many in the establishment and political arena. On daily basis, he is revealing something new about the past.

Regardless of the authenticity of his claims, he has surely managed to capture the attention at the national and even at the international level. With his appearance, many other ex-army men have also come out and they are telling their own stories.

Maj (r) Nadeem Dar, who actually produced the Jinnahpur from the offices of the MQM has also spoken and so is the former director Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Malik Mumtaz Ahmad. Brig (r) Imtiaz is the one who has opened up the Pandora Box and now everyone is slinging mud and the nation wonders who is right and who is wrong, because every anchorperson at the private channel is tryng to muddy the waters as much as possible to get more attention.

Brig Imtiaz says that he still knows much but will divulge the facts as the time comes. He has already revealed much. He says that he gave away money to the Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, and he says that Humuyan Akhtar Khan also enjoyed the looted money, who is the son of a former general. He also alleged that Ghulam Mustafa Khar, once popular leader of PPP was linked to Indian spy agency RAW. He also says that Hameed Gul sent money to Altaf Hussain, who refused to take it. He also said that the pictures of Nusrat Bhutto with President Ford were also fake. He also talked about giving money to politicians and he also admitted horse trading.

Brigadier Imtiaz Ahmed has also hurled accusations at American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) for sabotaging Pakistan Nuclear program. The extent of those allegations reveal the true intentions of our long time ally and how it has tried to bring us down on many occasions. According to The News story that cited Brig Imtiaz as a source:

While serving for the ISI, he recalled, he had conducted the operation ‘Rising Sun’ in 1979 that successfully thwarted a CIA plot to target Pakistanís nuclear programme. The operation concluded with the arrest and conviction of a Pakistani CIA agent, declaration of a few undercover CIA agents and US diplomats as personae non gratae and their return.

In the second case, Brigadier (retd) Imtiaz said, he, as the Intelligence Bureau chief, had discovered another CIA plot being operated through a third country mainly to hit the countryís nuclear programme.

Talking to The News here on Monday, Brigadier Imtiaz said that in the late 70s, the CIA spotted one Rafiq Munshi, a graduate of Karachi University, and took him to the US to be trained on nuclear technicalities and intelligence skills. Later, he got appointed in Kanup Karachi as an engineer.

It was in 1979 when he was launched back by the CIA with a mission to penetrate into the country’s nuclear network with two clear objectives. Firstly, to provide them (CIA) information about the nuclear programme’s development, security and protection measures for the nuclear installations and identification of nuclear scientists working on sensitive assignments. Secondly, he was assigned to create an opportunity, when given signal, for a technical sabotage of certain nuclear installations.

Imtiaz said that Rafiq Munshi was provided substantial financial aid and was made to operate in close coordination with a few special CIA operators, who were undercover agents and working under diplomatic cover in the US embassy in Islamabad and its consulate in Karachi.

Imtiaz said during those days he was posted in Karachi as a Lt-Colonel and the ISI chief in Sindh. After getting the clue of the plot and personally monitoring it for several months, he disclosed, he conducted the operation ‘Rising Sun’. He said that the operation was conducted in a very secret manner and it was only between him and the then DG ISI Maj General Riaz Muhammad Khan as to what was going on against the countryís nuclear programme.

“I fell impelled to pay greatest tributes to the then DG ISI Maj General Riaz Muhammad Khan, who not only encouraged me but also gave me complete authority to fearlessly conduct the operation,” Imtiaz said, adding that the operation that consumed 8-10 months finally ended up successfully with the arrest of Rafiq Munshi from Karachi while the undercover CIA agents were returned to Washington after being declared as personae non gratae.

According to Imtiaz, he was later summoned by the then ruler General Ziaul Haq, whom he briefed on the operation ‘Rising Sun’ and its outcome. “After hearing all the details, General Ziaul Haq immediately went to another room to talk to the US president. And what I assessed from his body language as soon as he returned after making the telephone call was a clear message that Zia had lodged a forceful protest with the Americans over its plot against Pakistan’s nuclear programme.”

Brigadier (retd) Imtiaz said that he was decorated with Sitar-i-Rasalat for foiling the CIA plot. However, he said, Rafique Munshi, who was sentenced to life imprisonment, was released during Benazir Bhutto’s first government and got closely associated with the Pakistan People’s Party.

Talking about the second CIA plot targeting Pakistanís nuclear programme that he had successfully foiled, he said that he did it during his stint as DG Intelligence Bureau in Nawaz Sharifís first tenure and at a time when tension between the then president Ghulam Ishaq Khan and PM Nawaz Sharif was at its peak.

Sharing the details of the plot, he said that he got a clue about an individual, who was in contact with an Islamabad-based ambassador of a European country, which was operating for the CIA as a third country. “I personally got in contact with the individual and made a concerted effort to motivate him to work in the national interest instead of becoming an agent of the countryís enemies.” Imtiaz said that he had succeeded in persuading the individual, who later agreed to work for Pakistan as a double agent and for the same reason, the ex-DG IB said, he was duty bound not to disclose his identity. The retired brigadier said that through briefing and debriefings of the same individual, who was nick-named as “Star”, he came to know about the details of the plot that was being hatched against Pakistan by the CIA.

Imtiaz disclosed that “Star” was taken to the US where he had received instructions as how he was supposed to operate. Heavily financed, “Star” when came back told the IB chief in his debriefing that he was assigned multiple tasks but the topmost assignment was to find out complete details of the deficiency in the security system of Pakistanís nuclear programme, the exact location of strategic arsenals and the nature of their security arrangements and weaknesses. “Star”, he said, was also asked to create a favourable lobby in the corridors of power to seek policy decisions on the Kashmir issue in accordance with the aspiration of Washington. Imtiaz said that “Star” was also asked to fuel regionalism with focus on the activation of the demand for the creation of a Seraiki province. In this regard, Imtiaz said, “Star” was to create an NGO based in Islamabad and having branches in Bahawalpur and Sindh.

Imtiaz said that one more assignment given to “Star” by the CIA was to weaken the extreme emotional attachment of the common Pakistanis with Islamic values. He said that his interaction with “Star” continued and the latter was successfully working as a double agent for Pakistan till the dismissal of the Nawaz Sharif government, which also led to his immediate resignation.

Accusations against Brigadier Imtiaz Ahmed:
Since the eruption of recent stories involving Brig Imtiaz Ahmed, a lot of his ex colleagues and senior member of our security agencies have blamed him with serious allegations. Some called him a product of NRO while other dubbed him an agent of Americans. However, i personally feel that he is not an agent of Americans because he would have never revealed the attempts by CIA to sabotage our Nuclear installations. According to Ex Director of FIA Malik Mumtaz Ahmed as reported by Haqeeqat:

Brig (retd) Imtiaz Ahmed is an American agent planted by the American agencies mainly to defame the Pakistani intelligence agencies, former director Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Malik Mumtaz Ahmad said on Thursday.

While addressing a press conference, he said after having played a key role in toppling the Benazir government in 1990, Brig Imtiaz was now bent on destabilising the present government.
“He is playing in the hands of American agencies to destabilise the political system,” Malik Mumtaz averred. “He is opposing Mian Nawaz Sharif to get entrance in the PPP camp,” he added.

He appealed to the Supreme Court to take suo moto notice against Brig Imtiaz and reopen his corruption cases. He claimed Brig Imtiaz’s “anti-state activities” were creating confusion in the political system.

The former FIA chief alleged Brig Imtiaz had collected illegal wealth during his tenure as IB head. Malik said that a corruption case was lodged with the FIA after the brigadierís removal during the Benazir government. However, the FIA did not pursue the case in the court, and, consequently, it was dismissed.

Malik said Brig Imtiaz made 27 valuable properties and a heavy account in a bank of London, adding, he got himself freed from the cases by using his influence during the Nawaz government in 1997.

The second case of corruption against Brig Imtiaz was registered by the Account Appellate Bureau chairman in 2000, Malik said, adding that the detailed list of his properties was attached with the petition. The properties included three houses and three commercial units in Islamabad as well as foreign exchange bearing certificates to the tune of Rs 20.8 million.

He said a court sentenced Brig Imtiaz to eight years rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 7 million, also confiscating his assets. The court disqualified him for ten years for holding any public office or statutory or local authority. But he, taking advantage of the NRO, managed to retake his property.

Malik disclosed that before his “retirement at fault” from the Army in 1988, Brig Imtiaz had declared his total asset as a two-kanal plot at the Lahore Cantt Officers Society (Phase-II) and a 2,000-square-yard plot in the Defence Housing Society, Karachi. He questioned how Imtiaz made property worth billions of rupees as IB chief.

he mention of the assets of Brigadier Imtiaz took place at another source as well. I wonder if these claims are true, it will be a big shock for a common Pakistani citizen who can not afford to buy food for his family. Just imagine the level of corruption by a person of Brigadier rank who also served as head of Intelligence Bureau. According to ACSA:

After capturing power on October 12, 1999, Gen Pervez Musharraf had Brig Imtiaz, because of his proximity to Mr Nawaz Sharif, arrested and prosecuted for having assets disproportionate to his known sources of income as an officer of the ISI and the Intel ligence Bureau.

He was convicted by a court on July 31, 2001, and jailed for eight years. According to evidence produced in the court by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Brig Imtiaz had foreign exchange bearer certificates worth $20.08 million, a Pakistani rupe e account in the Union Bank with a balance of Rs 2.13 billion, a dollar account in Deutsche Bank with a balance of $19.1 million, five residential houses, five commercial units and three shops. This huge wealth was allegedly accumulated by him through heroin smuggling.


After the emergence of all these allegations and controversies, the court has also been dragged into the situation. According to a story published in AllVoices:

The Sindh High Court (SHC) was moved on Tuesday to order the arrest of former Intelligence Bureau chief Brig (r) Imtiaz Ahmed Billa, terming his recent revelations aimed at destabilising the political process in the country. Filing the petition, lawyer Sohail Hameed said the former IB chief was pursuing a foreign agenda and paving way for the invasion of Pakistan by external forces.

The irony is that such controveries have never been solved in Pakistan. We faced incidents like 1971 debacle, Judicial Murder of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, Assassination of Zia Ul Haque, Assassination of Murtaza Bhutto, Death of Air Chief Mussaf Ali Mir in Air Crash and the latest assassination of Benazir Bhutto. Till date the public knows nothing through the official channels while everyone knows one thing for sure through the experience of their own that our internal corrupt practices and the external interference of America is directly or indirectly involved in all the quoted incidents. However, will it make any difference? Will our future leaders learn from the mistakes committed by our previous leaders? Unless we learn to live with dignity and our people learn to fight for their rights and against the oppression, nothing is going to change. Another Brigadier Imtiaz will emerge with far more shocking stories but it will not make any difference since same Nawaz Sharif will be re elected again and again and same Bhutto Zardari family will keep controlling our future while spending their lives abroad.

http://www.pro-pakistan.com/2009/09/...controversies/