ABSTRACT
The Pakistanis call conflict the Battle for East Pakistan; the Indians, the Bangladesh War; and the Bengali Muslims of East Pakistan, the 1971 Liberation War. Both Indian and Pakistani military officers have written about the military aspect of the 1971 Bangladesh War. India’s strategy was to repay Pakistan for its irredentist policies, particularly the support of secessionism in Kashmir. Several East Pakistani officers of the Pakistan Army took an active part in organizing the insurgency against the occupying Pakistani troops. The divergence in opinion among the top brass as regards the proper military strategy to be followed against East Pakistan was partly due to the fact that no clear political guidelines were issued by Indian government. Tactics upto the level of brigade and division were taught, but there was a void as regards planning in the higher level. The Indian Army’s tactics were similar to those followed by Lieutenant-General A.E. Percival’s Australian, British and Indian troops at Malaya in 1941–1942.
