History is not merely a chronological record of events; it is also a repository of unanswered questions, lingering doubts, and suppressed truths that, rather than fading with time, grow deeper and more complex. World history is replete with incidents that, despite the passage of decades, have failed to yield any final or universally accepted conclusions. Investigations have been conducted, commissions constituted, books written, and films produced—yet the truth repeatedly proves elusive: clear from a distance, but vanishing upon closer scrutiny. Pakistan’s political history, in particular, is marked by such enigmas, where the deaths and accidents of individuals occupying the highest offices of the state remain shrouded in uncertainty.

Within Pakistan’s national narrative, three tragedies stand out with singular prominence—events that not only shook the very foundations of the state but also created a lasting atmosphere of suspicion among the public. These tragedies are associated with the country’s first Prime Minister, Liaquat Ali Khan; the first woman Prime Minister of the Muslim world, Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto; and President General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq. Ideologically distinct and politically diverse, these three figures were united by a shared calamity: deaths whose true causes have never been fully and conclusively revealed.

The 27th of December 2007 stands as a dark day in Pakistan’s political history. On that day, Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto, having addressed........

© Naya Daur