Ghulam Muhammad Malik

This article is about the Pakistani Army commander suspected and exonerated in the 1995 Pakistani coup d'état attempt. For the former Pakistani Governor-General, see Malik Ghulam Muhammad.

Ghulam Muhammad Malik
Nickname	General G. M. malik
Born	Khushab
Allegiance	Pakistan
Service/branch	Pakistan Army
Years of service	1958–1995
Rank	Lieutenant General
Unit	X Corps
Commands held	12th Infantry Division Pakistan Military Academy X Corps DG Military Intelligence (DGMI)
Battles/wars	Indo-Pakistan War of 1965 Indo-Pakistan War of 1971
Other work	Run a Charity NGO in Uk

Lieutenant General Ghulam Muhammad Malik (also called G.M. Malik) is former commander of the X Corps, Rawalpindi of the Pakistan Army. X Corps was responsible to defend the entire Line of Control between Pakistan and Indian-held Kashmir. He retired from the army in 1995, and has since been heading an NGO to build hospitals and medical facilities for the poor in various parts of Pakistan.

Education and career

Gen. Malik belongs to the Awan tribe and he is from Khushab which is one of the prime recruiting areas for Pakistan army. His was one of the most brilliant careers in Pakistan Army. As a cadet in PMA , he was selected to be sent to Royal Military Academy Sandhurst where he was declared the best cadet and won the sword of honour.

Lt Gen Ghulam Muhammad Malik is a graduate of PAF Public School Sargodha where he was from 1st Entry (1953–1957).

He joined Pakistan Army in the late 1950s, and rose up through the ranks to become a Lieutenant General on the basis of merit rules. During his career, he served as commandant Pakistan Military Academy from 1987-1989. He also commanded the elite Special Service Group. In the 1990s, he was given the command of the powerful X Corps, which has successfully thwarted incursions and attacks from the Indian forces along the Kashmir Line of Control over the years.

A brief pall of suspicion was cast on Gen. Malik's career when the coup against Benazir government was foiled in September 1995. Malik was initially suspected to be involved. However, he was immediately exonerated from any suspicion as "no direct link had been established between him and the coup plotters".^[1] In fact, he would have been a victim of the attack on the Corps Commanders Conference which was the target had the coup been successful.

Malik was known for his orthodox religious piety and was a supporter of Tablighi Jamaat, a non-political Islamic party which essentially enjoins goodness in society. He was known to inspire and inculcate religious zeal amongst his junior officers and Jawans

Lt. Gen. G. M. Malik retired in October 1995 and was succeeded by then DG Military Intelligence (DGMI) Maj Gen Ali Kuli Khan Khattak. Rumours spread that Malik was an associate of Sufi Iqbal of the Tablighi Jamaat, who was known to inspire Jihadi zeal, despite of the non-political stand of Tablighi Jamaat. However, no connection between Sufi Iqbal and Gen Malik could be established. It was during tenure the Lashkar e Toiba (LeT) chief Hafiz Saeed was invited Headquarters X Corps to address officers on character building. It was Saeed's controversial utterances and that of the other speaker, Major General Zaheerul Islam Abbasi, which compelled many officers to protest loudly. After this incident, the then COAS Gen. Kakar order GM Malik to stop such sessions. General Abbasi was later implicated in a coup attempt. After the investigations, a total of 36 Army officers headed by Maj Gen Zahirul Islam Abbasi and 20 civilians were arrested and tried.^[2]

Charitable Activities / Al-Mustafa Trust

After his retirement from the army in 1995, Gen. Malik formed an NGO to provide free healthcare for poor people under the name of Al-Mustafa Trust. He has been the Chairman of the Trust, an NGO providing primary health care free of cost to the poor and needy people of Pakistan since its inception in 1998. This organization is certified by the Pakistan Center for Philanthropy as a genuine NGO. Al-Mustafa Trust has benefited hundreds of thousands of poor people over these years.^[3] Gen. Malik is supported by a group of retired officers and some enthusiastic young businessmen.

The Trust currently owns and operates hospitals and medical centers in Rawalpindi and Karachi. In addition, it has rural health centers in Danda Shah Bilawal, Kamal Pur Musa, Chawali and Kanyat Khalil. The medical centers provide facilities for G.P. Clinics, Surgery, Cardiac care, Pulmonology, Ophthalmology, Dentistry, Gynaecology / Obstetrics, and Psycho/Speech Therapy. The main center has a Pathology Laboratory, X-Ray room, ECG and Ultra Sound facilities, and a well-equipped operation theater. Al Mustafa Trust Medical Centre Chaklala Scheme III has also been declared as T.B Centre by the Ministry of Health.

The Trust is also registered officially in the UK as a charitable body and is governed by the laws of UK Charity Commission.^[4]

References

1. ^ "FOCUS ON PAKISTAN'S TABLIGHI JAMAAT" Monthly Herald, November 1995
2. ^ Praveen Swami. "A Circle of Hate" Frontline by The Hindu, October 11–24, 2003
3. ^ "Al-Mustafa Trust Executive Committee" Al-Mustafa Trust website
4. ^ "Al-Mustafa Trust Postal Addresses"

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Persondata
Name
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Short description
Date of birth
Place of birth	Khushab
Date of death
Place of death