After merely a year, Suhrawardy resigned from his Premiership in October 1957. His resignation came as a result of the President’s refusal to convene a meeting of the Parliament to seek a vote of confidence. President Iskander Mirza appointed I. I. Chundrigar as the interim Prime Minister. Being a nominated Prime Minister, Chundrigar held a weak position from the very beginning. He headed a coalition government including the Krishak Sramik Party, Nizam-i-Islam Party, the Muslim League and the Republican Party. The Muslim League had agreed to form a coalition government with the Republican Party on the condition that by amending the Electoral Act, the principle of separate electorate would be implemented in the country.
After the formation of the Cabinet, Ministers from East Pakistan and the Republican Party started opposing the proposed amendments. The Republican Party opposed the amendment as it wanted to gain advantage over its political opponent, the Muslim League.
Iskander Mirza exploited the differences between the parties and thus made Chundrigar an easy victim as he remained Prime Minister for only two months and therefore could not give any practical shape to his program.
This article was last updated on Sunday, June 01, 2003
