KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION
COMPETITIVE EXAMINATION FOR THE POSTS OF PMS-2025
HISTORY OF PAKISTAN AND INDIA PAPER-II
Time Allowed: 03 Hours Total Marks: 100
Note:- Attempt any five questions.
Q.No.1 Analyze the factors that led to the British East India Company’s ultimate success over its European rivals, particularly the French, in India. Was British ascendancy an inevitable outcome of superior naval power and economic organization, or was it a contingent result of specific political and military decisions made during the Carnatic Wars? (20)
Q.No.2 Critically evaluate the legacy of Shah Waliullah’s political revivalism. While his intellectual contributions are profound, to what extent were his efforts to unite the fractious Muslim nobility and invite foreign intervention a realistic political strategy in the fragmented landscape of 18th-century India? (20)
Q.No.3 Trace the evolution of Sir Syed’s views on Hindu-Muslim relations, from his early inclusive statements (e.g., the ‘beautiful bride’ analogy) to his later, more separatist stance. Was this a fundamental ideological shift, or was it a pragmatic political realignment in response to specific events like the Hindi-Urdu controversy and the formation of the Indian National Congress? (20)
Q.No.4 Assess the role of provincial politics, particularly in Punjab and Bengal, in the eventual success of the Pakistan Movement. Was the creation of Pakistan primarily a victory of the All-India Muslim League’s central leadership, or was it critically dependent on the shifting allegiances and eventual collapse of regional, cross-communal parties like the Unionist Party? (20)
Q.No.5 Critically assess the role of Lord Mountbatten as the last Viceroy. Was his decision to accelerate the date of independence a necessary measure to avoid a full-scale civil war, or was it a reckless act that exacerbated the administrative chaos and bloodshed of Partition? (20)
Q.No.6 Assess the significance of the Objectives Resolution passed under Liaquat Ali Khan in 1949. Was it a visionary document that successfully balanced Islamic principles with modern democratic ideals, or was it a compromising text whose inherent ambiguities created a lasting constitutional and ideological conflict in Pakistan? (20)
Q.No.7 Critically evaluate Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan’s foreign policy, culminating in his visit to the United States in 1950. Was this alignment with the Western bloc a pragmatic and necessary choice for a new state seeking security and economic aid, or did it prematurely lock Pakistan into Cold War politics, sacrificing a potentially independent, non-aligned foreign policy? (20)
Q.No.8 Analyze the 1952 Language Movement as a foundational event. How did the struggle for the recognition of the Bengali language lay the groundwork for a distinct cultural and linguistic nationalism in East Pakistan, separate from the religion-based nationalism that had created the country? (20)