Nauroz Khan

Nawab Nauroz (Nowroz) Khan (1868?–1964), also known by Balochs as Dada (baluchi for grandfather) Nowroz, was the head of the Zarakzai (Zehri), a subject to the Khan of Kalat in Balochistan, British India (the area was not in British India until 1875). After his unsuccessful insurgency against the government of that time he was imprisoned in Kohlu jail where he died in 1964.

Early years

Little is known about Nowroz Khan's early years. He was born some time in the 1860s or 1870s at a time when Kalat was a princely state within the framework of the British Raj. By 1887, the British had reached a settlement with Kalat agreeing on limited autonomy in exchange for British authority in military affairs and external relationships, but the country remained unstable, with periodic fighting against the authorities or between tribal groups.

Nauroz Khan became Nawab and leader of the Zehri tribe in the Jhalawan area of Kalat at a time before the introduction of electricity or motor vehicles, head of a largely nomadic people in a harsh mountain / desert environment, but with a rich tradition of Baluchi, Persian and Muslim culture.

Background to insurgency

In 1955 the various states of Balochistan were dissolved and merged into the province of West Pakistan under the "One Unit" policy. In 1948, Ahmad Yar Khan, the Khan of Kalat (the largest former Baloch princely state), agreed to join Pakistan. The signing of the Instrument of Accession by Ahmad Yar Khan, led his brother, Prince Abdul Karim, to revolt against his brother's decision in July 1948. He along with few of his followers moved to Afghanistan to seek Afghan government support to form an independent Balochistan state.