Shamim Alam Khan

Shamim Alam Khan (; 18 August 1937 – 9 December 2021), was a four star-rank general in the Pakistan Army who served as the 7th Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee from 1991 until retiring in 1994.

Biography

Shamim Alam Khan was born in Shillong, Meghalaya in India, into an Urdu-speaking family on 18 August 1937. His father, Mahboob Alam Khan, was an officer in the Indian Civil Service who worked at an administration position at the Survey of India. His mother, Nisa Begum, was a housewife. Eventually, Mahboob Alam found employment at the Survey of Pakistan. In 1967–70, Maj. Alam went to the United Kingdom where he attended the British Army's Staff College in Camberley, and served in the 28th Cavalry in the Chamb sector on the western front of the third war with India in 1971.

In 1988, Lt-Gen. Shamim was posted on his first formation commanding assignment as the field command of the II Strike Corps, stationed in Multan, Punjab, Pakistan, which he served until 1989 when he was elevated as the Chief of General Staff (CGS) at the Army GHQ in Rawalpindi. In April 1991, Lt-Gen. Shamim was made the field commander of the XXXI Corps, stationed in Bahawalpur, but this command assignment only lasted a few months when President Ghulam Ishaq Khan announced the promotion of the Lt-Gen. Shamim to the four-star rank– he superseded no one as he was the most senior army general in the military.

Chairman joint chiefs

On 8 November 1991, Gen. Shamim took over the Chairmanship of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, and later went on to play a decisive role in support of Gen. Abdul Waheed, then-chief of army staff, to secure the resignations of both President Ghulam Ishaq and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to oversee the nationwide general elections in 1993. On 26 November 1992, Gen. Shamim was appointed to the ceremonial post as Col-in-C of the Armoured Corps, which he remained until 18 December 1996. In 1994, Gen. Shamim sought his retirement after completing his tenureship in 1994.

Death Khan died from COVID-19 in Rawalpindi on 9 December 2021, aged 84, amid the COVID-19 pandemic in Pakistan.

Awards and decorations

Nishan-e-Imtiaz (Military)

(Order of Excellence)Hilal-e-Imtiaz (Military)

(Crescent of Excellence)Sitara-e-Jurat (Star of Courage)

1965 WarSitara-e-Basalat (Star of Good Conduct)Sitara-e-Harb 1965 War (War Star 1965)Sitara-e-Harb 1971 War (War Star 1971)Tamgha-e-Jang 1965 War (War Medal 1965)Tamgha-e-Jang 1971 War Wiladat-e-Quaid-e-Azam

(100th Birth Anniversary of

Muhammad Ali Jinnah)

1976Tamgha-e-Jamhuria (Republic Commemoration Medal)

1956Hijri Tamgha (Hijri Medal)

1979Jamhuriat Tamgha (Democracy Medal)

1988Qarardad-e-Pakistan Tamgha (Resolution Day

Golden Jubilee Medal)

1990Legion of Honour

Grand Officer Class

(France)Turkish Legion of Merit (Turkey)Order of Military Merit Grand Cordon

(Jordan)

Foreign Decorations Foreign AwardsLégion d'honneurTurkish Legion of MeritThe Order of Military Merit (Grand Cordon)

Gallery