WHO WAS GENERAL RANI

Akleem Akhtar was born in Gujrat in Punjab, British India in 1931 or 1932 in a conservative middle-class family. In her childhood, she had a reputation of being a tomboy, fond of outdoor sports. She did not complete her 10th grade (matric) examination but came across as intelligent.She was married off by her parents to a Police Officer "Moiz Jee", inhabitant of North Karachi (sector 11-L), much older than herself (twice her age). She was never happy in that marriage, but Akhtar played well the role of a good wife for many years bearing six children with this husband and never left the house without a 'burqa' (covering herself with a face veil and abaya). Until one day in 1963, when on holiday in the cool hills of Murree, Akhtar rebelled against her husband and removed her 'naqab' (face veil) in defiance of her husband's wishes and told him she was going to live her own life. The marriage ended in a divorce in a dramatic way, where Akhtar also took the couple's six children with her. She sought her parents' help but they insisted that they would only help her if she got back with her husband. In desperation, she started to plan to get close to powerful, rich men. The dramatic collapse of Akhtar's marriage was a turning point in her life. In a May 2002 interview with Newsline (magazine), Akhtar stated: “I was determined to beat men at their own game. Since my husband was in the police, I had been observing men in positions of power throughout my married life and I had realised that all men in positions of power needed a vent and the vent they require the most is a bedmate provided through a reliable agency. The higher a man’s position, the greater his demand.” Thus Akhtar adopted a motto of ‘miyan ki juti miyan ke sar’ which means to 'beat men at their own game' and started her own prostitution business where she provided girls to men in need. Akhtar had not acquired formal skills or qualifications to support an independent career but she had come to know many rich and powerful men through frequenting clubs with her former husband. She met General Yahya Khan via these means and a relationship between them developed. →(RELATION WITH YAHYA KHAN) Due to Akhtar's close association with Yahya Khan and power she exercised due to the connection, she was known as General Rani (General's Queen). She is said to have lovingly called Yahya Khan 'Agha Jani'. Akhtar held no official position, but she was given a special treatment due to her connection with Yahya Khan. She denied she was ever a Yahya Khan's "mistress" and claimed that they were merely friends. She revealed in an interview that drinking alcohol and women were Yahya Khan's weaknesses and General Rani exploited both of his weaknesses. She maintained that she was only playing the role of a woman behind the scenes, had always maintained her dignity and saw herself playing the role of a mother figure to the homeless and needy young girls that she provided to the rich and powerful men. جنرل رانی : اکلیم اختر، جو بعد ازاں جنرل رانی کے نام سے مشہور ہوئیں، پاکستان کے صدر جنرل یحیی خان کے قریبی دوستوں میں شمار ہوتی تھیں۔ ان کے قریبی تعلقات کی بنا پر وہ جنرل یحیی کو “آغا جانی“ کے نام سے پکارتی تھیں اور ان تعلقات کی بنیاد پر وہ نہایت مقبول اور انتہائی اختیارات کی حامل شمار ہوتی تھیں۔ اسی طاقت اور اختیار کی وجہ سے انھیں جنرل رانی کہا جاتا تھا۔ کہا جاتا ہے کہ جنرل یحیی کے دور میں جنرل کے بعد اکلیم اختر پاکستان کی سب سے بااختیار شخصیت ہوا کرتی تھیں۔ ان کے پاس کوئی سرکاری عہدہ نہیں تھا، مگر پھر بھی انھیں سرکاری پروٹوکول دیا جاتا تھا۔ پاکستان کے مشہور پاپ گلوکار، فخر عالم اور عدنان سمیع، جنرل رانی کے نواسے ہیں ۔ جنرل رانی کی بیٹی عروسہ عالم جو فخر عالم کی والدہ ہیں نے کچھ عرصہ قبل بھارت کے ایک سیاست دان امریندر سنگھ سے مبینہ طور پر شادی کر لی ۔ گو اس کی تصدیق اس وجہ سے بھی نہیں ہو سکی کہ بھارت میں غیر مسلم کے لیے ایک سے زائد شادی غیر قانونی ہے۔ آسان الفاظ میں کہہ سکتے ہیں کہ وہ یحییٰ خان کی رکھیل تھی