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Pakistan Day (, lit. Yaum-e-Pakistan) is a national holiday in Pakistan primarily commemorating the adoption of the first Constitution of Pakistan during the transition of the Dominion of Pakistan to the Pakistan on 23 March 1956 making Pakistan the world's first Islamic republic, which remains a member state of the Commonwealth of Nations. The day also celebrates the adoption of the Lahore Resolution by the Muslim League at the Minar-e-Pakistan () which called for the creation of independent sovereign states derived from the provinces with Muslim majorities located in the West Pakistan and East Pakistan of British India (excluding autonomous princely States) on 24 March 1940.
The day is celebrated annually primarily by Government officials and army staff throughout the country and is a public holiday for civilians. While civilians do not celebrate the public holiday, the Pakistan Armed Forces usually hold a military parade to celebrate both the passing of the Lahore Resolution in 24 March 1940 and the Constitution of Pakistan of 1956.
The resolution was moved by A. K. Fazlul Huq (26 October 1873 – 27 April 1962), often called Sher-e-Bangla, passed on 24th March and had its signatures from the Founding Fathers of Pakistan. It reads as: The Pakistan Resolution, Government of Pakistan Official website. (Retrieved on 23 April 2006)
The British plan to partition the Indian subcontinent into two dominions - India and Pakistan - was announced on 3 June 1947. In the event, Pakistan was created on 14 August 1947 and Indian independence came a day later. Pakistan was immediately identified as a migrant state born amid bloodshed. Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, became the first Governor-General of Pakistan with Liaqat Ali Khan becoming the first Prime Minister of Pakistan. The Indian Act of 1935 provided the legal framework for Pakistan until 1956, when the state passed its own constitution.Cohen, Stephen P. The idea of Pakistan. Brookings Institution Press, 2004.
While Pakistan's Independence Day celebrates its freedom from British rule, the Republic Day celebrates the coming into force of its constitution.
Works and efforts by the Basic Principles Committee drafted the basic outlines of the constitution in 1949. After many deliberations and years of some modifications, the first set of the Constitution of Pakistan was enforced in the country on 23 March 1956. This marked the country's successful transition from Dominion to Islamic Republic. The Governor-General was replaced with the President of Pakistan as figurehead head of state. Initially it was called Republic Day but after Ayub Khan's takeover its name was changed to Pakistan Day due to the end of democracy in Pakistan.
A full inter-services joint military parade is rehearsed and broadcast live by the news media all over the country. The Pakistan military inter services also gives a glance of its power and capabilities during this parade.
The celebrations regarding the holiday include a full military and civilian parade in the capital, Islamabad. These are presided by the President of Pakistan and are held early in the morning. After the parade, the President confers national awards and medals on the awardees at the Aiwan-e-Sadr. Wreaths are also laid at the mausoleums of Allama Sir Muhammad Iqbal and Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, founder of Pakistan. In very rare times and significance, foreign dignitaries have been invited to attend the military parade.
In the United States, while New York City has celebrated North America's largest Pakistan Day parade for decades, New Jersey's first annual Pakistan Day parade was held on August 16, 2015, in Edison and Woodbridge, New Jersey.
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