Khomeini, Ayatollah Ruhollah from Oxford University in 1921, and was called to the bar in 1922 Liaquat returned to India in 1923 He began to identify with the Muslim cause He joined the Muslim League, which sought to represent Muslims across the subcontinent In 1926 Liaquat won his first election as a member in the United Provinces Legislative Assembly, although as an independent In 1940 he was elected to the Central Legislative Assembly, where he established a reputation as a successful politician of principle, integrity, and eloquence Although he sought to promote the interests of Muslim Indians, he also worked to quell communal discord In 1936 he was elected honorary secretary of the Muslim League, and he held the office until independence in 1947 He became increasingly influential within the Muslim League, as illustrated by his appointment as deputy leader of the Muslim League Parliamentary Party in 1940, where he forged a close working relationship as the lieutenant of Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the leader of the Muslim League and later the father of Pakistan After partition, Liaquat accepted the prime ministership and also served as minister of defense under Jinnah, governor-general of Pakistan The nation was not only divided into East (now Bangladesh) and West Pakistan, it was also plagued by a refugee crisis as migrating Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs fled across the subcontinent before and immediately after the partition With Jinnah’s death in 1948, Liaquat became the dominant leader in Pakistan Although Pakistan’s political establishments were strongly pro-Western, Islam began to broaden its influence Pakistan’s disputes with India over trade and the division of Kashmir dominated foreign policy, and relations between the two nations remained tense Liaquat was assassinated in October 1951 His death ushered in a chaotic period, and democracy soon floundered, culminating in the military seizure power in a coup in 1958 See also Indo-Pakistani Wars (Kashmir) Further reading: Long, Roger D., ed “Dear Mr Jinnah”: Selected Correspondence and Speeches of Liaquat Ali Khan, 1937–1947 Karachi: Oxford University Press, 2004; Reza, Muhammad Liaquat Ali Khan: His Life and Work Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004; Talbot, Ian Pakistan: A Modern History New York: St Martin’s Press, 1998; Tan, T Y., and G Kudaisya The Aftermath of Partition in South Asia London: Routledge, 2000 Ryan Touhey 241 Khomeini, Ayatollah Ruhollah (c 1900–1989) Iranian religious and political leader Ruhollah Khomeini, an Iranian religious leader known by the Islamic title of ayatollah, was the driving force behind the movement that overthrew Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi in 1979; he then became Iran’s highest political and religious authority for the next 10 years Although Khomeini was born into a poor family, he was the grandson and son of mullahs (Shi’i religious leaders) When he was five months old, his father was killed in a dispute The young Khomeini was then raised by his mother, later his aunt, and finally his older brother Murtaza Khomeini was educated in various Islamic schools and received the sort of instruction expected of a mullah’s son Khomeini was an attentive, intelligent, hardworking, and serious student In about 1922 he settled in the city of Qom, and around 1930 he assumed the surname of Khomeini from his birthplace, Khomein (or Khomeyn) As a respected Shi’i scholar and teacher, Khomeini authored many works on Islamic philosophy, law, and ethics It was his outspoken opposition to Iran’s ruler, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, plus Khomeini’s resolute advocacy of Islamic purity, that garnered him support in Iran In the 1950s Khomeini received the religious title of ayatollah by popular acclaim; by the early 1960s he had received the title of grand ayatollah, which made him one of the supreme religious leaders of the Shi’i community in Iran In 1962–63 Khomeini publicly opposed the shah’s land-reform program; he also spoke out against the Western-style emancipation of women in Iran These criticisms led to Khomeini’s arrest, which quickly sparked antigovernment riots After a year’s imprisonment Khomeini was forced into exile in November 1964; he eventually settled in the Shi’i holy city of Najaf, Iraq, from which he continued to call for the shah’s removal from power From the mid-1970s Khomeini’s stature inside Iran grew When Khomeini’s continued denunciations of the shah caused political difficulties in Iraq, Iraq’s ruler Saddam Hussein expelled Khomeini from the country in October 1978 Khomeini and his second wife then settled in Neauphle-le-Château, a suburb of Paris From there the Ayatollah Khomeini directed the movement to unseat the shah Khomeini’s call for a general strike in October 1978 led to a crippling strike in the Iranian oil fields in November These and other strikes resulted in massive demonstrations, riots, and civil unrest, which in turn forced the departure of the shah from the country on January 16, 1979 Khomeini arrived in the Iranian capital of Tehran on February and was popularly acclaimed as