Pakistan to honour two Indian doctors: What is Nishan-e-Imtiaz?

Pakistan to honour two Indian doctors: What is Nishan-e-Imtiaz? 'Nishan-e-Imtiaz' or the 'Order of Excellence' is Pakistan's highest civilian honour.

Key points

• Other notable foreigners include Switzerland's Aga Khan IV, former Queen of Nepal, Ratna Rajya Lakshmi Devi Shah, and Indonesian general Rudini, among others.
• Pakistan will confer its highest civilian award, the Nishan-e-Imtiaz, upon two Indian doctors who had kept the founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah's terminal illness a secret in 1946.
• Photo Credit: British Library's Digital Collection via Wikimedia Commons.
• Jinnah died in September 1948, thirteen months after the formation of Pakistan.
• Pakistan has conferred the award on 52 individuals, of whom 14 have been foreign nationals.

Photograph of Jinnah with Gandhi in 1944. Photo Credit: British Library's Digital Collection via Wikimedia Commons.

Pakistan will confer its highest civilian award, the Nishan-e-Imtiaz, upon two Indian doctors who had kept the founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah's terminal illness a secret in 1946. This was a year before Partition. It saw a mass exodus of individuals from both sides of the border and the division of colonial India, famously along the 'Radcliffe Line, ' which affected the erstwhile provinces of Punjab and Bengal. Why Pakistan is honouring Indian doctors.

In an official note on social media on Pakistan's Independence Day, August 14, Minister Ahsan Iqbal confirmed that a radiologist and a physician were pivotal in keeping the secret of Jinnah's frail health. The Minister continued that Lord Mountbatten (last Viceroy of India) had afterwards acknowledged that, had he known how seriously ill Jinnah was, he might have delayed Partition, "potentially altering the course of history and perhaps even jeopardizing the creation of Pakistan."

"By maintaining absolute professional confidentiality at such a critical moment, these doctors performed a quiet but extraordinary service. Their fidelity to their professional oath inadvertently became a significant contribution to the circumstances that created the creation of Pakistan feasible, " the statement continued. The names of the doctors, belonging to Mumbai's Parsi community, were not included in the statement published by Minister Ahsan Iqbal.

Jinnah died in September 1948, thirteen months after the formation of Pakistan. He was suffering from tuberculosis which was incurable at the time.

'Nishan-e-Imtiaz' or the 'Order of Excellence' is Pakistan's highest civilian honour and is the first category award of the Order of Imtiaz, given for achievements towards global recognition of the country or for outstanding service to the nation.

Other categories of awards in Pakistan are the 'hilal, ' 'sitara', and 'tamgha' with specific guidelines for bestowing the honour on civilians, military personnel, and sometimes foreigners.

Pakistan has conferred the award on 52 individuals, of whom 14 have been foreign nationals. Indian actor Dilip Kumar was bestowed with the award in 1998 in the field of fine arts.

Other notable foreigners include Switzerland's Aga Khan IV, former Queen of Nepal, Ratna Rajya Lakshmi Devi Shah, and Indonesian general Rudini, among others. In 2025, USA's Michael Kurilla was awarded Nishan-e-Imtiaz (Military), recognising his role in defence. When will the award be conferred?

For context, the national civil and military awards of Pakistan are traditionally confirmed on its Independence Day (August 14) and are formally conferred at a presidential investiture ceremony on the after Pakistan Day (March 23).

Taken together, the developments around pakistan to honour two Indian doctors: What is Nishan-e point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.