Pakistan is celebrating its 75th Independence Day on Saturday, a day before India, too, marks its 74th year of freedom. However, the Indian Independence Act, 1947, gave birth to two sovereign countries, India and Pakistan, on August 15 that year. Then, why is it that Pakistan observes its Independence Day on August 14, and not on August 15? In June 1948, at a cabinet meeting chaired by Liaquat Ali Khan, the first Prime Minister of Pakistan, it was proposed that the country celebrate its Independence Day before India. Indian Standard Time (IST) being 30 minutes ahead of the Pakistan Standard Time (PST) is also cited as a reason.

Source: Hindustan Times August 14, 2021 06:00 UTC