Benazir Bhutto's Pakistan Peoples Party won the 1988 general election after Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq's 11-year dictatorship came to an abrupt end with his death.

General Zia encouraged fundamentalist Islamic law and religious education in all segments of Pakistani society to build his legitimacy (which had become weak after he had overthrown a popularly-elected leader and suspended democracy) on being a good Muslim ruler.

To this end, Pakistani intelligence and military services, with the help of the CIA, recruited, trained, and armed Afghan mujahideen to fight the Soviet Army.

The main actors accused in the failed coup attempt were Major General Zahirul Islam Abbasi, Brigadier Mustansir Billah and Qari Saifullah.

With the help of sympathetic military officers, the group allegedly began plotting against the civilian government of Benazir Bhutto and the army chief Gen. Abdul Waheed Kakar.

It was claimed that they planned to assassinate Bhutto, Kakar, senior cabinet ministers, and the military chiefs to bring about a corruption-free government in Pakistan.

(p. 239) He also describes Bhutto as lashing out against her critics in November 1995 and accusing (without proof) those involved as having planned to kill her, most of the army command and the president of Pakistan.

With his military career over, Abbasi moved to organise a political party with the aim of creating awareness and establishing a Sunni Islamic law through parliamentary legislation.

Azmat-e-Islam and Bedar Pakistan are, in fact, two separate parties headed by Zaheer ul Islam Abbasi and Abdul Razaq Mian, respectively.