 Independence Day ( Urdu : یوم آزادی ; Yaum @-@ e Āzādī ) , observed annually on 14 August , is a national holiday in Pakistan . It commemorates the day when Pakistan achieved independence and was declared a sovereign nation following the end of the British Raj in 1947 . Pakistan came into existence as a result of the Pakistan Movement which aimed for the creation of an independent Muslim state by division of the north @-@ western regions of South Asia . The movement was led by the All @-@ India Muslim League under the leadership of Muhammad Ali Jinnah . The event was brought forth by the Indian Independence Act 1947 under which the British Raj gave independence to the Dominion of Pakistan ( later the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ) which comprised West Pakistan ( present @-@ day Pakistan ) and East Pakistan ( now Bangladesh ) . In the Islamic calendar , the day of independence coincided with Ramadan 27 , the eve of which , being Laylat al @-@ Qadr , is regarded as sacred by Muslims . 
