Understanding The Appointment Of The Army Chief in Pakistan

Pakistan is in the clutches of catastrophic flooding and economic instability. Still, all eyes are on the country’s appointment of a new Chief of Army Staff (COAS) on November 29th, 2022, when General Qamar Javed Bajwa retires, handing over the reins to a new holder of the country’s most powerful office. The appointment comes at

Pakistan is in the clutches of catastrophic flooding and economic instability. Still, all eyes are on the country’s appointment of a new Chief of Army Staff (COAS) on November 29th, 2022, when General Qamar Javed Bajwa retires, handing over the reins to a new holder of the country’s most powerful office. The appointment comes at an ongoing political crisis engulfing the country, which began earlier this year following the tabling of a no-trust motion against then Prime Minister (PM).

Appointments like this are ordinary in any democratic country and do not generate headlines or controversy, but in Pakistan, they become the talk of the town. COAS has stated that he would not seek another term extension, claiming that the army has opted to remove itself from the country’s politics. He made these comments while speaking at a security training in Islamabad. The announcement came on the same day that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) barred former PM and PTI Chairman Imran Khan from running for parliament, citing a misstatement in the Toshakhana case.

The Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director General (DG), Lt-Gen Nadeem Ahmed Anjum, stated at a news conference on the 27th of October that COAS Gen Bajwa was given an indefinite extension in his term in March 2022, but the offer was turned down. These words by the army’s highest leadership come amid allegations that the military meddles in domestic politics, frequently favouring one political party over another. On the 10th of November 2022, ISPR issued a press release stating that General Qamar Javed Bajwa, COAS, visited Sialkot and Mangla garrisons as part of his farewell visits to various formations, confirming that he would not be extending his tenure.

The conventional procedure is for the General Headquarters to process a list of four to five nominations through the Defence Ministry. Under Article 243(4) of the Constitution, the President would designate the heads of the military on the Prime Minister’s advice. Before the 18th amendment, the law stated that The President shall, in consultation with the Prime Minister, appoint the heads of the military. Strangely, other than an eligibility prerequisite of having commanded a corps, there are no stringent promotion criteria regulated by the army selection boards. So far, only one general in the Pakistan Army has attained the four-star rank without commanding a corps. This occurred when General Zia-ul-Haq, the previous military president, elevated General Khalid Mehmood Arif to Vice Chief of Army Staff.

The list of recommended lieutenant generals making the rounds are—Lt Gen Asim Munir, Lt Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza, Lt Gen Faiz Hameed, Lt Gen Nauman Mehmood Raja, Lt Gen Azhar Abbas, Lt Gen Nadeem Anjum and Lt Gen Mohammad Amir. The army chief’s office is not the only four-star position in November. Gen Nadeem Raza, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC), will also retire at the same time. The choice will also be made to designate the next CJCSC and COAS. Lt-Gen Asim Munir will be the most senior of the lot. Despite being raised to the rank of the two-star general in September 2018, he assumed command two months later. As a result, his four-year stint as Lt-Gen will end on November 27, two days before the present CJCSC and COAS retire from the army. Since the recommendations and judgments for the two appointments of the two four-star generals are to be made a little earlier, it would be for the PM to make the final call.

In 2019, Gen Bajwa received a three-year extension as COAS, backed and marked by PM Imran Khan roughly three months before his scheduled retirement. This resulted in a dramatic legal urgency about the prolongation. This issue was deemed legally unprecedented despite a history littered with expanded extended army chiefs’ tenures. The validity of the extension and reappointment of the Chief of Army Staff of the Pakistan Armed Forces was the subject of an unprecedented ruling by the Supreme Court (SC) of Pakistan by Chief Justice of Pakistan, Asif Saeed Khosa, on November 26, 2019. The SC rendered a decision regarding the Jurists Foundation via its Chairman v. Federal Government through the Secretary Ministry of Defense following three days of proceedings. The SC ruled that there was a legal loophole regarding the COAS’s term of office extension. The SC subsequently gave the legislature six months to develop legislation to close this gap. The Parliament amended the Pakistan Armed Forces Act 1952 (“Army Act”), becoming the “Pakistan Army Amendment Act 2020” army act. Both houses of Parliament passed the bills. The opposition parties PML (N) and PPP offered full support in the Parliament. The PML(N) declared their unconditional support by claiming they did not want to make the COAS position controversial. At the same time, PPP said that they would support it if it is done through the Parliamentary rules and regulations.

Raheel Sharif was the first COAS in the previous two decades to retire on time. His predecessors, General Ashfaq Pervez Kiyani and General Musharraf, received extensions, while Jahangir Karamat was the only COAS went home before his tenure expired. Six army commanders have had their terms of service extended in the past, either at the time of retirement or by the governments.

The nomination process of the COAS every three years is crucial, maybe due to the country’s convoluted political past. Immediately following independence in 1947 and following the assassination of Liaquat Ali Khan, Pakistan experienced a terrible game of power politics in which governments fell one after the other, and the change of command in the political power structure became a mockery. During this time, the military grew in power, eventually taking over the country in October 1958 under the direction of General Ayub Khan. The period of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto began with the sad events of the 1971 war. Bhutto appointed General Tikka Khan, who was later fired. Bhutto’s appointment of General Ziaul Haq perpetuated the practice of supersession by superseding seven senior generals in March 1976.

General Asif Nawaz in 1991, General Pervez Musharraf in 1998, General Raheel Sharif in 2013, and General Qamar Javed Bajwa in 2016 were all chosen by Nawaz Sharif, except General Asif Nawaz, all surpassed their superiors. Instead of hunting for a favourite General or requesting military help, which has led Pakistan into perilous circumstances in the past, political parties should focus on strengthening democratic institutions in the nation.