Familiar Playbook

In the post-Musharraf era, the Generals in Rawalpindi have devised and perfected the more efficient, controllable, and optically-palatable system of allowing a farcical and submissive civilian government to take center-stage (and also the accompanying brickbats), whilst the puppeteers wield control from Rawalpindi GHQ. This convenient arrangement — with the invaluable and protective shield of plausible deniability for any wrong committed by the Pakistani government — was used by post-Musharraf Chiefs like Kayani, Shareef, Bajwa and now Munir

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Pakistani Generals routinely overstay their tenures and overstate their relevance in the national discourse. For a military that inherited the same structural commonalities and regulations as India, it is telling that the Pakistani Army has its 15th native 'Chief', whereas the Indian Army is on its 30th Indian 'Chief'.

The love to continue wearing the uniform is apparent in the case of the last five Pakistani Chiefs of Army Staff. Instead of serving the mandated three-year term, General Pervez Musharraf served for over nine years, till he was grudgingly pushed out.

Musharraf's successor, General Ashfaq Kayani gave himself a three-year extension to serve a six-year tenure. Kayani's successor, General Raheel Sharif gave civilian politicians nightmares by threatening to extend his tenure — though he still manages to wear the uniform even today (almost eight years after his retirement), albeit the uniform of the Commander of the Riyadh-based, Islamic Military Counter Terrorism force. Sharif's chosen successor, General Qamar Bajwa took a lot of interest in domestic and political fights and he too chose to extend his tenure to six years.

The incumbent head of Pakistani Army, Asim Munir, has been a startlingly different kettle of fish altogether. In November 2024, he first got the Pakistani Parliament to make an amendment to the Army Act wherein the tenure of the Army Chief got extended from three years to five years (also removing the 64-year age limit for retirement). There was also an unprecedented provision made for a possible second term which means that a 10-year tenure for Munir is almost certain.

But presumably not satisfied with just a 10-year opportunity, Munir went even further when on May 20 this year, he got the Pakistani Parliament to promote him to Field Marshal, ostensibly for his role in what they call Operation Bunyan-um-Maroos.