Meet General Asim Munir, new chief of pakistan army

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General Asim Munir
General Asim Munir

General Asim Munir will be the new chief of the Pakistan Army. Promoted from a 3 Star General to a 4 Star General , Asim Munir has been appointed as Chief of Army Staff and will take charge on 29th of this month, the day when present COAS General Qamar Javed Bajwa will be given farewell. General Bajwa will be completing six years of tenure as Pakistan’s Army Chief.

Asim Munir is presently serving at army headquarters as quartermaster general who oversees supplies for all military units. Apart from the Inters Services Intelligence (ISI) , Asim Munir has also led the military intelligence department. He has served under Qamar Javed Bajwa’s direct command in the often-troubled northern areas that border Afghanistan, China and India. He is considered a blue eyed boy of Bajwa.

The appointment of Pakistan’s Army Chief is watched keenly because this defence institution wields outsized influence over the politics of Pakistan .Pakistan’s foreign and defence policies are also influenced by the top leadership of army men. Not only indirectly , the Pakistan army has also directly ruled the nuclear-armed nation for about half of its history since its creation in 1947.

Although former Prime Minister Imran Khan has made many allegations against General Bajwa, his party Pakistan Tehreek E Insaf ( PTI ) has welcomed the new appointments in the Pakistan army. Imran Khan has openly alleged that General Bajwa was hand in gloves with his political opponents and played a role in ousting him from power. General Bajwa and his family are also facing charges of corruption. It is alleged that the Bajwa family has accumulated property worth billions during the last six years, the period when Bajwa became Army Chief of Pakistan. Gen Bajwa was appointed as CoAS in 2016 and was given service extension for three years in 2019.

Who is Asim Munir :

Son of an educationist Sayed Sarwar Munir , Gen Asim Munir joined the pakistan army as Second Lieutenant in 1986. He belongs to the 17th course of Officers Training School in Mangla. He was given a sword of honor by the PMA. Asim Munir was commissioned in 23rd Battalion of the Frontier Regiment and also commanded the same regiment later on. He was promoted to the rank of 3 star general in 2018 and subsequently posted as Director General of ISI. Prior to that he also served as Director General of Military Intelligence (MI).