Why Army Chief’s extension is unusual & its impact on line of succession

Prior to this, such decision to give an unusual last-minute extension to an outgoing Army Chief took place some 50 years ago.

New Delhi: Sunday, 26 May was not an usual Sunday for Indian Army and therefore, today morning, alomst all national newspapers, while covering the news of extension of Army Chief’s tenure by one month, used an adjective, ‘unusual’. It was Defence Watch yesterday which first broke the news of General Manoj Pande’s extension.

Prior to this, such decision to give an unusual last-minute extension to an outgoing Army Chief took place some 50 years ago when Gen G G Bewoor, who was to retire on April 11, 1974 was given a one-year extension, arguably to deny the top post to a popular officer Lt Gen Prem Bhagat.

The extension of General Pandey’s tenure sparked discussions in South Block regarding the appointment of a new Army Chief. Despite ongoing elections, the appointment of Navy Chief Admiral DK Tripathi on May 1 demonstrates that the model code of conduct does not prohibit such appointments.

The move was surpsiring even for the Indian Army and its large fraternity because last week only the Vice Chief of Army Staff and the senior most Army Officer after COAS, Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi felicitated General Manoj Pande during the Retiring Officers’ Seminar. Indian Army mentioned in a post on social media that Gen Pande was felicitated for his glorious & meritorious service dedicated to the Nation spanning more than four decades.

The move is liekly to have a big impact on the line of succession in the army. The two seniormost officers after Gen Pande are Vice Chief Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi who is from Jammu and Kashmir Rifles, while Southern Army Commander Lt Gen Ajai Kumar Singh are from Gorkha Rifles.

Both are set to retire on 30 June. While Lt Gen Dwivedi holds a higher merit rank per Army rules, Lt Gen Singh is older by a few weeks, which makes him senior to Lt Gen Dwivedi in age.

The Army, Navy and IAF chiefs can serve till 62 or for three years, whichever is earlier, while a Lt-Gen rank officer retires at 60 unless he is approved for the four-star rank.

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