General Sharif will hand over the command of Pakistan’s Army to Bajwa at GHQ Rawalpindi on 29th November.

 

 
By. Asghar Ali Mubarak

Islamabad- A career infantry officer belonging to the Baloch Regiment, Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa has been appointed as the new COAS; General Sharif will hand over the command of Pakistan’s Army to Bajwa at GHQ Rawalpindi on 29th November.

Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa is promoted to the rank of four-star general.

Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa would take up his new post from Tuesday, the day the current army chief Raheel Sharif retirement.

The formal process for nomination starts with the General Headquarters sending a list of the senior-most generals to the prime minister via the defence ministry, but without making any formal recommendations.

The PM then holds informal consultations with the outgoing army chief before announcing his decision.Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa was something of a dark horse in this race for the post of COAS.He is currently serving at the GHQ as Inspector General of Training and Evaluation — the position Gen Sharif held before becoming army chief — he has commanded the 10 Corps, the army’s largest, which is responsible for the Kashmir area along the Line of Control (LoC).

Lt Gen Bajwa has extensive experience of handling affairs in Kashmir and the northern areas of the country. As a major general, he led the Force Command Northern Areas. He also served in the 10 Corps as lieutenant colonel, where he was GSO.

 

Despite his extensive involvement with Kashmir and northern areas, he is said to consider extremism a bigger threat for the country than India.

Lt Gen Bajwa has served with a UN mission in Congo as a brigade commander alongside former Indian army chief Gen Bikram Singh, who was also there as a division commander.

On the appointment of   Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa the  former Indian Army Chief Gen. Bikram Singh while talking media said ‘’Gen Bajwa’s performance in Congo was “totally professional” and “outstanding,” but added that India should wait and watch how the new Pakistan COAS behaves. A military officer’s conduct at home, where he’s governed by his country’s national interests, is different from his conduct in the international environment,’’ Gen. Singh explained. Gen. Singh added that Gen. Bajwa, who has commanded the 10 Corps, was acquainted with his Pakistan’s policy towards India, and said he believed “there will be no let-up as far as Pakistan army’s Kashmir policy is concerned.”

 Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa has previously also remained the commandant of the Infantry School in Quetta.

Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa military colleagues say he is not attention-seeking and remains well-connected with his troops.

“He is extremely professional, but very easy-going and full of compassion,” an officer who had served under him said, adding that he was not protocol-minded either. Gen Bajwa is also said to be an apolitical person without any biases.

He is from the infantry’s Baloch Regiment, which has given three officers to the post of army chief — Gen Yahya Khan, Gen Aslam Beg and Gen Kayani.

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Gen Bajwa wasn’t the only man in contention for the top Army job. Chief of General Staff Lieutenant Zubair Hayat, who was once in charge of Pakistan’s nuclear programme, and Lieutenant General Ishfaq Nadeem, commander of the strategic Multan strike corps, were also considered. Like Gen Bajwa, Zubair has been promoted to the rank of four-star general. He’s been named Chairman, Joint Chief of Staff’s Committee.

General Sharif will hand over the command of Pakistan’s Army to Bajwa at a ceremony in Rawalpindi on Tuesday, November 29.

The newly appointed COAS; Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa was student of  the F. G. Sir Syed school and  College mall road Rawalpindi before joining the Pakistan army as  commissioned officer   ,he passed his metric exam from the F. G. Sir Syed school and intermediate from the F. G. Sir Syed school College mall road Rawalpindi, Director  Federal Govt Educational Institutes Cantt  and Garrisons Rawalpindi Brg .Dr. Mazhar Iqbal ,Dy., director Col Ghulam Qamber, director Col Muhammad Latif, congratulated the COAS;Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa on his appointed as COAS.