Islamabad: An Indian columnist had recently noted how Operation Sindoor was a defeat for Pakistan but a victory for the country’s Army chief Gen Asim Munir. This became evident on Tuesday after Gen Munir was promoted to the rank of Field Marshal by the Government of Pakistan.
The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Pakistani prime minister Shehbaz Sharif, The Dawn has reported. A statement issued by the prime minister’s office apparently said that Sharif took Pakistan president Asif Ali Zardari into confidence regarding this decision.
This comes days after the supreme court of Pakistan strengthened Gen Munir’s powers granted permission to the Army to try civilians in military courts. This order came on May 7, the day India launched Operation Sindoor against nine terror facilities inside Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
Ever since Pakistan came into being 78 years ago, the Army in that country has been known to call the shots. Not a single prime minister has been able to complete his or her five-year term before being evicted. The Army has been involved in some way or the other. The last one to go was Imran Khan who was voted out of power in April 2022, after three years and seven months in office. He is now in prison.
His arrest led to anti-Army riots in Pakistan in 2023 After the violence, Gen Munir realised that the Army’s stranglehold over the country was gradually loosening. The Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor have him the much needed opportunity to bounce back and regain supremacy.
Sharif certainly doesn’t want to land up in a cell next to Imran’s and decided to honour Gen Munir with a promotion. The Field Marshal’s rank in Pakistan, as in India, is the highest in the Army. Gen Munir will not only be in overall command and control of the Army, he will also guide the prime minister and president on all matters related to national security. More importantly, Munir will not be retiring from the Army any time soon.
Pakistan has had only one Field Marshal in the past. In 1959, former Pakistan president Ayub Khan elevated himself to the position.
Maybe the Indian columnist was right when he wrote that the Pakistan Army has never won a war and never lost an election.
