Pakistan Supreme Court Suspends Extension Of Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa

Pakistan Supreme Court on Tuesday suspended the extension of Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa. It is to be noted that Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan had earlier issued a notification extending Bajwa’s tenure for another three years. 

According to a report Dawn, the extension of General Bajwa's tenure has been suspended till further hearing on Wednesday. During the hearing, Justice Asif Saeed Khosa remarked that the Constitution doesn’t allow the prime minister to extend the service of the army chief. “Only the president can extend his service”, he added.

Supreme court also issued notices to defence ministry, the federal government, and General Bajwa. Importantly, General Bajwa is due to retire on November 29. He will be replaced by General Raheel Sharif as Pakistan Army Chief.

On August 19, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan had approved the extension of General Qamar Javed Bajwa as the Chief of Army Staff. According to a notification issued from the Prime Minister Office, Imran Khan took the decision “in view of the regional security environment”.

General Bajwa's Army Career

Bajwa, who was commissioned in the 16 Baloch Regiment in October 1980, is a graduate of Canadian Forces Command and Staff College in Canada, and the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California.

The army chief-designate has spent a considerable part of his military service in the Rawalpindi-based 10 Corps, which is responsible for guarding the Line of Control (LoC).

Also Read: Pakistan Army Chief Qamar Bajwa Threatens India, Says Ready To fight Till Last Bullet For Kashmir

However, his time at the 10 Corps was a period of relative quiet following the 2003 ceasefire accord. He is the fourth officer from the infantry’s Baloch Regiment to become the army chief. Before him, Gen Yahya Khan, Gen Aslam Beg and Gen Kayani rose to that position.

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