Qamar Javed Bajwa: a four-star Army General in the Pakistan Army will take up the post of the 16th Chief of Army Staff of The Pakistan Army on November 29th
It is believed that his pro-democracy track record and views played a key role in his appointment for the top slot. He supersedes Lt Gen Syed Wajid Hussain (Chairman of Heavy Industries Taxtiles), Lt Gen Najibullah Khan (DG Joint Staff Headquarters), Lt Gen Ishfaq Nadeem Ahmed (Corps Commander Multan) and Lt Gen Javed Iqbal Ramday (Corps Commander Bahawalpur), all in contention for the Top Position in the Pakistan Army.
Qamar Javed Bajwa: Served Under Former Army Staff of the Indian Army Bikram Singh
Bajwa was commissioned in 16 Baloch Regiment on 24 October 1980. In 1982, he was commissioned in Sind Regiment.
As Lieutenant Colonel, he served in the X Corps which is stationed in Rawalpindi, where he was general staff officer. As a brigadier, Bajwa served as Chief of Staff at X Corps and has also commanded formation division in Northern Areas as Formation Commander.
Bajwa has also commanded a United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Congo. He served in Congo as a Brigade Commander in 2007 under Former Chief of Army Staff of the Indian Army Bikram Singh, who was serving there as a Division Commander. Gen Singh later termed Bajwa’s performance there as “professional and outstanding.”
In May 2009, he was promoted to the rank of Major General. As a Major General, Bajwa served as the Force Commander of Gilgit-Balochistan and held the title of the General Officer Commanding.
In August 2011, he was awarded Hilal-i-Imtiaz (Military).
Bajwa was an instructor at School of Infantry and Tactics in Quetta, at Command and Staff College in Quetta and at National Defence University, Pakistan.
He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General in August 2013 and was installed as Corps Commander X Corps shortly after. He was Grade-I officer during his tenure as Corps Commander X Corps.
In 2014,Qamar Javed Bajwa was installed as Colonel Commandant of Baloch Regiment.
In September 2015, he was appointed as the Inspector General of the Training and Evaluation at the GHQ where he was a Principal Staff Officer to Chief of Army Staff Raheel Sharif.
Since Bajwa has been posted in X Corps thrice, which is the army’s important and largest corps, Bajwa has good experience of handling affairs in Kashmir. But reportedly, he considers Religious Extremism to be a bigger threat to National Security in Pakistan rather than India.
He belongs to the infantry’s 16 Baloch Regiment and 62nd Pakistan Military Academy Long Course. However, he lacks the experience of armed conflict because he has never been posted in a war zone area.(Inputs from Wikipedia)
Qamar Javed Bajwa: His Appointment for the Top Job
“Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif definitely wanted an Army Chief who is supportive of democratic system in the country, who believes in the supremacy of Parliament and who could work for the betterment of the country.
“These were the major points what I believe the prime minister would have taken into consideration before appointing the COAS. I believe General Qamar Bajwa possesses all these elements due to which he has been given the top slot in Pakistan Army,” General Qayyum said.According to him,”The premier wanted an all rounder for the top slot in Pakistan Army who could not only run the institution of Pakistan Army but his relation with the civil government was also important.”(Inputs from The News)
Qamar Javed Bajwa will take charge of the world’s sixth-largest army by troop numbers in a formal handover from Raheel Sharif on Tuesday,the 29th November 2016.
Qamar Javed Bajwa: Great Expectations
Qamar Javed Bajwa is joining at a time when the Military relations between India and Pakistan have been boiling over the past few months.Cross-Border Terrorism, Home Grown Militants, Indiscriminate firing along the LOC with India, Safe Havens for Militants in POK, Relations with the Civil Government of Pakistan, Gilgit-Balochistan Insurgents, Afghanistan Border, The Al Qaida and a lot more.
Qamar Javed Bajwa has a lot on his plate, hopes he understands his position as a Commander of a State which is dubbed as Terrorism Exporter to the World and find ways to bring peace in the Pakistan Establishment.
It is to be seen how he handles the delicate situation between India and Pakistan with echos of war looming around.
