NEW DELHI: A political slugfest has broken out over the selection of Lt Gen Bipin Rawat as the new Army chief, which the government linked to the “security situation” in the context of Pakistan, China and terrorism.
“In the current situation, counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency are key issues,” was the response of official sources to criticism that in appointing Rawat, two senior officers had been superseded — the first since 1983. The two superseded officers are Eastern Army Command chief Lt Gen Praveen Bakshi and Southern Army Command chief Lt Gen P M Hariz.
A few veterans, too, questioned the decision: former UN force commander Lt Gen Iqbal Singh Singha (retd) called it a “surgical strike on the Indian Army”.
Pointing out that Rawat had 10 years of experience in counter-insurgency operations and “tremendous hands-on experience in combat areas”, a government source said, “He was also involved in the 1986 operations in the eastern sector facing China (at Sumdorong Chu Valley in Arunachal). In the current situation, we need a person with experience in the relevant area, that is operational experience.”
