Munir became army chief in November 2022 after serving in several senior roles, including quartermaster general and Corps Commander Gujranwala.
Pakistanโs military is entering one of its most powerful phases, and that too without directly taking control, as army chief Asim Munir assumes charge as the countryโs first Chief of Defence Forces on Thursday. The post, created through the contentious 27th Amendment to the Pakistani Constitution, places Syed Asim Munir at the head of all three services, the army, the air force and the navy, for a fixed five year term.
The amendments, which were passed by the Senate on November 1, abolished the post of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, the senior most tri services role. It had been created in 1976 by former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto after Pakistanโs defeat in the 1971 war with India.
With the incumbent Chairman, General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, retiring today, the positionโs decades long presence in Pakistanโs defence structure has come to an end.
Pakistanโs military past
A nuclear armed nation of 240 million people, Pakistan has swung between civilian and military rule since its formation in 1947. The last military ruler to openly run the country was Pervez Musharraf, who seized power in a 1999 coup and served as president until 2008.
Since then, civilian governments have formally held authority. However, the militaryโs influence over Pakistanโs political and economic systems has remained deeply rooted, with analysts describing it as a hybrid rule shared between the two.
The 27th Amendment pushed the balance further towards the military. The army chief has now been elevated above the heads of the other two forces and placed in exclusive control of the countryโs nuclear weapons systems. Overall command of the tri forces has also shifted from the president and cabinet to the Chief of Defence Forces.
As Chief of Defence Forces, Munirโs tenure has also been reset. The amendments extend his term until at least 2030.
He had been due to retire on Thursday under the earlier schedule, but an amendment last year increased the tenure of the service chiefs from three to five years, moving his regular retirement date to November 27 2027. Now, with the start of his new post, he will serve a fresh five-year term until 2030.
The changes also provide Munir with legal protection equivalent to that of the countryโs president. The field marshal, like the president, will have lifelong immunity from any form of legal prosecution. This protection has also been extended to the chiefs of the air force and the navy.
If, at the end of this term, he tells the prime minister and the president that he wishes to be reappointed, it is considered unlikely that they will refuse, given the authority they have already vested in him.
The amendments also reduce the governmentโs oversight over the military. According to Pakistani media, the Chief of Defence Forces will now have the authority to recommend the appointment of the Vice Chief of Army Staff, which will then be approved by the federal government. Previously, the civil government had the executive right to make such appointments.
In addition to these powers, the army will also have a major role in selecting the head of the National Strategic Command, which manages Islamabadโs nuclear arsenal. The amendments state that the commander will be appointed from the army by the executive on the advice of the Chief of Defence Forces.
Asim Munir’s rise in Pakistan
Munir became army chief in November 2022 after serving in several senior roles, including quartermaster general and Corps Commander Gujranwala. He also served as head of Military Intelligence and later as director general of the powerful Inter Services Intelligence.
In 2019, he was removed as intelligence chief after only eight months in the post, under then prime minister Imran Khan, for reasons that were never disclosed.
Munirโs position strengthened after lawmakers removed Khan from office. The succeeding Shehbaz Sharif administration appointed him to lead the military.
In May this year, after a four day confrontation with India, Munir was promoted to field marshal.
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