Chiefs Of Army Staff: India

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Chiefs Of Army Staff: India

This article has been sourced from an authoritative, official publication. Therefore, it has been ‘locked’ and will never be thrown open to readers to edit or comment on. After the formal launch of their online archival encyclopædia, readers who wish to add further details can do so on a ‘Part II’ of this article.

The source of this article

INDIA 2012

A REFERENCE ANNUAL

Compiled by

RESEARCH, REFERENCE AND TRAINING DIVISION

PUBLICATIONS DIVISION

MINISTRY OF INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

Name Tenure

General Maharaj Rajendra Sinhji .................................... 1 April 1955-14 May 1955

General S.M. Srinagesh ..................................................... 15 May 1955-7 May 1957

General K.S. Thimayya ..................................................... 8 May 1957-7 May 1961

General R.N. Thapar ......................................................... 8 May 1961-19 November 1962

General J.N. Choudhuri ................................................... 20 November 1962-7 June 1966

General P.P. Kumaramangalam ....................................... 8 June 1966-7 June 1969

General S.H.F.J. Manekshaw ........................................... 8 June 1969-31 December 1972

Field Marshal S.H.F.J. Manekshaw ................................. 1 January 1973-14 January 1973

General G.G. Bewoor ........................................................ 15 January 1973-31 May 1975

General T.N. Raina ............................................................ 1 June 1975-31 May 1978

General O.P. Malhotra ...................................................... 1 June 1978-31 May 1981

General K.V. Krishna Rao................................................. 1 June 1981-31 July 1983

General A.S. Vaidya .......................................................... 1 August 1983-31 January 1986

General K. Sunderji ........................................................... 1 February 1986-30 April 1988

General V.N. Sharma ......................................................... 1 May 1988-30 June 1990

General S.F. Rodrigues ...................................................... 1 July 1990-30 June 1993

General B.C. Joshi .............................................................. 1 July 1993-18 November 1994

General S. Roychowdhury ............................................... 22 November 1994-30 September 1997

General V.P. Malik ............................................................. 1 October 1997-30 September 2000

General S. Padmanabhan ................................................. 30 September 2000-31 December 2002

General N.C. Vij ................................................................. 1 January 2003-31 January 2005

General J.J. Singh ............................................................... 1 February 2005 - 30 September 2007

General Deepak Kapoor ................................................... 30 September 2007-31 March 2010

General V.K. Singh ............................................................ 31 31 March 2010 - 31 May 2012)

Gen Bikram Singh ........................................................... 1 Jun 2012 to 31 Jul 2014

General Dalbir Singh Suhag...........................................................1 Aug-2014 to 31 December 2016

General Bipin Rawat...........................................................31 December 2016..

Trends in appointment

Superseding the seniority principle, 2016

The Times of India’’, December 18, 2016

Govt ignores seniority norm to name new Army chief

Rajat Pandit  In a move that evoked criticism for junking the long-enshrined seniority principle in appointing Service chiefs, the government appointed Lt General Bipin Rawat on Saturday night as the next Army chief, superseding two Lt Generals.

Lt General Bipin Rawat (infantry), who took over as the Army vice-chief in September 2016, bypassed Eastern Command chief Lt Gen Prave en Bakshi (armoured corps) and Southern Army Command chief Lt Gen P M Hariz (mechanised infantry).

Even though it's well within the right of a government to appoint whoever it wants as the next chief, successive dispensations have almost always followed the seniority principle. All eyes are now on Lt Gens Bakshi and Hariz to see whether they will quit in protest -as Lt Gen S K Sinha had done in 1983 after being superseded by Gen A S Vaidya -since serving under a junior is unacceptable in the extremely hierarchy-conscious force. The government stuck to the seniority principle in appointment of the next IAF chief by announcing that Air Marshal Birendra Singh Dhanoa will replace Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha on December 31.

But in the case of the Army chief, Lt General Bipin Rawat superseded Eastern Command chief Lt Gen Praveen Bakshi and Southern Army Command chief Lt Gen P M Hariz.

While Lt Gen Bakshi was commissioned in December 1977, Lt Gen Hariz was commissioned in June 1978. Lt Gen Rawat, in turn, was commissioned into the fifth battalion of the 11 Gorkha Rifles in December 1978.

Successive dispensations have almost always followed the seniority principle to anoint new military chiefs but there have been exceptions, although few and far between -Indira Gandhi superseded Lt Gen S K Sinha to appoint Gen A S Vaidya as the Army chief in 1983; Air Chief Marshal S K Mehra became IAF chief by superseding Air Marshal M M Singh in 1988. Lt Gen Sinha, of course, quietly resigned but went on to later become governor of both Assam and J&K, and also served as India's ambassador to Nepal.