Pakistan's army chief Bajwa gets extension as army chief amid fears of rift

HIGHLIGHTS

• Pakistan's Supreme Court has granted a six-month extension to the term of the country's army head General Qamar Javed Bajwa.
• The court had initially blocked a three-year extension of his tenure granted by Imran Khan's administration and also asked govt to justify the move.

Pakistan's top court granted a six-month extension to the term of the country's army head General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Thursday, after initially blocking a three-year extension of his tenure. "We leave this matter to parliament to make law regarding this," Chief Justice Asif Saeed Khosa said while delivering the verdict.

In a surprise ruling on Tuesday, the Supreme Court suspended the decision to extend, approved by the government in August, citing a series of irregularities and ordering the government and the army to produce legal provisions and detailed arguments on the reasoning behind the move.

Prime Minister Imran Khan's administration has enjoyed good relations with the armed forces, in contrast to the previous government of his main rival Nawaz Sharif. On Tuesday, law minister Farogh Naseem resigned in order to represent Bajwa in court, and being overruled by the court would almost certainly weaken Khan.

During Bajwa's tenure in the military has been accused by opposition politicians of electoral manipulation, meddling in politics, suspension of civil liberties and muzzling the media that helped Khan to power last year. The military has always denied interfering in politics.

The army chief usually serves a three-year term. Since the role was established in 1972, only one general has had his term extended by a civilian government.