As per the proposal floated by the army chief, Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) Major General Gaurav Shumsher Rana will be transferred to the post of Inspector General, currently occupied by Major General Netra Bahadur Thapa. This reshuffle will prompt Thapa´s transfer to the National Security Council as its co-coordinator. [break]
Following Thapa´s transfer to the NSC, Major General Pradip Bikram Rana, who was promoted last month and deputed to the NSC after Major General Shiva Ram Pradhan retired in October, will be transferred to NA´s mid-western division. Rana´s transfer will trigger the transfer of Major General Keshav Raj Mahat to NA´s Kathmandu Valley division.
This reshuffle will ultimately provide an opportunity to Major General Daman Ghale -- currently chief of NA´s Valley division -- to get the position of DGMO, regarded as highly powerful within the organization. Ghale is brother-in-law to CoAS Gurung.
A knowledgeable source, asked for confirmation, admitted that such a proposal by the army chief has been pending at MoD.
“The proposal is pending following a dialogue between the minister and the army chief,” the source seeking anonymity, told Republica.
A previous instance of differences between Bhandari and Gurung surfaced over term extensions for Brigadier Ramesh Bista, then chief of NA´s No 11 Brigade, and Brigadiers Geeta Basnet and Lalita Joshi of Shree Birendra Hospital.
While Bhandari was against term extensions for Basnet and Joshi, Gurung objected to Bhandari´s decision to extend Bista´s term.
Moreover, a proposal from the army chief in August requesting MoD to create two additional positions for lieutenant generals had been flatly rejected by Bhandari, saying it could be considered only after there is significant progress towards democratization and restructuring in the national army.
The tradition within NA has been that no general gets to serve more than two years in a high-profile position. However, contrary to this practice, Major Generals Rana and Nepal Bhusan Chand have been “lucky” enough to serve as chief of the DGMO and Adjutant General respectively for more than two-and-a-half years.
“Reshuffling is not a new practice within the organization. The army chief has the right to transfer the job responsibilities of top army officials,” a major general told Republica.
Rana has been viewed as a future chief of the NA, and some generals opine that the decision to lift Ghale to the post of DGMO could be detrimental to the NA chain of command.
“On one hand letting Rana assume the post of DGMO for so long is wrong,” said a highly-placed NA source, adding, “On the other, the decision to lift Ghale to DGMO is incorrect as well.”
Based on seniority, both Rana and Chand will be lifted to the positions of lieutenant general, second in command of the NA, after the retirement of Lieutenant Generals Pawan Jung Thapa and Toran Jung Bahadur Singh in May, 2011.
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