The top five contenders for army chief

Various names for the new army chief are being discussed in the media these days with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif already having said that he would consider the senior most general for the coveted position. Following is a brief introduction to the five senior most lieutenant generals in order of their seniority.
Lt Gen Haroon Aslam

Lieutenant General Haroon Aslam, currently Chief of Logistics Staff (CLS) after commanding the Corps based in Bahawalpur has spent a good part of his career in Balochistan. He commanded operations against militants in Swat when he was GOC Special Services Group (SSG). He is an average officer with some experience of fight against militancy. However, if selected he will not be better than Kayani. It is possible that being senior most, he is appointed CJCSC.
Lt Gen Rashad Mahmud

Lieutenant General Rashad Mahmud currently serving as Chief of Staff (CGS) after a stint as Corps Commander of IV Corps based in Lahore is Kayani’s preference as his successor. He is also an average officer. He was DAPS to army chief General Mirza Aslam Beg at the rank of Major under then Brigadier Khwaja Ziauddin who was Personal Secretary to Chief – PS (C). Later, at the rank of Brigadier, he served as Military Secretary (MS) to President Rafiq Tarar. His general career pattern and service in staff positions suggests that if selected he will be more formal with no inclination for any new ideas. If selected, he will be no better than Kayani. The only positive thing is that he had served as Counter Terrorism (CT) Director at ISI.
Lt Gen Raheel Sharif

Lieutenant General Raheel Sharif currently serving as Inspector General of Training & Evaluation (IGT&E) after commanding the Corps based in Gujranwala is from a military family. His brother Major Shabbir Sharif is one of the most decorated soldiers of Pakistan Army who was killed in action in 1971 war. Shabbir was General Pervez Musharraf’s course mate and was everything that Musharraf wanted to be. When Musharraf became COAS, he was instrumental in grooming Raheel for higher ranks. Musharraf promoted him to major general rank and gave him prized postings as GOC of Lahore based 11th Infantry Division and Commandant of Military Academy at Kakul. Raheel is a gentleman but almost all agree that for a peacetime army, it would make no difference but probably he is not suited to lead army engaged in a war.
Lt Gen Tariq Khan

Lieutenant General Tariq Khan is currently commanding Mangla based I strike corps. He is a Pashtun cavalry officer from an aristocratic family and from the breed that didn’t join army for a secure job. After a brief stint of commanding an armored division, he first commanded infantry division in Waziristan and later as Inspector General Frontier Corps (IGFC) transformed a shattered FC. Some observers believe he is the only officer among the contenders who has the qualifications for leading the army in the coming turbulent three years. He was one of only two major generals highly regarded by Kayani for their professional competence (the other being Ahmad Shuja Pasha).
Lt Gen Zaheer Ul Islam

Lieutenant General Zaheer Ul Islam is currently Director General (DG) of Inter Services Intelligence (ISI). He had an earlier stint as Director at ISI prior to his elevation to lieutenant general rank and posting as Corps Commander of Karachi based V Corps. He is from a military family and belongs to the traditional military recruiting area of Salt Range near Rawalpindi. He is not likely in the race and even if selected, he will be about same as Kayani as far as decision making is concerned.