On Friday, 1 March, Indian media reported that Kargil War hero and present Eastern Air Command chief Air Marshal Raghunath Nambiar had been appointed as the new chief of Indian Air Force's sword arm Western Air Command (WAC) on Thursday.
CLAIM
Many people from Pakistan on Twitter started using this bit of news to claim that the previous Chief of WAC, Air Marshal Chandrashekharan Hari Kumar had been fired after the IAF lost two aircraft to the Pakistan Air Force. They claimed this as a victory for Pakistan because the purported sacking of the Air Marshal had happened because of the IAF’s ‘failure in combat’ against PAF.
Some linked to an NDTV report which speaks about how a new chief had been appointed.
Several Pakistani media outlets also ran the news, claiming that Air Marshal Hari Kumar had been sacked. The International News carried an article, stating that “The Indian government has removed a senior air force officer, reportedly after Pakistan’s successful strikes and capturing of a pilot on 27 February. The decision came after Pakistan’s surprise response against Indian aggression on Wednesday when two IAF fighter jets were shot down and a pilot was arrested for violating airspace.”
Their story was headlined ‘India removes senior IAF officer after Pakistan shoots down jets’.
Daily Pakistan Global also put out a news copy with the headline ‘India removes Air Marshal after botched air strikes, kills by PAF’, saying that Air Marshal Hari Kumar had been removed “after major losses by Indian Air Force on their Western Front with Pakistan.”
TRUE OR FALSE?
The news of Air Marshal Hari Kumar being sacked is not true and the viral tweet is manipulation of facts.
According to a press release by the Press Information Bureau, he has retired after “an illustrious career spanning over 39 years”. The press release mentioned his career, the previous positions that he had held, and the awards he had won for his “distinguished service to the nation.”
As per IAF norms, a member of the force retires at three ages – 58, 60 or 62. The rule says that when an officer turns 58 or 60 and is not able to get a higher rank by the end of the month of his birthday, the officer will retire. According to 7th Pay Commission News, an Air Marshal retires at the age of 60, following the aforementioned rule.
Air Marshal Hari Kumar turned 60 years old in February, and as per the rule, he retired on 28 February, which was his due date of retirement.
News agency ANI also put out a notification saying that Air Marshal Hari Kumar had retired on his due date of retirement after more than 39 years of service. It also mentioned that Air Marshal Raghunath Nambiar had taken over as his successor.
Defence journalist Shiv Aroor also tweeted about the event, attaching the press release, and noting that people in Pakistan would try to manipulate the news to angle it as a victory for them.
According to his service record, the retired Air Marshal was commissioned into the Indian Air Force on 14 December 1979. Prior to his appointment as the WAC, he was the Eastern Air Command Chief from 1 September 2015 till 31 December 2016, and was posted in Shillong.
A graduate of Defence Services Staff College and National Defence College, the retired Air Marshal Hari Kumar was a Qualified Flying Instructor and a Fighter Combat Leader with more than 3300 hours of flying to his credit.
For his distinguished service to the nation, he was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal, the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, the Vayu Sena Medal, the Vishisht Seva Medal and was also appointed Honorary Air Force ADC to President of India on 1 January 2017.
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