'Never questioned wisdom of govt': Gen Naravane on why he was not made CDS

"I never questioned the wisdom of the government when it made me the Army Chief, so why should I do so now?" writes Gen MM Naravane (retired), one of India's foremost Army Chiefs, on why he was not appointed the Chief of Defence Staff.

Naravane's straight-from-the-shoulder account in his memoir Four Stars of Destiny offers fascinating glimpses of the 40-year journey as a soldier, officer and his rise to the top as the 28th Chief of the Army Staff.

"Sometimes I am asked as to why I was not appointed as the CDS. My response has always been that I never questioned the wisdom of the government when they made me Chief, so why should I do so now?" he writes.

"At the end of the day, it does not matter what rank you retired at, but the reputation you retired with," he says at the end of the book's last chapter titled 'Old Soldiers Never Die'.

'Waheguruji ka Khalsa, Waheguruji ki fateh' (The Pure of the Lord are Victorious), Gen Naravane concludes the chapter.

Four Stars of Destiny published by Penguin Random House India will hit the stands next month.

In September last year, Gen Anil Chauhan, a former Eastern Army Commander and director general of military operations, was appointed as India's new Chief of Defence Staff.

The appointment came more than nine months after the post fell vacant following the death of Gen Bipin Rawat in a helicopter crash.

Chauhan had retired from service in May 2021 as a Lieutenant General.

It was widely expected that Gen Naravane would make the cut as he had vast experience in handling the eastern Ladakh crisis and rolled out many reform initiatives to modernise the Army.

'Four Stars of Destiny' also comprises Gen Naravane's account of the India-China border row in Eastern Ladakh as well as many other challenging situations that the Army faced.

In the book, Naravane writes a simple and heart-warming account of his life and times and the experiences that shaped his character, right from childhood to his years in the service, rising through the hierarchy to becoming the 28th Chief of the Indian Army.

The book sheds light on the workings of the Army, its culture and ethos that make it one of the finest armies in the world.

It also covers many aspects for those interested in matters military, ranging from the decision-making apparatus at various echelons of the government to what needs to be done to make not just the Army but the armed forces as a whole a more potent instrument of national power, ready to meet the challenges of the 21st Century.