Vice Admiral Bimal Verma on Monday took his plea to the Armed Forces Tribunal against his supersession and appointment of Vice Admiral Karambir Singh as the next Chief of Indian Navy.
Vice Admiral Bimal Verma is serving as the Commander in Chief, Andaman & Nicobar Command. In his petition, the Vice Admiral has challenged the government’s move to ignore seniority and appoint his junior as the next chief of Navy.
While Singh was commissioned into the Indian Navy in 1980, Verma was commissioned into the Navy in 1979. Admiral Verma is the brother of Admiral Nirmal Verma, former Chief of Naval Staff between 2009-12
Vice Admiral Karambir Singh was appointed the Chief of Naval Staff on March 23 as the incumbent Chief of Naval Staff (CNS) Admiral Sunil Lanba is slated to retire on May 31.
This was the second time, including the appointment of General Bipin Rawat as Army Chief in 2016, when the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government had not gone by seniority but merit among the senior most officers.
