Asim Munir's seminary education shapes his world view & India policy

Pakistan army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir’s repeated references to religion while analysing foreign policy and relations with India is a reflection of his seminary education that shapes his world view.

Munir is the only Pakistani army chief so far who has had a stint in a seminary as a student and takes pride in the fact that he is a ‘hafiz’ (one who can recite Quran by heart). His father was a school principal, a mohajir who came to Rawalpindi from Jalandhar in 1947 and also served as an imam at a mosque. He went to Markazi Madrasah Dar-ul-Tajweed, an Islamic seminary in Rawalpindi, for his early education, indicating that Munir was raised in a deeply religious environment.

Even at public events, including those involving Pakistani diaspora, Munir often incorporates Quranic verses and Islamic theology into his speeches, switching between English, Urdu and classical Arabic. This is uncommon even by the standards of the Pakistani military history. Munir reportedly quoted verses from Quran several times during a diaspora meet in the US during his recent visit there.

Munir often quotes religious texts and contexts from history to describe current events and relations with India, reviving memories of the two-nation theory. He openly brandished religion with a goal to pit Pakistan against India based on the theory of partition.

Munir has all characteristics of positioning himself on the lines of Md Ali Jinnah, Gen Zia-ul-Haq and Gen Pervez Musharraf as the ‘administrator’ of Pakistan. But critics alleged that while Munir’s predecessors have promoted jihadists and Islamists against India, most of them were suave compared to him.

While Munir has positioned himself as Pakistan’s chief diplomat in the post-Sindoor period, he does not appear to operate in a modern nation state construct, according to a Pakistan watcher.

Since Pakistan's creation in 1947, the country has awarded the five-star rank of field marshal only once—to Ayub Khan. Munir has become the second field marshal of the country. And when he speaks, it is with deep emotion and conviction.