Who is MM Naravane? Meet the retired Army chief whose unpublished memoir sparked a storm in Parliament

The Lok Sabha was adjourned on Monday afternoon amid massive uproar after senior ministers in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Cabinet, including Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh, interrupted Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi over purported excerpts from the yet-to-be-published memoir of former Army Chief Manoj Naravane on the 2017 Doklam stand-off with China.

Responding to the motion of thanks on the President’s address in Lok Sabha, the Congress leader started his speech quoting a magazine which published Naravane’s memoir from an “unpublished” book.

Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju countered Rahul Gandhi, saying he cannot quote from the “unpublished” book and asked him to authenticate it before the House. Speaker Om Birla disallowed Gandhi from reading from the ‘unpublished’ book as it was against the rules of the house.

Birla repeatedly urged Gandhi to stick to the business of the day, which was the motion of thanks on the President’s address. President Droupadi Murmu addressed the joint session of Parliament on 28 January, marking the start of the Budget session. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2026 on Sunday.

At the center of the row in Lok Sabha, during the ongoing Budget Session of Parliament, General MM Naravane (Retd) and his memoir, which has not been published.

Who is General Naravane?

General Naravane (Retd), 65, who served as India’s Chief of Army Staff from December 2019 to April 2022, including during the 2020 India-China border clashes. He took over as COAS from General Bipin Rawat on 31 December 2019.

General Naravane (retd), who superannuated after four decades of illustrious and meritorious service, will be remembered for ensuring the health of Indian Army personnel during the Covid-19 pandemic, a resolute reply to the Northern adversary in Eastern Ladakh, and a determined push towards Atmanirbharta, besides embracing niche and disruptive technologies to fight future wars, according to a government note on his retirement in April 2022.

“General Naravane was a soldier’s soldier, and was concerned about the welfare of troops. He visited the forward areas in Jammu & Kashmir, Eastern Ladakh and the North East number of times and actively pursued the cases for rapid construction of accommodation and habitats for the newly inducted troops in Eastern Ladakh, post April 2020,” the note said.

Four Stars of Destiny – the controversy

The fresh row surrounding General Naravane’s memoir ‘Four Stars of Destiny‘, centers on its revelations about sensitive military operations and government policies, which prompted a government-mandated review and delayed its publication.

In the memoir, Naravane has detailed high-level decision-making, drawing criticism for potentially breaching norms on disclosures by retired officers.

Key revelations include a late-night conversation on 31 August 2020, with Defense Minister Rajnath Singh amid Chinese troop movements at the Rechin La pass in eastern Ladakh.

Agnipath recruitment scheme

There is also a comment on the Agnipath recruitment scheme, launched in June 2022 in the book. Naravane revealed the Army had proposed retaining 75% of short-term recruits long-term, but the final model retained only 25% after four years, with an initial salary of ₹20,000 deemed “unacceptable” for soldiers risking their lives—later raised to ₹30,000 following Army pushback.

The memoir portrays the scheme as a politically driven initiative that overrides military advice, contradicting the government’s narrative that it originated with the armed forces to reduce the age profile.

Extracts from the book, scheduled for publication in April 2024, were published by the news agency PTI in December 2023. Then, the entire publication process was halted.

Distinguished military career

An alumnus of the National Defense Academy (NDA) and the Indian Military Academy, Naravane was commissioned in the Sikh Light Infantry Regiment in June 1980. He is an alumnus of the Defense Services Staff College, Wellington and the Higher Command Course, Mhow. The General Officer holds a Master’s Degree in Defense Studies, an M Phil Degree in Defense and Management Studies, and is currently pursuing his Doctorate.

General Naravane commanded the Republic Day Parade in 2017 in his capacity as General Officer Commanding Delhi Area. After successfully commanding the Army Training Command in Shimla and the Eastern Command in Kolkata, he held the appointment of Vice Chief of the Army Staff before assuming the appointment of the Chief of the Army Staff on 31 December 2019.

In a distinguished military career spanning over four decades, he held key command and staff appointments in peace and field, both in the North-East and in Jammu and Kashmir.

General Naranane was also part of the Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka. He commanded a Rashtriya Rifles Battalion, raised an Infantry Brigade, was Inspector General Assam Rifles (North) and commanded a Strike Corps in the Western Theatre. His staff assignments included tenures as a Brigade Major of an Infantry Brigade, Defense Attaché at Yangon, Myanmar, an instructional appointment at the Army War College as Directing Staff in the Higher Command Wing, and two tenures at the Integrated Headquarters of MoD (Army), New Delhi.