On December 4, 2025, Pakistan witnessed something both familiar and unsettling. Field Marshal Asim Munir was formally appointed the country’s first Chief of Defence Force (CDF) while still serving as Chief of Army Staff (COAS). Recent constitutional amendments handed him extensive authority. Many analysts quietly described it as a silent coup, as no military on the streets, no dramatic announcements, just a slow tightening of control.
By late 2025, Pakistan had already experienced yet another shift in real power. The 27th Amendment ushered in legal immunity, curtailed judicial oversight, and centralised unprecedented authority in the hands of the military leadership.
Gen. Asim Munir’s rise did not happen overnight. After Operation Sindoor, where the public was told that Pakistan gained the upper hand against India, his stature grew. His meetings with world leaders, sometimes overshadowing the civilian Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, reinforced the impression that Pakistan’s elected government was no longer steering the ship.
The first coup
Pakistan’s early years were turbulent. After Partition in 1947, seven Prime Ministers came and went within just 11 years. Behind these political tremors lay a society divided along ethnic, linguistic, and regional lines.
