Xi's purge hits PLA General who ordered Galwan ops to 'teach India a lesson' - India Today

**Beijing’s military shake‑up deepens as senior PLA leaders are stripped of top posts**

Beijing’s political‑military hierarchy entered a new phase of reshuffling on Tuesday, when President Xi Jinping’s anti‑corruption and loyalty drive removed General Zhao Zongqi from the Central Military Commission (CMC), the country’s highest defence decision‑making body. Zhao, who commanded the PLA’s Western Theater during the 2020 Galwan Valley clash that left dozens of Indian and Chinese soldiers dead, had been widely blamed in Chinese‑state media for ordering the “teach India a lesson” operation that escalated the border confrontation. His ouster was confirmed by multiple outlets, including *India Today* and *The Times of India*, which noted that Zhao was also dismissed from the CMC’s Military Affairs Committee, effectively ending his influence over China’s strategic planning.

The purge did not stop with Zhao. In a parallel move, the chief of the Joint Staff Department – the senior officer who coordinates the PLA’s day‑to‑day operations – was also stripped of his CMC seat, according to reports from *The Hindu* and *ThePrint*. The removal of the joint‑staff chief, a figure traditionally seen as the armed forces’ “right hand” to the CMC chairman, underscores Xi’s determination to tighten civilian control over the military and to eliminate any commanders whose loyalty is deemed uncertain. Reuters highlighted that two top generals were simultaneously taken off the CMC, a step that analysts interpret as part of a broader effort to consolidate power ahead of the upcoming Party Congress.

The latest personnel changes come against a backdrop of heightened tensions on China’s frontiers, especially with India, where the Galwan incident remains a flashpoint in Sino‑Indian relations. While Beijing has not officially linked the dismissals to the 2020 border clash, the timing suggests a symbolic rebuke of the operational miscalculations that exposed the PLA’s vulnerability to international criticism. Observers also note that the purge sends a clear message to the rest of the armed forces: strategic decisions must align with the Party’s political line, and any perceived deviation—whether on the battlefield or in internal politics—will be met with swift disciplinary action.