Zee Media Bureau
New Delhi: A day after Indian Navy chief Admiral DK Joshi tendered his resignation, the government on Thursday is mulling over his successor.
It is said that the Vice Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral RK Dhowan, will be discharging the duties of officiating CNS, pending appointment of regular CNS.
After the sudden resignation of Admiral DK Joshi, Eastern Naval Commander Vice Admiral Anil Chopra is the front-runner to succeed him as the next Navy chief.
His name along with Acting Navy Chief Vice Admiral Robin Dhowan and Western Navy Commander Vice Admiral Shekhar Sinha were to be considered by the government for the appointment as the regular Navy chief.
According to reports, Western Navy Commander Vice Admiral Shekhar Sinha is also set to resign.
Notably, Western Naval Commander Sinha has been under scanner after the number of accidents that have taken place under his command, the issue over which Admiral Joshi resigned from service.
The sudden decision by the Navy chief will also result in the change in the line of succession of the force as Southern Naval Commander Vice Admiral Satish Soni was supposed to succeed Joshi in August 2015.
Defence Minister AK Antony and the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) take a decision on matters of national security.
The resignation came barely hours after seven Indian Navy personnel were injured and at least two went missing when smoke spread through a compartment in the INS Sindhuratna submarine that was underwater off Mumbai, about 50 nautical miles (80 km) in the Arabian Sea.
There were 94 sailors on board the submarine when smoke was reported in the sailors` accommodation.
The seven injured sailors were airlifted by helicopter and shifted in an unconscious state to the naval hospital, INS Asvini, in south Mumbai early Wednesday.
"Taking moral responsibility for the accidents and incidents which have taken place during the past few months, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Devendra Kumar Joshi today resigned from the post of CNS," the release said.
Admiral Joshi had taken over as the country`s 21st chief of naval staff in August 2012, according to indiannavy.nic.in.
A specialist in anti-submarine warfare, Joshi served in a variety of command, staff and instructional appointments. His sea commands include guided missile corvette INS Kuthar, guided missile destroyer INS Ranvir and the aircraft carrier INS Viraat.
After his elevation to Flag rank, the admiral served in the integrated headquarters in all nodal branches.
(With IANS inputs)
