Nine senior generals of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), including senior officials of the country's Rocket Force, have been dismissed from China's Parliament, state-run news agency Xinhua reported on Saturday.
Among the officers dismissed from the National People's Congress (NPC), the country's Parliament, include five past or current top commanders of the PLA Rocket Force, which handles the missiles division and a key component of the country's nuclear arsenal, besides a former Air Force commander.
These generals were part of a substantial number of members of the Chinese military who formed part of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) and were appointed to the NPC. Their dismissals come days after the NPC appointed former naval commander General Dong Jun as the new Defence Minister, two months after the dismissal of General Li Shangfu.
Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported that a new anti-corruption drive in China has led to the downfall of several past and present senior commanders in the Rocket Force.
Those whose membership was terminated from the NPC included Zhang Zhenzhong, Zhang Yulin, Rao Wenmin, Ju Xinchun, Ding Laihang, Lu Hong, Li Yuchao, Li Chuanguang and Zhou Yaning.
The military's anti-corruption body has been investigating the force's current commander Li Yuchao, as well as Zhang Zhenzhong and Liu Guangbin, his past and present deputies. Li, the most senior general to be caught up in the latest probe, was only the third commander of the rocket force, which was created in 2015.
Li had disappeared from the public eye in late August and no reason was given for his removal either. "Almost all the senior generals [in the rocket force] had good reputations before their promotion. They became immoral after moving to Beijing headquarters, allowing them to have more chances to engage with defence-related enterprises," the Post quoted an official source as saying.
In August, Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is the Chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), removed Li Yuchao as commander of the rocket force and replaced him with former deputy navy chief Wang Houbin. This was seen as the biggest unplanned shake-up in Beijing's military leadership in almost a decade.
Lyle Morris, a foreign policy and national security fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said this purge was significant as "China is undertaking one of the most profound changes in nuclear strategy in decades". "Xi has consolidated control of the PLA in unprecedented ways, but that doesn't mean it's complete. Xi is still worried about corruption in the ranks and has signalled that absolute loyalty to the [party] has not yet been achieved," he was quoted as saying by BBC.
Those who have been terminated in the latest round are reportedly closely linked to the dismissed Defence Minister Gen Li Shangfu, whose whereabouts are not known. Shangfu was sacked as defence minister in October. Reuters had reported that he was under investigation for suspected corruption related to equipment procurement and development.
(With inputs from PTI)