The first woman to join the coveted Indian Police Service (IPS) in 1972, Kiran Bedi, was born on 9 June 1949 in Amritsar, Punjab. She has had an illustrious career, earning widespread adulation for her no-nonsense attitude and devotion to her work. She served as police advisor in the United Nations peacekeeping department and was honored with the UN medal for her outstanding service. She earned the nickname ‘Crane Bedi’ for towing away the then Indian PM Indira Gandhi’s car for parking violation.
EducationKiran Bedi did her schooling from Sacred Heart Convent School, Amritsar, Punjab from 1955-1964. She then graduated in English (1964-68) from Government College for Women, Amritsar, Punjab. Later, she secured a master’s degree in Political Science from Punjab University, Chandigarh. This gutsy police officer went on to secure an LL.B degree in 1988 from Delhi University and a Ph.D. on the subject ‘Drug Abuse and Domestic Voilence’ from the Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi, in 1993,even while she was in service. FamilyKiran Bedi was born to Prakash Lal Peshawaria and Prem Lata Peshawaria in Amritsar, Punjab. She has three sisters named Shashi, Reeta and Anu. All the four sisters excelled in their chosen vocations and have contributed to their respective fields. Kiran is married to Brij Bedi, a university tennis player, textile engineer by profession and a renowned social activist. They have a daughter, Saina, who is married to Ruzbeh N. Bharucha, a journalist by profession. Excellence in TennisShe has been an Asian tennis champion. Her father was an excellent tennis player and has trained all his daughters in the same sport. Here are a few of her achievements in the field of tennis:
Her Tenure as an IPS OfficerShe joined the Indian Police Service (IPS) in the year 1972 after receiving training at the National Police Academy at Mount Abu. She was first posted as the Sub-Divisional Police Officer at Chanakyapuri Police Station in Delhi, which covers the areas of Rashtrapati Bhawan, PM House, Lutyens Delhi and offices of many key government officers and ministers. She then became the first woman officer to lead Delhi Police’s male contingent at the Republic Day Parade in 1975. She served creditably in a host of appointments ranging from Deputy Inspector General of Police, Mizoram; Advisor to the Lieutenant Governor of Chandigarh, Director General of Narcotics Control Bureau and many others. Her district police assignments at the North and West district of Delhi Police brought another side of her and confirmed her as an officer who not only believed but also practiced. Her last appointment was as the Director General of Bureau of Police Research and Development, India. She took voluntary retirement on 27 November 2007 and was relieved from her duties by the government of India on 25 December 2007. Reformatory ApproachShe is well known for introducing a number of reforms during her stint as the Inspector General of Prisons of the Tihar Jail in New Delhi, like detoxification programmes, yoga, meditation and redressal of prisoners’ complaints. She set up foundations like Navjyoti India Foundation in 1988 and the India Vision Foundation in 1994 for improving the lot of drug addicts, prisoners’ children and the poor sections of society. India Against Corruption MovementKiran was a key member of the ‘India Against Corruption’ (IAC) movement which was led by social activist Anna Hazare. The central focus of IAC was the introduction of the Jan Lokpal Bill. Bedi was involved in the protests and discussions which took place between the government and the activists of the group. She was even arrested for a few hours along with other members of the movement before the beginning of Anna Hazare’s planned indefinite hunger strike. After their protests, the Parliament passed a resolution to consider three points in drafting the Lokpal Bill. Bedi split from the IAC in November 2012. Political JourneyBedi did not join the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) founded by Arvind Kejriwal, her former associate of the IAC movement. She supported BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi during the general elections 2014. She officially joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on 15 January 2015 and was declared as the chief ministerial candidate by the party for the Delhi assembly elections 2015. She contested from Krishna Nagar constituency in the polls but was defeated by AAP candidate S K Bagga. Awards and RecognitionShe has won a number of awards both in India and abroad. The prominent ones among them include the President’s Gallantry Award (1979), the Asia region award for Drug Prevention and Control (1991), the Magsaysay Award for government service (1994), the Joseph Beuys Award (1997), the Mother Teresa Memorial National Award for Social Justice (2005) and the Serge Soitiroff Memorial Award for drug abuse prevention by the United Nations. 1975: नई दिल्ली में चाणक्यपुरी पुलिस स्टेशन में उप-मंडल पुलिस अधिकारी। पुरस्कार एवं सम्मान1968: एनसीसी कैडेट अधिकारी पुरस्कार।
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KIRAN BEDI : THE FIRST WOMAN INDIAN POLICE SERVICE IN1972
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