Meet Kiran Bedi, India's National Tennis Champion Who Went On To Become The First Indian Woman IPS Officer

Kiran Bedi was also the first woman to be appointed the United Nations civilian police advisor in the Department of peacekeeping operations.

Kiran Bedi is a household name as she is the first woman to have joined the officer ranks of the Indian Police Service (IPS). She was born to Parkash and Premlata Peshawaria on June 9, 1949, in Amritsar, Punjab, and did her schooling at the Sacred Heart Convent School in Amritsar. She then did her Bachelor's in English from the Government College for Women in Amritsar and finished her Master's in Political Science from the Punjab University in Chandigarh. 

Kiran Bedi, who joined the Indian Police Services in 1972, did LLB from Delhi University in 1988. She also received a Doctorate in Philosophy (PhD) from the Department of Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi in 1993.

Kiran Bedi's love for tennis

Kiran Bedi has been a professional tennis player and started playing the sport when she was 9. She won the National Junior championship in 1966 and the senior National title in 1974. In 1972, she also won the national junior lawn tennis championship.

She played competitive tennis from the age of 13 to the age of 30.

Tennis was a family sport for Kiran Bedi as her father was himself a tennis player, and also made all four of his daughters into playing competitive tennis.

Recovering my tennis.. pic.twitter.com/cndSjXqpB7 — Kiran Bedi (@thekiranbedi) March 31, 2021

She also believes that if not for tennis, she wouldn't have been able to make it to the police service. 

Kiran Bedi met her husband on the tennis court

Kiran Bedi met her husband Brij Bedi on the tennis court. He was a university champion and it was 'love through tennis' as she calls it.

He was a textile engineer who had his own business and he was a well-known social activist in Amritsar.

The two have a daughter Saina Bharucha. 

Kiran Bedi trained in Mount Abu

Kiran Bedi, who came from an NCC background, trained at the National Police Academy in Mount Abu in Rajasthan. She was the only woman in a batch of 80 for her police training. 

During the training, she would defeat the boys in marathons, tennis matches, and other training games, and was later allotted the Union Territory AGMUT Cadre.

Kiran Bedi was first posted in Delhi

After completing her training, Kiran Bedi was given the first posting as ACP in Delhi's Chanakyapuri in 1978-79. Chanakyapuri, notably, is the most upmarket area of Delhi and houses all the important offices including the Parliament and the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

She also became the first woman to lead an all-male contingent in the Republic Day Parade. Seeing a woman lead the parade, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had cheered for her and had reportedly invited her for breakfast.

It was a rare privilege being with
Mrs Indira Gandhi.
I was very fond of her.
She too was very proud of my having joined the IPS.
She used invite me to her functions and introduce me as India's first woman in the officer ranks of IPS..
This pic is of Jan 1975 at her residence. pic.twitter.com/X4Z02NfVfK — Kiran Bedi (@thekiranbedi) November 19, 2017

As DCP West, Kiran Bedi introduced the system of beatbox

As DCP West, Kiran Bedi introduced the system of beat box -- which was the concept of neighborhood policing -- in Delhi. The concept of beat policing is that these boxes were manned by a local police constable stationed as a beat officer, for about three hours every day, and the beat officer would report to the Station House Officer every day. This brought police assistance to the doorstep. 

This system brought policemen to the civil area and was helpful in settling all sorts of disputes very easily. 

Completing 50 years Tom morning in IPS, a service I pray i be reborn in.
Thank the Divine Hands of Protection all along all the way.
And support from all directions to live this long. @IPS_Association @AmitShah @PMOIndia pic.twitter.com/3zmoszwyOh — Kiran Bedi (@thekiranbedi) July 15, 2022

In the national capital, she had served in different capacities -- DCP Traffic, DCP North, IG Prisons Tihar, and Special Secretary Delhi-LG. Bedi has also served in Goa, Mizoram, and was also the first woman to be appointed the United Nations civilian police advisor in the Department of peacekeeping operations.

Before seeking voluntary retirement from the service in 2007, Kiran Bedi was posted as the Director General of Police, the Bureau of Police Research and Development. The BPRD was set up in 1970 by the Government of India to modernize the police forces.

In 1979, she was also awarded the President Gallantry Medal. Amongst the many other awards conferred upon her are L’OREAL Paris FEMINA WOMEN’s AWARDS, 2014 for SOCIAL IMPACT, Nomura Cares Award, Singapore, Certificate of Recognition, Los Angeles, State of California, UN Medal 2004, Morrison Tom Gitchoff Award, 2001, and Asia Region Award for Drug Prevention and Control, 1991.

She was also one of the pioneers of the anti-corruption movement in 2011 along with activist Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejriwal, who then went on to form the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and become the chief minister of Delhi.

Kiran Bedi's political journey

The country’s first woman IPS officer had then tried her luck in politics and had led the Bharatiya Janata Party's campaign in the 2015 Delhi Assembly elections. 

With BJP North East cell members.Told them there shall b a regular exchange prog betw students of Delhi & NE pic.twitter.com/DqKx2lUue8 — Kiran Bedi (@thekiranbedi) January 23, 2015

She, however, had to face the worst defeat in her maiden political innings with Kejriwal-led AAP winning 67 of the 70 Assembly seats.

Subsequently, in 2016, Kiran Bedi assumed charge as the 23rd Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry and served till 2021.

Kiran Bedi also has published several books including 'Fearless Governance', which is based on the ground realities of nearly her five years of service as Puducherry LG and her vast experience of 40 years in the Indian Police Service.