Kiran Bedi, a bold and a powerful woman, a retired Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, former tennis player and currently the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry, what else is left to be done by her? An all-rounder woman is what she is and even turning 69, she still can give a tough fight to anybody.
On her birthday let’s go down the memory lane and see what achievements she has conquered in her life:
1. She was the First Woman IPS (Indian Police Service) Officer of India
Elected in 1975, the same year she became the first woman to lead the all-male contingent of the Delhi Police at the Republic Day Parade in 1975.
2. She was a National and Asian Tennis Champion
She was inspired by her father and started playing tennis at the age of nine. As a teenage tennis player, she cut her hair short as they interfered with her game. In 1964, she played her first tournament outside Amritsar, participating in the national junior lawn tennis championship at Delhi Gymkhana.
3. She earned the nickname ‘Crane Bedi’ for her frequent use of cranes to tow away wrongly parked cars, which did not spare even the car of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, what a lady she was!
4. She initiated the practice of yoga and spiritual practice for the Tihar prisoners and also introduced the literacy programmes for them.
5. She is a founder of two organisations that deal with the betterment of drug addicts and women that are- Navajyoti and India Vision Foundation.
6. Kiran Bedi has authored more than 12 books, these are the experiences of her, in Tihar jail, our country and the corruption issues, leadership and governance.
7. Her life was depicted in a Telugu movie named ‘Karthavyam’. It went on to become a huge hit in the southern states.
8. She is a United Nations medal awardee and an Honorary doctorate recipient, recipient of the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award also called the Asian Nobel Prize and recipient of the Los Angeles, State of California Special Recognition award
9. She was one of the core members of India Against Corruption (IAC) along with Arvind Kejriwal and Anna Hazare which led to a mass movement which brought the much-awaited Lokpal Bill.
10. During 2014 general election, Bedi supported Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after Modi won and became the Prime Minister of India, Bedi stated that she was ready to be BJP’s CM candidate in Delhi and joined BJP in 2015. She was BJP’s Chief Ministerial candidate for Delhi against Arvind Kejriwal and lost the elections after which in 2016, she was appointed as the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry.