She will be the first woman to lead the police force in Karnataka. Neelamani N Raju will be the new Director General and Inspector General of Police of the state. Her appointment was announced by R Ramalinga Reddy, the state’s home minister. Here are some details of an illustrious career and some of the challenges that lie ahead.
She hails from Roorkee in Uttarakhand and is an IPS officer from the 1983 batch of Uttarakhand. The 57 year old will be the DG-IGP of Karnataka – a position that is unique to the state. She has been with various central deputations for 23 years and has been in Karnataka for about ten years.
Neelamani N Raju was the SP, Bangalore rural district until 1993, after this she has been with various central deputations. She has served as DGP of Fire and Emergency Services, with the Civil Defence and the State Disaster Response force and has also been Chief of Home Guards. She was secretary for the Indian embassy in Nepal and has also been the Joint Director of the Intelligence Bureau.
Reportedly there was strong lobbying for the appointment of two other officers to the top post; who had political connections. However the Chief Minister Siddharamaiah has refused to buckle under pressure and continued the tradition of appointing the most senior candidate to the position. Narasimha Raju, the husband of Neelamani Raju was the former principal secretary to Siddaramaiah from 2014 to 2016.
Among the many onerous duties that will fall to Karnataka’s top cop will be to find and bring to book the murderers of Gauri Lankesh who was killed last September. There has been no arrest so far in the case.
Another challenge will be the successful and peaceful completion of Tipu Jayanti in the face of strong objection to the event from the BJP and some right wing groups. In protests related to the event, two persons died in 2015. The challenge will be to ensure a peaceful event as was held in 2016. Maintaining communal peace in the coastal areas of Dakshina Kannada will also be one of her challenges.
In an interview, Neelamani Raju said that she has not encountered the glass ceiling in the Indian police force. She said she would be happy if her elevation would help other women facing problems in different spheres of life. The safety and security of the people of the state is her first priority. Though rate of conviction is important, she listed maintenance of law and order as her primary priority.
Do you have something interesting you would like to share? Write to us at [email protected]
