As a 14-year-old girl, Kiran Bedi loved mathematics and science. But it was the 1950s—and it was India—so the only class her school offered was called Household, a class designed to groom girls into perfect housewives.
Kiran solved this problem by changing schools (of course) going on to earn her University degree, then Master’s degree, Law degree, and finally, Ph.D.
A Global Feminist Icon
If Kiran already sounds like the ultimate baddie, just keep reading.
From a young age, Kiran had participated in India’s National Cadet Corps where she was a natural, winning the NCC Cadet Officer Award in 1968. She knew she wanted a career in public service so in 1972 she began her police training.
In 1974, Kiran Bedi became India’s first female police officer. But this was just the beginning. After winning the President's Police Medal in 1979, she was promoted to Deputy Commissioner of Police for North Delhi and then Inspector General of Delhi Prisons.
Her work on prison reform won her the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 1994 and in 2003, Bedi became the first Indian and first woman to be appointed as head of the United Nations Police Department of Peace Operations.
Kiran Bedi is a trailblazer, a leader, and an icon, and we are thrilled to feature her story here at Baddie Nation.
