Neelamani Raju Becomes Karnataka’s First Woman Police Chief

Karnataka’s first woman police chief has served in the Intelligence Bureau for 23 years.

The woman police chief of Karnataka has served in the intelligence bureau for 23 years. 

(Photo: The Quint )

In a historic move, Karnataka government has appointed the first woman chief of the state police. Neelamani Raju, a 1983-batch IPS officer, took over as the Director General and Inspector General of Police (DG and IGP) of Karnataka police from RK Dutta on 31 October.

Neelamani Raju is the second woman IPS officer to join the Karnataka cadre. A native of Uttar Pradesh, Neelamani served in Karnataka for 10 years before going on deputation to the Intelligence Bureau in 1993.

Government notification on Neelamani Raju’s appointment. (Photo courtesy: The Quint)

Raju served in the IB for 23 years and in 2016, after reaching the post of joint director in the IB, she returned to her home cadre as a DGP rank officer. Since her return, she has served as the DGP of Internal Security Division and Fire and Emergency Services.

ST Ramesh, former DG and IGP of Karnataka, told The Quint that the appointment was indeed a historic decision. “Several women have been appointed as chief of police and important institutions in the country. A woman leading the state police force is indeed a happy news,” he said.

The appointment comes after much speculation about the government choosing her junior DGP Kishore Chandra, a member of the Vokkaliga community, as the DG and IGP.

(This story has been updated.)

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