Unknown, interesting facts about Kiran Bedi

New Delhi, Jan 16: Team Narendra Modi in Delhi received a major boost as Kiran Bedi joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Ms Bedi's move of joining the party added a new energy among the party leaders who have been preparing for upcoming assembly election in the national capital.

Here are a few unknown and interesting facts about Kiran Bedi:

• Ms Bedi, who hails from Amritsar, obtained a PhD in Social Sciences from the Department of Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi at the age of 44.
• Ms Bedi began her career as a Lecturer in Political Science in a college in Amritsar.
• She is the first Indian woman who joined joined the Indian Police Service (IPS).
• She is well-known as Crane Bedi for towing the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's car for a parking violation.
• She had played a crucial role in the areas of narcotics control, traffic management and VIP security.
• She had guided and initiated a number of measures such as detoxification programs, Art of Living Foundation prison courses in Tihar jail in Delhi.
• She had also initiated yoga, vipassana meditation, Murat redressing of complaints by prisoners and literacy programs.
• She had taken voluntarily retirment from the police force to undertake new challenges in life.

Kiran Bedi and Controversies:

• Supreme Court of India in 1993 had criticised Ms Bedi for not abiding by the direction of the apex court in connection of providing medical attention to a foreign under-trial prisoner.
• The apex court had initiated contempt proceedings against her for the same reason.
• Bedi had faced massive criticism for her decision of lathi-charge on lawyers who were protesting against another lawyer's arrest outside Bedi's office in 1998.
• Members of Parliament had raised demand of bringing a breach of privilege motion against Kiran Bedi.
• Ms Bedi was accused of mocking the parliamentarians during the lokpal bill protests.
• Despite of travelling in economy class, Ms Bedi once was criticised for asking charge of business class. Later she, however, claimed that she wanted the money for her NGO and not for personal gains.
• Kiran Bedi was alleged to have charged her hosts full fare for air tickets despite her paying discounted fare.
• Ms Bedi's daughter had used the quota for students from North-East of India and got admission for MBBS in one college in Delhi.
• Ms Bedi, however, defended her daughter, and stated that it was within the rules and Central Government employees were entitled to such schemes.

Sudden change in her decisions:

• Ms Bedi, who used to criticise Narendra Modi for Gujarat riots, gave critics the scope of criticising her for her decision of joining BJP-led by Modi.
• Ms Bedi, who earlier had refused to Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), changed her decision and joined BJP ahead of Delhi assembly elections 2015.
• She had refused to accept Kejriwal's offer of contesting Delhi election 2014 with an AAP ticket saying she by nature is a "non-political" person.

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