NEW DELHI: India’s first woman police officer, seen as a symbol of empowerment in a male-dominated society, said on Tuesday she was quitting, months after a junior male colleague was chosen ahead of her for a top job.

Kiran Bedi, known as a tough, no-nonsense officer who spoke her mind, said she had applied for voluntary retirement two years ahead of schedule, to pursue academic and social interests.

Her decision came after she was bypassed for the role of Delhi’s police chief, one of India’s most prestigious police posts.

On Tuesday though, she said the time had come to “move on”.

“I want to focus on my academic, spiritual and social interests more,” Bedi told reporters. “My 35 years of service has been totally fulfilling.” One of India’s most recognised faces, Bedi has a larger-than-life image in a country where police are mostly perceived as inefficient or corrupt or both.

An Asian and national tennis champion before she made it to the Indian Police Service in 1972, Bedi has worked in traffic and narcotics control, prison management and was also an adviser to the UN’s peacekeeping operations.

She shot to fame in the early 1980s when she was responsible for the unthinkable act of having the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s car towed away for illegal parking while Gandhi was out of the country.—Reuters