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By:

Kiran D. Tare

21 August 2024 at 4:53:13 pm

The Iron Lady Goes to War

Sanjukta Parashar’s rise from Assam’s insurgency-hit districts to the frontline of India’s counter-insurgency apparatus marks a milestone in the long march of women into combat leadership. Earlier this month, Sanjukta Parashar became the first woman to command the CRPF’s elite Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA). Her elevation to Inspector General of this specialized jungle-warfare force marks a watershed moment in the history of India’s internal security apparatus. The...

The Iron Lady Goes to War

Sanjukta Parashar’s rise from Assam’s insurgency-hit districts to the frontline of India’s counter-insurgency apparatus marks a milestone in the long march of women into combat leadership. Earlier this month, Sanjukta Parashar became the first woman to command the CRPF’s elite Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA). Her elevation to Inspector General of this specialized jungle-warfare force marks a watershed moment in the history of India’s internal security apparatus. The appointment places the 2006-batch Indian Police Service officer at the helm of ten elite battalions whose operational identity is defined by long-range forest operations, counter-guerrilla strikes, and high-risk tactical deployments deep within hostile territory. Her authority over this unforgiving landscape was not built in comfortable administrative corridors, but forged directly on the frontline. Well before her rise to national combat leadership, Parashar earned her spurs - as evinced by her moniker of the ‘Iron Lady of Assam’ - in the shadow of the Sonitpur forests. Serving as Superintendent of Police between 2013 and 2014, she found herself at the epicentre of an aggressive campaign against the National Democratic Front of Bodoland. Over a relentless 15-month operational push, her forces neutralized 16 militants and executed the arrest of more than 60 insurgents. That campaign established her reputation as a formidable field officer who possessed not only tactical nerve, but a deep comprehension of the fluid boundaries between counter-insurgency warfare, local political complexities, and frontline survival. Assam’s long history of insurgency demanded a unique of policing that required navigating difficult terrain while maintaining operational integrity. Sonitpur served as an early crucible for Parashar in the realities of asymmetric warfare – a task she completed with consummate skill and steely resolve. She was tested for strategic depth when she transitioned to the National Investigation Agency, serving from 2017 to 2023. Rising from Superintendent of Police to Deputy Inspector General, she broadened her operational scope from forest patrols to complex counterterrorism networks. At the NIA, she directed high-stakes national security investigations including the probe into the Madhya Pradesh train blast, mastering the painstaking work of unpicking clandestine webs, tracking terror finance, and assembling evidence that held up across state boundaries. A subsequent tenure leading the Criminal Investigation Department of the Assam Police further consolidated her expertise, fusing hands-on tactical instincts with executive-level intelligence gathering and administrative leadership. The timing of her appointment to head CoBRA carries substantial weight. CoBRA occupies a distinct and extraordinarily demanding position within India's security architecture. Its personnel remain central to ongoing anti-Naxal operations across the dense, landmine-rigged forests of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, while key battalions are deployed in Manipur to navigate volatile, multi-layered ethnic conflict in notoriously unforgiving terrain. Operating where conventional policing cannot reach, CoBRA requires a leader capable of commanding absolute respect from troops trained for high-intensity, close-quarters combat – something which Parashar is admirably suited to given her experience. The intellectual foundations of Parashar’s career were laid well before her first operational assignment. Born in October 1979, she completed her early education in Assam before moving to Delhi, where she earned a degree in Political Science from Indraprastha College for Women, followed by a Master’s and Doctorate in International Relations from Jawaharlal Nehru University. Her academic background has prepared her for a rigorous structural understanding of conflict, political economy and statecraft that informs her practical approach to internal security threats. While six other female IPS officers currently serve as Inspector Generals across various CRPF formations leading sectors in Jammu, the Rapid Action Force, the Northeast, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh, CoBRA had never, since its inception, been headed by a woman. For young women considering careers in India’s police and paramilitary forces, the path to senior leadership has historically been shaped by institutional conventions and assumptions about the roles women can occupy. Parashar’s rise demonstrates that command of a specialised, combat-focused formation is no longer beyond the reach of a woman officer. For the Iron Lady, heading CoBRA is a key posting in an already illustrious career marked by conspicuous success. For the women who may follow her, it is a glass ceiling that has been definitively shattered. Her appointment fundamentally redefines the narrative surrounding female command in India’s armed and paramilitary forces, proving that operational excellence knows no gender boundaries.

Discussions on among allies for govt formation: Ajit Pawar

Correspondent
Nov 26, 2024
2 min read

Updated: Nov 29, 2024

Ajit Pawar

Mumbai: Deputy Chief Minister and NCP head Ajit Pawar on Monday said discussions were underway among the Mahayuti partners to finalise a formula for the new government formation in the state.


Speaking to reporters at Karad in Satara district, Pawar also acknowledged the contribution of the government's Ladki Bahin scheme, which provides financial assistance to women, in the Mahayuti's victory in the just-concluded state assembly polls.


The NCP leader also assured that the alliance was working cohesively following its resounding victory in the state assembly elections.


Pawar paid tributes to Maharashtra's first chief minister Yashwantrao Chavan at his memorial in Karad on his death anniversary.


In the state poll results declared on Saturday, the Mahayuti, which comprises the BJP, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar-led NCP, bagged an impressive 230 of the 288 assembly seats.


The focus has been on BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who is being seen as a strong contender to occupy the top post for the third time, as his party bagged 132 of the 149 seats it contested in the state.


Notably, Maharashtra minister and Shiv Sena leader Deepak Kesarkar has said his party legislators feel Eknath Shinde should continue as the chief minister of the state, where the ruling Mahayuti scored a landslide victory in the assembly polls.


Ajit Pawar said, "We will decide what formula to work out on the cabinet formation among the three parties."


Reflecting on the elections, he acknowledged the contribution of the Ladki Bahin scheme in the Mahayuti's win.


"We cannot ignore that Ladki Bahin helped us in this election. We are grateful to them (women voters)," he said.


Defending the scheme, Pawar, who is also the state finance minister, further said, "Had I been opposed to the Ladki Bahin scheme, I would not have presented it in the House. I discussed the scheme with several retired finance officers before finalising it."


Pawar also dismissed concerns raised by some opposition leaders over the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), pointing out that polls in states like Punjab, West Bengal and Telangana, governed by their political opponents, have been conducted with the same system.


Commenting on members of same families contesting against each other during the elections, Pawar expressed annoyance over repeated questions on it.


He then asked, "Why was my close nephew fielded? Atram's own daughter was fielded against him, and even Rajendra Shingne faced a similar challenge. I don't want to comment further on this. I have got tired of apologising for fielding my wife against Supriya. Yugendra was in business, then why was he prepared to contest against me?"


In the Baramati assembly seat, Ajit Pawar was pitted against his nephew and NCP (SP) candidate Yugendra Pawar.


In Aheri seat, NCP leader Dharamraobaba Atram's daughter Bhagyashree Atram contested against him on NCP (SP) ticket.

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