The chat room: The cop the high and mighty would love to stay clear of!
In 2006, a former BJP legislator was doing the usual “do you know who I am” routine with a young Superintendent of Police recently posted in Davangere. A tight slap on his face -- in front of hundreds of his own supporters as well as opposition party workers – taught him a lesson: don’t take a pretty woman for granted, especially one in uniform.
The politician, the disgraced former Lokayukta Bhaskar Rao and his son Y. Ashwin, whose scandalous racket she busted, and the shady characters involved in the recent PU exams paper leak case are among the many worthies who will be relieved at the news that Deccan Chronicle broke on Friday: Sonia Narang, currently Deputy Inspector General of Police, CID, will soon be gone from Bengaluru, on deputation to the National Investigation Agency.
Meet the fearless, 2004-batch IPS officer for whom “all are equal before the law”. Actually, don’t try, it’s quite hard to pin her down for a meeting. It took me over two weeks, and a constant stream of messages and follow-ups, before I found myself face-to-face with her.
Clad in a crisp, off-white saree, she welcomed me, smiling, into her office at the CID premises on Palace Road. For an officer widely known to be a tough cop, she is surprisingly soft-spoken. That’s perhaps the ‘Punjabi kudi’ness, born of her Chandigarh origins. But the Punjab University gold medalist in Sociology exudes charisma, and authority.
The CID headquarters was abuzz with officers walking in and out of her cabin, interrupting our conversation several times, bringing to her notice the latest developments in the PU exam question paper leak case. She greeted them all with a smile, heard them out, and quietly gave her instructions. When I did get a chance to slip in a question, I couldn’t help asking what drove her to take on cases that other officers would rather avoid. "I thrive on challenges," she replied.
That she does, from morning to evening every day, dealing with the most high-profile cases in the city that could reduce anybody to a bundle of nerves. Still, as the work day ends, she slips with ease into another pivotal role – mother to her two young children. And wife to another IPS officer — Ganesh Kumar who is currently posted in the Bureau of Immigration in Bengaluru, after a stint in Bihar. Narang met Kumar, her senior, while she was on probation in Mussoorie in 2002, and married him three years later.
Her face lit up at the mention of her kids, Shaurya and Aditi. What does she tell them about her work? “I never actually told them”, she says, “They would see me leave home everyday in my uniform and they knew”. The biggest challenge, in fact, is to ensure neither she nor they brought up her work while they are together. She does not want the pressures of her job to tell on her relationship and time with them.
Instead, she lets them overwhelm her with their stories of the day. “They pounce on me the moment I walk into home. Aditi, who is in pre-school, always has stories to tell. And she demands that I’m all ears”, she says excitedly, “Shaurya, on the other hand, waits to tell me that he saw me on television!” And like every devoted mom, she becomes a playmate, watching their favourite cartoons with them, taking them out for ice-cream treats and playing her favourite game — Ludo!
Being one of the city police force’s leading officers has meant one thing — sacrifice. This summer, her children will have to do without their annual vacation in Chandigarh, because of the PU paper leak case. But she might be able to make up for it in Delhi. “I’ll find some time” she says, “but it won’t be more than a week”. Well, officer, we’re sure you will find new challenges in Delhi, but don’t get addicted to that city. Come back to Bengaluru soon!
