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Indian Express
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Operation Sindoor: Meet Col Sofiya Qureshi and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh leading Modi Govt's military messaging
On Wednesday morning, as Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri took his seat at the National Media Centre in the heart of the capital to brief the media on India's retaliation to the Pahalgam terror attack, he was accompanied by two unfamiliar faces – Wing Commander Vyomika Singh of the Indian Air Force and Colonel Sophiya Qureshi of the Indian Army. The significance of the Union government choosing two women officers from the armed forces to disclose details of 'Operation Sindoor' was not lost on anyone. During the briefing, Qureshi addressed the media in Hindi, explaining the selected terrorist targets destroyed through precision attacks, while Singh followed with the same information in English. The briefing lasted 25 minutes – coincidentally, the same duration as 'Operation Sindoor' itself. In contrast, on September 29, 2016, after the surgical strikes carried out in response to the Uri attack, the Indian government had chosen Lieutenant General Ranbir Singh, then Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) of the Indian Army, to brief the media. Similarly, after the Balakot airstrikes on February 26, 2019, the responsibility of briefing the media was given to then Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale. So, who are the two women that the Modi government chose to disclose details of 'Operation Sindoor'? Who is Colonel Sofiya Qureshi? An officer of the Army's Signal Corps, the 44-year-old Colonel Sophiya Qureshi was one of 11 women officers whose achievements were highlighted by the Supreme Court in its landmark 2020 judgment on gender parity in the Army's top positions. The judgment dismissed the government's arguments against granting women command appointments and specifically acknowledged the accomplishments of these 11 female officers. 'Women officers of the Indian Army have brought laurels to the force,' the Supreme Court noted, and Qureshi was among those recognized. Colonel Qureshi holds the rare distinction of being the first woman officer to lead an Indian Army contingent in a major multinational military exercise. In February and March of 2016, then a 35-year-old Lieutenant Colonel, she led the Indian Army's 40-member contingent in a multinational exercise. The Multinational Field Training Exercise (FTX) – Exercise FORCE 18 involved ASEAN Plus countries and was the largest ground forces exercise ever conducted on Indian soil at the time. It was based on the themes of 'Humanitarian Mine Action' and 'Peacekeeping Operations'. Colonel Qureshi also served in the United Nations Peacekeeping Operation in Congo in 2006 and has been associated with peacekeeping operations for over six years. Her leadership in the exercise came after being selected from a pool of peacekeeping trainers. When asked about leading the contingent, she said, 'I feel proud, of course.' Her message to young women in the armed forces was: 'Work hard for the country and make everyone proud.' During that time, the Army Commander of the Southern Command, the late General Bipin Rawat, who later became the Army Chief and India's first Chief of Defence Staff, praised her. He remarked, 'In the Army, we believe in equal opportunity and equal responsibility. There is no difference between male and female officers. She was chosen not because she is a woman but because she has the abilities and leadership qualities to shoulder the responsibility.' Colonel Qureshi holds a postgraduate degree in Biochemistry. She hails from Vadodara, Gujarat, and comes from a family with a strong military tradition—her grandfather served in the Army, and her father was an Army religious teacher. She joined the Indian Army through the Officers Training Academy in 1999 and is married to Major Tajuddin Qureshi of the Mechanised Infantry. Who is Wing Commander Vyomika Singh? A helicopter pilot in the Air Force, Singh was commissioned into the IAF on December 18, 2004, as part of the 21st Short Service Commission (Women) Flying Pilot Course and was promoted to the rank of Wing Commander on December 18, 2017. Specializing in helicopter operations, she has logged over 2,500 flying hours on Chetak and Cheetah helicopters. In 2021, she participated in a tri-services all-women mountaineering expedition to Mt. Manirang, one of the highest peaks of Himachal Pradesh, nestled at the border of Kinnaur & Spiti districts, demonstrating her resilience and dedication.
Indian Express
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
No stranger to making history, grandfather in the Army: Who is Colonel Sofiya Qureshi?
On Wednesday, when India gave a detailed account about Operation Sindoor, launched in response to the Pahalgam terror attack, Colonel Sofiya Qureshi was among the two women armed forces officers who held the briefing in a strong message of resolve, inclusion, and operational confidence. Along with Wing Commander Vyomika Singh, Colonel Qureshi gave a detailed presentation, along with footage of strikes and maps of terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri was also present at the briefing on Operation Sindoor. Col Qureshi, whose grandfather also served in the Indian Army, said Operation Sindoor 'was launched by the Indian armed forces to deliver justice to the victims of the terror attack and their families'. 'Nine terrorist camps were targeted and successfully destroyed.' Col Qureshi said these targets were chosen 'based on credible intelligence inputs and the role of these facilities in perpetrating the terror activities'. 'The locations were so selected to avoid damage to civilian infrastructures and loss of any civilian lives. This was done with due diligence.' Who is Colonel Sofiya Qureshi? An officer with the Corps of Signals, Col Qureshi was the first woman officer to lead an Indian Army contingent in a large multinational military exercise, among many other distinctions. In February and March of 2016, Col Qureshi, who was then a 35-year-old Lieutenant Colonel, led the Indian Army's 40-member contingent into a multinational exercise. Multinational Field Training Exercise (FTX) – Exercise FORCE 18, involved ASEAN Plus countries. At the time, it was the largest Ground Forces Exercise ever conducted on Indian soil and was based on the themes 'Humanitarian Mine Action' and 'Peacekeeping Operations'. A postgraduate in Biochemistry, Col Sofiya Qureshi has served in the United Nations Peacekeeping Operation in Congo in 2006, and has also been associated with the PKOs for several years during her career. During the concluding ceremony of the 2016 multinational exercise, when she was asked how she felt about leading the contingent, she said, 'I feel proud, of course.' And her message to other young women in the armed forces was, 'Work hard for the country and make everyone proud.' For young women of the country, she said, 'Join the Army.' 'A rare distinction' An Indian Army press statement issued then lauded Col Qureshi, and said she had the 'rare distinction of becoming the first woman officer to lead an Indian Army training contingent in such a large multinational exercise. The officer also happens to be the only Woman Officer Contingent Commander amongst all other ASEAN Plus contingents present for the exercise.' Late General Bipin Rawat, the Army Commander of Southern Command who later became the Army Chief and India's first Chief of Defence Staff, was at the time asked about Lt Col Qureshi and the rare distinction. 'In the Army, we believe in equal opportunity and equal responsibility. In the Army, there is no difference between male and female officers. She has been chosen not because she is a woman but because she has the abilities and leadership qualities to shoulder the responsibility,' the late General Rawat had said.
