Col Sofiya Qureshi: From Supreme Court Milestone to Briefing Nation on Airstrikes

By: WE staff | Friday, 9 May 2025

• Col Sofiya Qureshi was part of a top-level media briefing along with Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh after India's air strikes against terror camps in Pakistan
• She has an important place in the annals of gender integration in the military

Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, who recently featured alongside Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh to update the media on India's airstrikes against terror bases in Pakistan, had earlier been prominently featured in a historic Supreme Court ruling on women in the military.

The landmark February 17, 2020, ruling in Secretary, Ministry of Defence vs. Babita Puniya by Justices D.Y. Chandrachud and Ajay Rastogi was instrumental in giving permanent commissions to women Short Service Commission (SSC) officers in the Indian Armed Forces. In the verdict, the bench recognized the important role and contribution of women officers, noting their contributions along with male colleagues in national service.

Justice Chandrachud, who went on to become Chief Justice of India, lauded the achievements of women officers and said that they had "brought laurels to the force"—something, he added, which remained beyond dispute. Out of the 11 women officers mentioned for distinguished service, Lt. Col. Sofiya Qureshi headed the list.

The award highlighted her outstanding career: Col Qureshi of the Army Signal Corps was the first woman officer to command an Indian Army contingent in a multinational military exercise—'Exercise Force 18', the biggest ever foreign military exercise to be conducted in India. She also went to the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Congo in 2006, where she played an important role in observing ceasefires and assisting humanitarian operations in affected areas.