Senior IPS officer Neelmani N Raju emerged as a dark horse in the race to the post of DG&IGP of Karnataka.

Until late Monday night, DGP Kishore Chandra was the leading contender for the post. He had the backing of Vokkaliga community ministers and MLAs.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was under pressure to appoint him as there won't be any Kannadiga for the post till 2030. Sources said, CM had told his colleagues that he would take a final call on this matter. Siddaramaiah had a separate meeting with Kishore Chandra on Monday night. The 1984-batch IPS officer was summoned by CM twice in last week over the matter.

However, Neelamani Raju had the last laugh despite the odds stacked against her.

While picking her for state police's top post, Siddaramaiah ignored the fact that she was away from Karnataka for 24 years and never worked in the executive post.

Being a woman, keeping a low profile and not resorting to pressure tactics worked in her favour. Her husband, Narasimha Raju D N, was close to Siddaramaiah as he served as ACS to CM, which also worked in her favour.

Now, both Kishore Chandra and M N Reddi retire before Neelamani's superannuation.