Not seen family in weeks, cops say duty comes first

Sonepat DSP (headquarters) Jitender Khatkar said that his department is fully prepared to keep the law and order situation of the district intact and make the lockdown a success in containing coronavirus

Besides doctors and medical staff, police personnel in Sonepat district are also combating coronavirus on the frontlines.

HT Image

Though they get little or no time to spend with their families, they are putting their duty first.

Sonepat DSP (headquarters) Jitender Khatkar said that his department is fully prepared to keep the law and order situation of the district intact and make the lockdown a success in containing coronavirus.

“We have been asking people to visit hospitals if they feel unnecessarily fatigued and sick. Our teams are distributing sanitisers, masks and food to the needy. The work keeps me so busy that I haven’t been able to spend time with my daughter and wife. Though I stay in the same house, I keep confined myself to another room to keep my family safe,” he added.

Sonepat has reported 5 positive cases of coronavirus so far. A sub-inspector posted here had also died of the infection in Delhi on April 4.

Crime investigation agency inspector Viveik Malik said that he couldn’t be with his wife on her birthday for the first time since their marriage.

“I wished my wife on her birthday on video call. She got a bit emotional due to my absence, but I told her for a cop, duty comes before anything else. My family members have been missing me as I have not been able to visit my village since March 27,”Malik added.

In an appeal to the citizens, Malik said that people should co-operate with the cops as they were working hard for everyone’s safety.

Sonepat city DSP Ravinder Singh said he has been working continuously and hasn’t been home for the past 20 days. “As my duty, I have been urging people to stay indoors. At the beginning of the lockdown, there was less cooperation from the people, but now they have come around and understood the significance of taking precaution in these times,” he said.