Police chief reaches out to families of slain officers

The DGP is working towards securing jobs for the family members.

After years of facing charges of neglect, the Punjab police, under its new chief Sumedh Singh Saini, is reaching out to the families of police officials who laid down their lives fighting terrorism in Punjab. The director general of police (DGP) is himself visiting homes of slain police officers and looking for ways to arrange jobs for their family members. The DGP has also asked his officers to offer help to all such families.

Chosen to head the Punjab police by the Akali Dal-BJP government soon after it took over for its second term, Saini has had an eventful career evoking strong reactions from both his detractors and admirers. His appointment as the youngest DGP in the country has however been challenged in the high court.

Saini has been known as a tough official who does not care for publicity, adverse or otherwise. His recent overtures though may be indicators of an effort to soften that perception. This was on display recently when he visited Haibowal, near Ludhiana to meet the family of a slain police official. Surjit Kaur was 30 years old when her husband Amar Singh, a sub inspector at Amritsar’s border district Valtoha was killed in a terrorist encounter. Surjit, who had to single-handedly fend for her five daughters, was employed in a government office but had to quit her job in 2007 after she fell seriously ill. Her second daughter Nirdosh Kaur was provided a job on compassionate grounds but Surjit hit a rough patch once again when her eldest daughter got divorced. Surjit, who was living with her unmarried youngest daughter Jasbir Kaur was now forced to look after her eldest daughter and granddaughter too. Facing hard times they were in for a surprise when the DGP came calling. Ranbir Kaur, one of the five daughters said Saini talked to her mother and inquired if she wanted something. “My mother asked him to get my eldest sisters settled so that they could live independently and he immediately issued instructions to get both my sisters employed in the school in Police Lines.”

Saini has directed all the police officers to look for more such cases of fellow police officials and offer whatever help may be needed.