The owner of eight buffaloes till a few days ago, 30-year-old Sompal is doing all he can to feed his family twice a day.
After his buffaloes were stolen on April 2 right before his eyes from a rented dairy in south-east Delhi’s New Roshanpura, he seems to have given up hope.
“I have no option but to end my life,” said Sompal.
After over two weeks and several visits to the Chhawla police station, Sompal blames the police for not taking action despite CCTV footage being available. “The police have CCTV footage of the incident. It shows the faces of the culprits and even the registration number of the truck. I don’t understand why they don’t do anything,” he asked, adding that CCTV footage of a similar theft in the second week of April showed that it was carried out by the same gang.
The footage showed a white truck parked outside the dairy in which the buffaloes were loaded by a man in a blue shirt and another in a green T-shirt.
‘Huge debt to clear’
Sompal, whose only income was the sale of buffalo milk, told The Hindu that he had 14 buffaloes two months ago, of which six died within three days of being bought. “I have a debt of ₹6 lakh to clear off. The debt collectors come to haunt me every day,” he added. He is now left with no money to support his family of six, including his parents, wife and two children aged three and five.
“My daughter Yashika goes to playschool and my son Yuvraj goes to a local school. They asked me for school fee and I had no answer to give. What if they are thrown out?” he asked.
“I don’t even have ₹100 to take back home. I keep asking my friends and family for money, but till when will they support me,” Sompal said.
Deputy Commissioner of Police Surender Kumar, meanwhile, told The Hindu that the vehicle used to carry the buffaloes was recovered on Monday. One of the prime accused, identified as Afzal, is absconding, said the DCP.
“He is a resident of Najafgarh. We are interrogating his family to identify his possible hideouts,” said Mr. Kumar, adding that the accused also owns a dairy.
The police added that they taking are preventive measures after two cases were reported within a span of 10 days. “We have increased police patrolling near the border areas as these buffaloes are taken to Jhajjar in Haryana for cattle fairs where they sold,” said Mr. Kumar.
