Mumbai policeman succumbs to COVID-19; Bollywood stars deeply saddened, hail his sacrifice

A 57-year-old policeman Chandrakant Ganapat Pendurkar of Mumbai Police died of COVID-19 on Saturday. The cop, who served as a Head Constable at the Vakola police station in the city, was suffering from coronavirus-related complications for the last few days, Mumbai Police’s official Twitter handle informed. Celebrities from the film industry expressed their grief over the news, while hailing the sacrifice of the policeman.

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Amitabh Bachchan termed it ‘extremely sad’ and wrote how the police was working for the survival of the citizens but end up sacrificing their own lives. The actor expressed his respects and condolences to Pendurkar and his family. 

Here's the tweet

Shankar Mahadevan termed him as a ‘great hero’, while sharing his sorrow and extending prayers to the family.

Riteish Deshmukh saluted the ‘true hero’ and conveyed gratitude for his courage and service. 

Kunal Kohli extended his respect and gratitude to the constable and called it ‘heartbreaking.’

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Anubhav Sinha, Nagma and Madhur Bhandarkar were among the numerous others who expressed their sadness on the death.

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As per reports, 96 police personnel have been infected with COVID-19 in Maharashtra. The state is the worst affected in the country with 7628 cases and 323 deaths. Mumbai has been the worst affected city, contributing to over 3000 cases alone.

The total number of active cases in India at the moment are 19869, and 824 deaths have been reported due to COVID-19.

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