We are honoured to call you our dad, Aakashi and Shantanu Sanjiv Bhatt

It has now been 22 months since our father Mr. Sanjiv Bhatt was wrongfully taken away from his home and his family. While the world knows, loves and respects him as the brave, honest and upright Police Officer; today, on Father’s Day let us, his children, give you a glimpse of Sanjiv Bhatt the Father.

Seldom in life one comes across a man who can don so many roles, each with equal if not exceeding aplomb. An ideal son and son-in-law, a loyal friend, a loving and devoted husband, an exemplary officer, but the role I believe he excelled in beyond all is that of a Father.

There hasn’t been a single day of our lives, when we haven’t had our father walking right beside us. He has run alongside us as we gallivanted our way in life; sprinting joyfully by our side on our happiest days, walking alongside us on our saddest hour and carrying us through our darkest times. He has been our force of life, our cornerstone, our north star. It is him from whom we draw our strength and courage to smile in the face of adversity and soldier on. He is our toughest critic, our strongest supporter, the sane voice of reason in our heads, the courage in our hearts, the very soul in our being. Everything we are today, the individual’s we’ve grown into, our accomplishments, all belong to him. From reading us bedtime stories, to teaching us any and every sport, from horse-back riding to filling our lives with books and art and culture, he has and continues to enrich our lives, endeavouring us to be the best versions of ourselves. He has stayed up with us on our late nights, woken up with us on our early mornings, wiped our tears, has been the reason for our laughter, he filled each day of our lives with so much love, joy and pride. He carefully moulded us into the strong-willed individuals we are today, never losing faith in us even when our own faith in ourselves faltered at times, always believing in us, championing us, each step of our lives. I say this for both Shan and I, that of all the things we are thankful in life for, him being our father surpasses them all. We are forever grateful for having the honour of being his children.

Dad: Today, on Father’s Day our morning will not be filled with the usual kitchen mania of Shan and I trying to whip up our traditional Father’s Day breakfast for you, nor will we be able to smother you with handmade cards and gifts. Today, while we have been torn apart by excuse of men, hungry with greed and power, Shan and I want to give you a promise – Promise of very many years of togetherness, of many more years of father’s day breakfasts, a promise resolute that these dark times will pass soon, and all of us will be together once again. Dad, you are our world… They may tear us apart momentarily, but they cannot ever separate us, for the four us reside in each other’s being – please hold onto that.

I wish I could say this to you in person… Thank you, Dad, for filling our eyes with dreams, hearts with courage and equipping our minds to achieve the unachievable. You taught us to take chances, to never fear failure, to learn from our mistakes and to pick ourselves up every time we fall, with strength and determination. You were, are, and will forever continue to be our hero, our role model. Your courage and strength inspire us and tens and thousands of people across the world to stand up for truth and justice and to bravely soldier on, to fight till the finish.

These dark times will pass, your sacrifice, courage, honesty will not go in vain. We will not go gentle in the dark, for there is so much left for us to learn from you, so much more for you to teach us. Life has taken a turn, but it is our belief and resolve that you will come out of this stronger than ever. All our lives you have stood by us, shielding and protecting us, it is now our turn to be your shield and armour. We have, and will always continue to stand resolute alongside you as your pillars of strength. We may not be together today, but the day isn’t far, when the four of us will be together again, celebrating every day, we’ve been away from one another.

Happy Father’s Day Dad. Thank you for being you, but most importantly thank you for being the best father anyone can ever ask for! We are honoured to call you our dad. Words cannot do justice to how proud we are of you!

(From Facebook post)

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