In an act of sheer courage, coupled with presence of mind, Susheel Kumari helped the Defence Colony police arrest two burglars who had targeted her house.

Sitting in her Road Number 3, Andrews Ganj, home in south Delhi, covering her head with her dupatta in respect for her father-in-law who is visiting them, Susheel narrated her brave act to Newsline.

“The only time I am out of the house is between 12.45 pm and 1.15 pm, when I go to pick up my two daughters from school. On Friday, I had left as usual after locking the house. When I returned, I saw the lights were on inside,” she said.

A little suspicious, but thinking she might have forgotten to switch off the lights, she approached the main door. She was shocked this time — the lock was missing.

“I was very scared,” said Susheel, but she went near the door nevertheless and tried to open it, only to find it bolted from inside.

“Without any second thoughts, I latched the door from outside,” she said.

There were two burglars, Bunty and Sirad, inside. Finding the door shut, they threatened to kill her. “They shouted from inside that if I did not open the door they would shoot me. But I said ‘if you shoot me, you will be charged with both robbery and murder’,” said Susheel.

As she shouted for help, the burglars tried to escape from the window by sawing the grills. But before they could do so police arrived, with their vehicle blazing sirens.

The burglars were arrested. According to the police, when they entered the house the situation was a little funny as one of the burglars, Sirad, was trying to hide on an overhead shelf to evade arrest.

After the arrests were made, an exhausted Susheel almost fainted and had to be supported by her neighbours.

Susheel’s husband Manoj Kumar works with the DS Constructions in Gurgaon.