MS Dhoni Doesn't Need Protection, He Will Protect Citizens, Says Army Chief

MS Dhoni, the former India skipper, who is also a Lieutenant Colonel (Honorary) in the Parachute Regiment of the Territorial Army, will be serving with his unit from July 31 to August 15, 2019. MS Dhoni will be with the unit in the Kashmir Valley as a part of Victor Force. It was also made clear that as requested by the officer and approved by Army Headquarters, MS Dhoni will be taking on the duties of patrolling, guard and post duty and would be staying with the troops. MS Dhoni is a civilian and his safety in the Valley has been a general concern since the news broke out on Thursday. 

On Friday, Army Chief Gen. Bipin Rawat told NDTV that MS Dhoni was well-equipped to perform his duties with the Army. Like any other soldier, MS Dhoni will be performing the role of a protector.

"When a citizen of India wants to don the military uniform then he has to also be prepared to fulfill the task for which the uniform has been assigned to him. MS Dhoni has carried out his basic training and we know that he will be able to accomplish the task.

"In fact, he will be protecting a lot of other people because he will now be performing with the 106 Territorial Army battalion (Para). It is a very good battalion and they have been performing line of communication duties, static protection and he will be a part of it.

"I don't think we will need to protect him, he will protect the citizens and garrison entrusted to his task," the Army Chief said.

He added that Dhoni will be taking on responsibilities of patrolling, guard and post duty and live like any other soldier.

MS Dhoni has taken a two-month sabbatical from cricket to serve his unit. 

In 2015, Dhoni became a qualified paratrooper after having completed five parachute training jumps from Indian Army aircraft at the Agra training camp.

(With inputs from Vishnu Som)

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