An 82-year-old man allegedly died by suicide in West Bengal’s Purulia district after jumping in front of a moving train, with his family claiming that he had been under severe mental stress linked to the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The incident occurred on Monday, days before the elderly man, identified as Durjan Majhi, was scheduled to appear for a hearing in connection with the voter list revision.
According to his son, Kanai Majhi, Durjan’s name was missing from the draft electoral roll published on December 16, despite having figured in earlier voter lists.
Kanai, a daily wage labourer, said his father had received a notice asking him to attend a hearing at the office of the Para Block Development Officer.
He claimed that Durjan had duly submitted the SIR enumeration form, but was distressed after discovering that his name had been excluded from the draft list.
“His name was there in the 2002 voters’ list. After receiving the notice on December 25, he became increasingly anxious,” Kanai said.
The death has intensified political criticism of the SIR exercise in the state.
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Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday described the revision process as “torture” for poor people and alleged that around 60 deaths had occurred in connection with the controversial exercise so far.
She also termed the process a “huge scam” and alleged that it was being carried out using artificial intelligence.
According to official data, more than 58 lakh voters were removed from the draft electoral rolls released on December 16 following the initial phase of the SIR.
Out of the state’s total electorate of about 7.6 crore, the Election Commission has flagged the “genuineness” of around 1.66 crore voters, who have been asked to appear for hearings to re-verify their documents.
Amid growing concern, the Election Commission on Monday issued an order stating that electors aged 85 years and above, as well as those who are sick or persons with disabilities, need not be called for personal hearings if a specific request is made by them or on their behalf.
