Kolkata: A 93-year-old ailing woman was carried on a cot to attend a hearing under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls at Ghola in North 24 Parganas on Thursday, raising questions over the implementation of the Election Commission’s directives.According to the Commission’s guidelines, voters aged above 80 and those who are seriously ill are entitled to hearings at their homes. However, a contrasting scene unfolded on Thursday morning when Rabeya Bibi, a bedridden resident of Ghola West Teghoria, was brought to the hearing centre at Ghola Teghoria High School on a cot.Bibi has been confined to bed for a long time due to illness. Local residents alleged that neither the booth-level officer (BLO) nor any Election Commission official visited her home to conduct the hearing.“In protest, locals carried the nonagenarian and ailing woman on a cot to the hearing centre,” said neighbour Gulshan Ali.The incident sparked outrage in the area, with agitated residents gheraoing the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) at the venue.Responding to the allegations, ERO Rakhi Dutta said, “We had instructed the BLO not to bring the ailing elderly woman to the hearing centre. Whether the BLO followed that instruction or not, she can explain.”BLO Rita Majumdar, however, denied the allegation, saying, “I visited her house and provided a form so that a family member could attend the hearing on her behalf. But the family did not submit the form.”In Midnapore, a 71-year-old voter in West Midnapore’s Ghatal block arrived at an SIR hearing with a tin trunk balanced on his head, after being summoned over a name discrepancy in the electoral roll.The man, identified as Sheikh Jafar Ali of booth 187 under Ajobnagar II Gram Panchayat, was called to the hearing because his name appears as ‘Sheikh Jafar Ali Sheikh’ on the current voter list, while the 2002 voter list records him as ‘Jafar Ali Sheikh’ at serial number 645 in part 137. The duplication of ‘Sheikh’ at both the beginning and end of his name was cited as the discrepancy.Witnesses said multiple documents — including identification cards, hearing notices, and property deeds — were tied and hung from different parts of his body as he stood in the hearing line. Asked about the trunk, Jafar Ali said he was not educated and brought all family papers to the BDO office so officials could verify whatever was required.At the Ghatal BDO office, the incident drew attention to ongoing complaints of harassment linked to the SIR process. No official from the BLO or the election authorities commented. A police officer directed the man to take the trunk outside the BDO office premises.“I received an SIR notice regarding some discrepancy. I brought documents of my ancestors from the home trunk. There are deeds from my father and grandfather. Officers will search for what they need from this trunk. The name is ‘Sheikh Zafar Ali’. But this time, since it was written as ‘Zafar Ali Sheikh’, I was summoned. I have been voting since before 2002. Hanging on my body are copies of the Aadhaar card, voter card, and land deeds. No one else from the house has been summoned for the hearing yet. SDO Ghatal Suprabhat Chatterjee says, ‘We did not ask anyone to bring a trunk. People were called for a hearing and asked to bring necessary documents’. How would we know what to bring?” said Ali.At nearly 50, Diyan Gayen, a resident of Kamarpol in Diamond Harbour–II block, alleged that he was subjected to severe mental stress after being asked to prove his lineage during an SIR hearing. The officials questioned whether he was a legitimate descendant of the Gayen family. He furnished his birth certificate, voter ID and other documents. Not sure if that was enough, Gayen also submitted soil from his deceased grandfather’s grave in a sealed plastic packet, believing that it could be used, if required, for DNA testing to establish his lineage.“Why should someone whose name has been on the voter list since 2002 and who has voted uninterruptedly for years now be asked to prove his lineage?” Gayen, a voter of booth 78 under Sarisha gram panchayat, asked.Gayen later claimed the episode left him mentally distressed. “I am an ordinary labourer and support my family with great difficulty. I cannot withstand this kind of pressure,” he said.
