– Shabana Javed
Kolkata: Another death has been linked to fear surrounding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list in West Bengal. The latest incident took place in Beldanga, Murshidabad, where a 55-year-old woman, Shakela Bibi, died after allegedly jumping in front of a train.
According to her family and the ruling Trinamool Congress, Shakela had been extremely anxious about the ongoing SIR process. Her name was present in the 2002 voter list, but her husband’s name reportedly contained a spelling error. Although her husband passed away a few years ago, Shakela feared that these discrepancies might put her voter status at risk.
Neighbours say she had repeatedly sought clarification from a local panchayat member but remained worried despite reassurances. On Sunday morning, she left home and later allegedly jumped onto the railway tracks. Railway personnel and police recovered her body, and an autopsy has been initiated. Police are investigating the exact circumstances behind her death.
This incident marks the fourth such death in Murshidabad reportedly linked to anxiety over the SIR process. Trinamool claims that a total of 22 people across the state have died due to “SIR-related panic” since the announcement on October 27. The BJP, however, has strongly rejected these allegations, accusing the ruling party of politicising unrelated family or financial tragedies by portraying them as SIR-linked suicides.
