Elderly man’s death sparks row in Hooghly, kin allege panic over SIR notice

An allegation has surfaced in Hooghly’s Polba block after a 70-year-old man died, with his family claiming that fear related to the SIR process led to his death. The deceased, identified as Sheikh Ismail, was a resident of Hosnabad in Rajhat and had reportedly received a notice to appear for an SIR hearing scheduled for January 30.

According to local accounts, Ismail accompanied family members to the hearing centre after they were also summoned. During the visit, the elderly man reportedly fell unwell. On Tuesday, he suffered a heart attack at home and was first taken to Chuchura Imambara Hospital before being shifted to a hospital in Kolkata, where he later died.

Family members and neighbours alleged that Ismail had been under severe mental stress following the notice. Locals said he was a voter from Booth No. 25 under the Chuchura Assembly constituency and that Form Seven applications had been filed against several hundred residents in the area, triggering fears of deletion from the voter list. Minority residents had earlier staged a protest at the BDO office over the issue, in which Ismail had also participated.

The incident has sparked political reactions, with Trinamool Congress leaders alleging that fear was being created through the SIR process. A Trinamool member of the Hooghly Zilla Parishad accused the BJP of using the Election Commission to intimidate voters and strongly condemned what he described as a conspiracy, claims that have intensified the political debate following the death.