Elderly man dies by suicide in West Bengal, family alleges fear over voter list revision
Kolkata (PTI): An elderly man from West Bengal’s Paschim Medinipore district allegedly died by suicide in Birbhum after being reportedly distressed over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, his family claimed on Thursday.
This is the second such death reported in West Bengal in the past 72 hours, following a similar incident at Panihati near Kolkata. A farmer in Cooch Behar, who tried to end his life, is currently admitted to hospital.
According to police, the deceased, identified as Kshitish Majumdar, was found hanging at his daughter’s residence in Illambazar area of Birbhum district on Wednesday night.
"The old man was found hanging from the ceiling of one of the rooms of his daughter's residence here in Illambazar. The body has been sent for post-mortem examination. His family alleged that the person was under severe stress, fearing exclusion following the voter list verification process," a police officer claimed.
Family members claimed that Majumdar had been anxious after learning that his name was missing from the 2002 electoral rolls.
"He would often say that since his name was not there in the 2002 voter list, would he have to go back to Bangladesh?" a family member said, adding that he had been mentally disturbed over the matter.
Police have registered an unnatural death case and begun an investigation.
No official statement has yet been issued by the Election Commission regarding the incident.
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Swamiji fires gun into the air in Kalaburagi village, video goes viral
Kalaburagi: An incident involving a swamiji firing a gun into the air has been reported from Udachan village in Afzalpur taluk of Kalaburagi district. The act, captured on video, has since gone viral on social media.
The swamiji has been identified as Sri Shantalinga Shivacharya, pontiff of the Hiremath of Sri Shankaralingeshwara Samsthana. According to reports, the incident took place on Sunday evening within the premises of the math, where the swamiji allegedly fired a single-barrel gun into the air.
This is not the first time the swami has courted controversy. Last year, he was reportedly found driving erratically under the influence of alcohol in Salotagi village of neighbouring Indi taluk, following which members of the public confronted him. He later fled from the math, sources said.
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More recently, during the annual fair of the Sri Shankaralingeshwara Math in Udachan village, the swami had arrived at the village with police protection, claiming to be the rightful pontiff of the math. Despite opposition from villagers, he reportedly went ahead and conducted rituals related to the fair.
The latest incident of firing the gun into the air has triggered criticism, especially after the video surfaced online. Further action, if any, is awaited from the authorities.
