TMC claims 63-year-old man tried to end life in Bengal's Cooch Behar over SIR fear
Cooch Behar (PTI): The TMC on Wednesday claimed that a 63-year-old man in West Bengal's Cooch Behar attempted suicide fearing harassment due to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, and accused the BJP and the Election Commission of triggering panic across the state.
Police said Khairul Sheikh, a resident of Jitpur in Dinhata, allegedly consumed poison as "he was anxious over his name being wrongly recorded in the 2002 voter list". He is currently undergoing treatment at the Cooch Behar district hospital.
"We learnt that he was anxious for several days after discovering that his name had been incorrectly recorded in the 2002 voter list," a senior police official told reporters, adding that the exact reason behind his suicide bid would be clear once his condition improves.
The incident comes a day after a 57-year-old man in North 24 Parganas' Panihati allegedly took his own life, leaving behind a note blaming the NRC for his death.
The twin incidents have fuelled fresh political confrontation in the state over the SIR drive.
After meeting the family of the deceased in Panihati, TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee said, "I have heard that one more person has tried to end his life in Cooch Behar. He is presently hospitalised and under doctor's observation. We wish him a speedy recovery."
The TMC escalated its attack through a strongly worded post on X, saying, "Two lives. Two tragedies. One cause. BJP's politics of hate. How many more lives will it take, Narendra Modi, for you to stop weaponising citizenship?"
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, while virtually inaugurating from Kolkata the ‘Saras Mela’ in the Darjeeling Hills, turned towards North Bengal Development Minister Udayan Guha, and said, "I just heard a person consumed pesticide in your district. Please go to the residence of the person by this evening."
She, however, did not specify or elaborate.
TMC leader Partha Pratim Roy alleged widespread panic among former enclave residents in Cooch Behar, claiming they fear being declared "outsiders in their own land".
"The Commission must take responsibility. Two consecutive incidents show how the SIR is affecting lives," he said.
The BJP has dismissed the allegations, saying the SIR process is a routine exercise to clean the voter rolls.
"The allegations are baseless. They are trying to give a political twist to every incident," a local BJP leader said.
The EC has not yet commented on the controversy.
Police said investigations are underway to determine whether both incidents were linked to the ongoing verification drive.
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2nd WT20I: Shafali, spin trio do star turns in India''s seven-wicket win
Visakhapatnam (PTI): Shafali Verma hit a blistering unbeaten 69 as India made short work of a paltry target to outclass Sri Lanka by seven wickets in the second Women’s T20 International here on Tuesday.
India now lead the five-match series 2-0 after another one-sided victory, having restricted Sri Lanka to a modest 128 for 9 through a collective display of disciplined bowling from the spin trio of seasoned Sneh Rana, ably complemented by young spinners Vaishnavi Sharma and Shree Charani.
During the chase, vice-captain Smriti Mandhana (14) fell cheaply but Shafali, enjoying new found confidence after a stellar show in the World Cup final, sent the bowlers on a leather-hunt during her 34-ball knock, winning it for her team in just 11.5 overs.
The hosts have now completed back-to-back successful chases within 15 overs which speaks volumes about the unit's sky-high confidence.
Shafali's innings had 11 punchy boundaries apart from a maximum.
The floodgates opened when left-arm spinner Inoka Ranaweera bowled a few flighted deliveries and Shafali would step out everytime to hit her over extra cover. Her footwork against slow bowlers was immaculate whether stepping out to loft the ball or rocking back to punch or pull.
Seeing her confidence, the newly appointed Delhi Capitals skipper Jemimah Rodrigues (26 off 15 balls) also attacked as the duo added 58 runs in just 4.3 overs.
By the time Rodrigues was out trying to hit one six too many, the match as a contest was over. Shafali completed her half-century off just 27 balls and completed the formalities in a jiffy.
Earlier, off-spinner Rana, who got a look-in after Deepti Sharma was ruled out due to fever, showed her utility keeping the Lankan batters under tight leash with figures of 1 for 11 in 4 overs, including a maiden which certainly is a rarity in T20 cricket.
Charani, who made an impression during India's ODI World Cup triumph, took 2 for 23 in her quota of overs, while Vaishnavi after an impressive debut in the opening encounter, finished with 2 for 32, not letting the Islanders get easy runs in her second spell.
The last six wickets fell for just 24 runs, but what stood out during India’s bowling effort was their superb ground fielding. After a patchy show in the previous game, the improved sharpness in the field resulted in three run-outs.
Sri Lankan skipper Chamari Athapaththu (31 off 24 balls) looked in good nick as she deposited length deliveries from seamers Kranti Gaud and Arundhati Reddy over the ropes but it was Rana, who kept her quiet by repeatedly pitching on good length.
Unable to manoeuvre the strike and with the big hits suddenly drying up, Athapaththu chanced her arm at another delivery in which Rana had shortened the length slightly.
Not having transferred the weight into the lofted shot, Athapaththu's hoick was pouched cleanly by Amanjot Kaur at long-off.
This was after Athapaththu's opening partner Vishmi Gunaratne (1) had offered a simple return catch to Gaud.
Hasini Perera (22 off 28 balls) and Harshitha Samarawickrama (33 off 32 balls) did stitch a stand of 44 but they could never set the tempo against the Indian spin troika.
Once Hasini offered a tame return catch off a Charani full-toss, Sri Lankans never recovered and lost wickets in a heap towards the end.
