EC appoints 5 senior IAS officers as Special Roll Observers for SIR in West Bengal
Kolkata (PTI): The Election Commission on Monday appointed five senior IAS officers as Special Roll Observers (SRO) for various divisions of West Bengal to oversee the work relating to the SIR exercise, officials said.
Ministry of Defence Joint Secretary Kumar Ravi Kant Singh was appointed the SRO for the Presidency division, while Ministry of Home Affairs Joint Secretary Niraj Kumar Bansod was assigned the responsibility of the Medinipur division.
Ministry of Information & Broadcasting Joint Secretary Krishna Kumar Nirala was named the SRO for the Burdwan division, Department of Economic Affairs Joint Secretary Alok Tiwari has been made the SRO for the Malda division, and Department of Rural Development Joint Secretary Pankaj Yadav has been appointed the SRO for the Jalpaiguri division.
The EC had earlier appointed retired IAS officer Subrata Gupta as the Special Roll Observer in connection with the SIR, besides setting up a team of 12 IAS officers as Electoral Roll Observers to oversee the key aspects of preparation of the electoral roll and help the DEOs and EROs in taking corrective measures.
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"The appointment of SROs ensures enhanced scrutiny and transparency in the SIR process across all divisions. Their presence will strengthen monitoring and compliance with EC norms," an official at the CEO's office said.
"The observers will supervise electoral roll-related activities and ensure adherence to EC guidelines in their respective jurisdictions," he said.
The special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state began on November 4 with the distribution of enumeration forms, which will continue till December 11.
The draft electoral rolls will be published on December 16, and the final voters' list will be issued on February 14, 2026.
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Man kills woman lecturer, sets car ablaze; dies by suicide in Karnataka
Bengaluru (PTI): A 46-year-old man allegedly killed a woman lecturer by setting fire to the car with her inside, before dying by suicide; his severed body was found by railway police the next day, police said on Tuesday.
The deceased, identified as Ramanjinappa, a resident of Doddaballapura, was a contract worker in the tahsildar’s office, they said.
Police said the man, who was married and had apparently separated from his wife, was in an illicit relationship with a woman identified as Saroja, whose charred body was found inside a gutted car in an isolated area near the Bashetty Industrial Area in Doddaballapura taluk on the outskirts of Bengaluru.
Saroja was also married and had a son, police said.
According to police, on Saturday, the man allegedly borrowed a car from an acquaintance, claiming he had a medical emergency and needed to visit a hospital.
Citing preliminary investigations, a senior police officer said the man picked up the lecturer from a bus stop in Devanahalli. The two spent a couple of hours driving around Nandi Hills and nearby areas.
Later, they reached a secluded spot in Doddaballapura, where it is suspected that an argument ensued inside the car, following which he allegedly hit her on the head with a hammer, the officer said.
He then set the car on fire, reportedly using petrol, and is believed to have died by suicide thereafter, police said.
Locals who saw the burning car alerted the police and fire department, who rushed to the spot, extinguished the fire, and found the woman’s body completely charred inside the vehicle, the officer added.
His severed body was found near railway tracks in Bidadi by the railway police on Sunday, he said.
The motive and whether the crime was premeditated or impulsive are under investigation, he said.
Saroja’s husband filed a complaint accusing Ramanjinappa of killing her, police said, adding that a detailed investigation is underway to establish the exact sequence of events.
