Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge Sunday, alleged that the BJP’s actions have led to the suicides of Burdened Local Officers (BLOs) and Polling Officers, citing overburdened workload.
Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress president | File Photo: IANS
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge Sunday, alleged that the BJP’s actions have led to the suicides of Burdened Local Officers (BLOs) and Polling Officers, citing overburdened workload.
“The BJP’s vote theft has now taken a deadly turn. Overburdened with workload, BLOs and Polling Officers are being driven to suicide. To every family that has lost their loved ones, my deepest condolences,” Kharge said in a post on handle X.
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Kharge accused the BJP of abusing power and weakening democracy, and criticised the Election Commission of India for its silence on the issue. He urged citizens to raise their voices to save democracy.
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Earlier on Thursday, West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress Chairperson Mamata Banerjee wrote to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, asking him to halt the SIR exercise being conducted in West Bengal.
She raised the issue after a para teacher working as a booth-level officer (BLO) in West Bengal’s Nadia district died by suicide, allegedly due to work pressure linked to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the state’s electoral roll.
Her party MP Derek O’Brien also raised alarm over the rising death toll in West Bengal, with 31 people allegedly losing their lives in the past 24 days amidst the SIR of electoral rolls. O’Brien accused the Election Commission and the BJP-led Centre of “silent invisible rigging,” claiming that the exercise is aimed at suppressing voter turnout.
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