Sadeka Biwi, the 90-year-old mother of Birbhum Zilla Parishad Sabhadhipati and senior Trinamul Congress (TMC) leader from Nanoor, Kajal Sheikh, has been summoned for a hearing under the Special Intensive Review (SIR) by the Election Commission of India (ECI).
Sources said that not only Sadeka Biwi, but Kajal Sheikh himself has also been called to appear before the ECI on 28 January.
“Both my mother and I will physically appear at the hearing venue with all the necessary documents. The ECI has served notices on both of us, and I feel this is a conspiracy by the BJP because I have always been vocal against them. They failed to trap me through the ED and the CBI and are now trying to harass me through the SIR,” Kajal Sheikh alleged.
He said his elder brother was killed in 2000 during the Left Front regime, and his mother continues to receive his pension every month. “My mother, Sadeka Biwi, has all the pension-related documents, yet the ECI has called her for a hearing despite her being over 85 years old,” Kajal Sheikh said.
The ECI had earlier stated that voters above the age of 85 need not visit the hearing venue and that the process would be conducted at their residence. However, till the time of filing this report, no official clarification on this issue had been issued by the district electoral authority.
Meanwhile, Samirul Islam, TMC Rajya Sabha MP from Birbhum, has also been summoned for a hearing under the SIR process by the ECI. He is the chairman of the West Bengal Migrant Labourer Welfare Board.