BLO found hanging inside Murshidabad primary school

A Booth Level Officer was found hanging inside a primary school in Murshidabad district. His family alleged that excessive pressure related to SIR duties led him to take the step. Police have sent the body for post-mortem and started an investigation

Kolkata: A Booth Level Officer (BLO) was found hanging inside a primary school in Murshidabad district, with his family alleging that excessive SIR work pressure led him to take his own life, police said on Sunday.

The deceased was identified as Hamimul Islam (47), a primary school teacher at Paikmari Char Krishnapur Boys Primary School and a BLO assigned to a booth in Purba Alaipur village under Kharibona gram panchayat, an officer of Ranitala Police Station said.

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The incident came to the notice of locals late Saturday night in the Paikmari Char area under Ranitala police station, he said.

The deceased’s family members alleged that Hamimul left home on Saturday morning to attend school but did not return in the afternoon.

“After an extended search, his body was found hanging from a room inside the school premises on Saturday night. Our officers recovered the body and sent it for post-mortem examination. An investigation is under way,” the officer said.

The family members alleged that Hamimul was under severe stress due to the workload arising from his dual responsibilities as a teacher and a BLO, the police officer said, adding that the family claimed pressure to complete SIR-related tasks had intensified in recent weeks.

Hamimul’s elder brother, Farman-ul-Kalam, alleged that the pressure to complete SIR duties was beyond his brother’s capacity to handle.

Bhagabangola Trinamool Congress MLA Riyaz Hossain Sarkar visited the family and alleged that the Election Commission was rushing the SIR process, resulting in excessive workload on BLOs.

He alleged that Hamimul Islam had been assigned extensive tasks, including mapping and unmapping work.

The police officer said that all aspects of the case were being examined.