Man dies in Bengal's Swarupnagar days after falling ill following SIR hearing

Kolkata, Jan 1 A man died on Thursday after suffering a heart attack on December 27, 2025, shortly after returning from a hearing related to the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process, the police said.

The incident took place in the Swarupnagar area of North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal.

The deceased has been identified as Sultan Sardar, a 60-year-old resident of the area. Incidentally, his name was not included in the 2002 voter list of West Bengal.

He had recently received a summons to appear for a hearing as part of the ongoing SIR process. Sultan died four days after returning from the hearing.

The incident occurred at Swarupda village under Swarupnagar police station limits. According to family members, the elderly man suffered a cardiac arrest and died on Thursday morning.

Family sources said Sultan had been a long-time resident of the locality, but there were certain issues related to his identity documents and other papers. His name was also missing from the 2002 voter list. Five days prior to the hearing, a notice was delivered to his residence asking him to appear before officials in connection with the SIR process.

Accordingly, Sultan went to the Swarupnagar Block Development Office (BDO) on December 27 for the hearing. Family members alleged that during the hearing, officials informed him that there were discrepancies in his documents. It is alleged that the elderly man became extremely anxious and distressed after being told about the problems.

According to Sultan’s family, he had been suffering from severe anxiety since returning from the hearing. They claimed that the mental stress affected his health, following which he fell ill and eventually suffered a heart attack.

After remaining unwell for several days, Sultan passed away on Thursday morning.

Sultan’s wife, Dilwara Bibi, told local reporters that her husband was working as a migrant labourer in 2002, when the previous SIR exercise was conducted in the state, and had been employed in another state at that time. As a result, although the names of his parents featured in the 2002 voter list, Sultan’s name was not included.

During the ongoing SIR process, Sultan was summoned to appear before officials at the Swarupnagar BDO office. Recounting the events, Dilwara said, “He went to the BDO office for the hearing on December 27. There, he was told that there were discrepancies in his documents. My husband returned home very worried and then fell ill. He kept saying, ‘Where will I go at this age, leaving my children and family behind?’”

Sultan’s son, Osman, alleged that the SIR process had triggered fear in his father. “My father died due to the fear of this SIR. This SIR process should be stopped immediately. Otherwise, none of us will survive. We will all die,” he said.

Following the death, local police were informed about the incident. According to police sources, the matter is being looked into. However, no formal complaint has been lodged with the Swarupnagar police station so far.

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