Kolkata, Jan. 10 -- West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has written a strongly worded letter to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, expressing shock and anguish over what she described as the Election Commission of India's (ECI) "relentless harassment" of ordinary citizens during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state.
Alleging that the SIR exercise has resulted in 77 deaths, four suicide attempts, and at least 17 people falling sick and requiring hospitalization, the Chief Minister said, "These incidents are because of fear, intimidation and disproportionate workload arising from what she termed an unplanned exercise undertaken by the ECI."Referring to the cases of Nobel laureate Prof. A...