The hanging body of a 75-year-old man was recovered from his home in Ramnagar in East Midnapore on Tuesday morning. Local residents claimed that the man had been under severe mental stress for several days after receiving the SIR hearing notice. The deceased has been identified as Bimal Shee.
According to neighbour Gourshonkar Shee, Bimal was anxious after learning that his name did not appear in the SIR list in 2002. He had been asked to appear for a hearing on January 2, which reportedly heightened his stress. “He had been wandering around for four to five days. His son was arranging the documents. He even asked me whether the papers were in order. When I said yes, Bimal said, ‘Who knows what will happen to me,’” Gourshonkar said.
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Gourshonkar, who runs a betel shop, said Bimal visited his shop on Monday evening and bought cake for his family. He had dinner at night and went to sleep. Family members said everything appeared normal.
Bimal, who usually woke up early to exercise, was not seen by his wife on Tuesday morning. Later, his body was found hanging with a rope around his neck in a rooftop room of the house.
Bimal’s son, Deepak Shee, said his father had been suffering from depression for several days following the SIR notice.
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Kanthi Atish Biswas, Additional Superintendent of Police (Rural), said an unnatural death case has been registered, and the body has been sent for post-mortem.
