Darjeeling: At a time when block development officers (BDOs) are entrusted with supervising the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process, a rare development was witnessed as the serving BDO of Lava block in Kalimpong district, Bharati Chik Baraik, was seen standing in line with unmapped voters for an SIR hearing at Meteli under the Matiali block of Jalpaiguri district.
The hearing notice to the Lava BDO, amid the identification of "unmapped voters" during the ongoing SIR exercise, has drawn sharp attention and raised eyebrows.
According to sources, Bharati, along with her father, Kapil Chik Baraik, brother, Pranab Chik Baraik, and sister, Arati Chik Baraik, was issued notices after their names reportedly did not appear in the 2002 electoral roll. Bharati already appeared before the SIR authority, while her father, brother, and sister attended the hearing on Monday.
The BDO was employed at Bhutan-based Penden Cement Factory in Gomtu when the 2002 SIR exercise was conducted, a factor that may have contributed to complications in voter registration at the time. However, when TOI contacted Bharati to comment on the SIR hearing issues, she declined to comment on the issue.
"I do not want to comment on this issue," she told TOI over the telephone.
According to sources, the BDO's family names were included in the voter list in 2004. Bharati previously served as BDO in Alipurduar, Cooch Behar, and Nagrakata before her current posting in Lava.