21,000 Singur voters start SIR hearings day before PM rally
Times of India | 18 January 2026
Singur (Hooghly): Around 21,000 voters in Singur, where PM Narendra Modi is likely to address a public rally on Sunday, have received SIR hearing notices over "logical discrepancies". The notices were served last week, and hearings began on Saturday at the Singur BDO office. The process will continue till Jan 31.
Several voters travelled long distances to attend the hearings. Some, residing outside the state or the country, were represented by family members. Seventy-six-year-old Abha Bose came to the BDO office on behalf of her son, Arghya, who works in Kolkata. "He could not manage a leave, and so I had to travel from my village at this age to submit the documents on his behalf," said Abha.
Rezaul Mondal travelled from Delhi after receiving a notice due to a spelling error in his name. "I had to come all the way from Delhi for this. I will return to work on Sunday," he said.
Shankar Banerjee, who works at a shop on Brabourne Road in Kolkata, said he was fortunate enough to get a leave. "My employer understood the importance of the hearing and allowed me to attend. I submitted all the documents they asked for," he said.
Sareful Islam Mollah, a football coach who runs training camps in Kolkata, however, wasn't complaining. "If authorities find any discrepancy, they have the right to call us and clear their doubts. I do not see anything wrong in this," said Mollah, a resident of Singur's Mollasimla village.
In a meeting with some who had been called for hearing, state minister Becharam Manna alleged that BJP was harassing voters in the name of SIR hearing. "This will not continue for long. People will teach BJP a good lesson in the election," he said.
"Notices for logical discrepancies were served to around 21,000 voters and many people appeared with the required documents on Saturday. We are assisting them in every possible way," said Singur BDO Souvik Ghoshal.