Test my DNA: Man attends hearing with graveyard soil
Times of India | 21 January 2026
Malda: A young man in his 30s, desperate to prove his Indian nationality, brought soil from his grandfather's grave at the SIR hearing and demanded that it be tested so that his grandfather's DNA could be matched with his own.
Salek Sk, a resident of Kushidha under the Harishchandrapur gram panchayat, was summoned to attend the hearing at Booth 17 in Doulatpur on Monday. Like hundreds of others in the area, Salek was told that links to his father and grandfather could not be established. He arrived with land documents and a sack of soil, claiming it was from the grave of his grandfather, Amanat Hossain, who died years ago. Salek's father is 60. Salek and his two brothers were served notices to prove their lineage.
"We were born Indians. Our forefathers were Indian as well. Still, we are repeatedly asked to prove our nationality. Why don't they test the soil from my grandfather's grave and match it with my DNA?" he said. Locals such as Md Samim and Imtiyaj Hossain echoed Salek's complaints of harassment. On Sunday, local MLA Tajmul Hossain was also served a notice.
Officials accepted only the documents and not the soil brought by Salek, but his action triggered a major uproar. Trinamool spokesperson Ashis Kundu said, "Let the BJP and the EC see how desperate helpless people have become." BJP leader Amlan Bhaduri, however, called it a "gimmick" sponsored by Trinamool.