BLO tries to kill self, jumps into the Hooghly from ferry
Times of India | 22 February 2026
Serampore: A booth-level officer (BLO) tried to take his life by jumping into the Hooghly river from a passenger ferry on Saturday morning. The staff on board and workers on a nearby boat acted swiftly to rescue the 54-year-old man.
Mohammad Qayamuddin, a resident of Titagarh and the teacher-in-charge of a school in Kanchrapara, later claimed that he could no longer handle the pressure of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Around 11.30 am, Qayamuddin was travelling on a crowded ferry from Hooghly's Serampore Ferry Ghat to Barrackpore Ferry Ghat in North 24 Parganas. He left his mobile phone and a bag filled with SIR documents on the vessel before suddenly leaping into the river.
A ferry ghat worker named Bablu and a few others jumped into the river and rescued Qayamuddin with the help of a passing boat. "The passenger suddenly jumped into the river. We managed to save him and later learned that he is a BLO," Bablu said.
Serampore Police took Qayamuddin to a local hospital and informed his family.
Qayamuddin, who oversees a booth with 1,245 voters, said his primary struggle stemmed from the digitalisation process. He claimed he was not digitally proficient and had repeatedly informed Election Commission (EC) officials of his difficulties, but to no avail. He described facing mounting problems day after day while trying to perform his assigned duties.
The incident sparked a political row.
Santosh Kumar Singh, councillor of ward 7 and Serampore Town Trinamool president, lashed out at the EC and BJP. "The EC is harassing people by rushing the SIR process. Mohammad Qayamuddin is not digitally savvy, yet he was pressured into this work. Even though many voters were already mapped, they were still called for hearings," Singh said, adding that BJP was responsible for the pressure.