MGNREGA Woman Employee Found Dead in WB, Family Claims She Killed Self over Inadequate NRC Documents

Bardhaman (WB): A 36-year-old woman was found dead in West Bengal's Purba Bardhaman district, police said on Sunday, with her family claiming that scared of the proposed country-wide NRC she committed suicide.

Shipra Sikder was found hanging with a muffler wrapped around her neck at her house in Jaugram area's Teli village under Jamalpur police station limits on Saturday, police said.\

She was taken to the Jamalpur government hospital where doctors declared her brought dead, they said. Locals said Shipra's husband, Shubhash Shikder, was a van driver and they have a son and a daughter. The woman had to depend on her income from the MGNREGA scheme to run her household.

Shipra's brother-in-law Bipul Sikder said she was tensed and scared ever since the Citizenship (Ammendment) Bill was cleared by Parliament.

Though her son, 19, had Aadhaar card but he didn't have a birth certificate and voter ID, due to which Shipra was scared that her son might be "thrown" out of the country, claimed Bipul.

"She went to the BDO office several times to get documents for her son. But she couldn't manage to get those. She killed herself because of the NRC," he said. An officer of the Jamalpur police station said they suspect it to be suicide, however, a case of unnatural death has been registered.

The body has been sent for postmortem examination, he said, adding that the family's claims are being investigated.

Jamalpur panchayat samiti president Mehmood Khan said that he has heard that Shipra's son didn't have the documents and she killed herself as she was scared that her son will be ousted.

However, the BJP rubbished the claims and a local party leader said Shipra used to have regular fights with her husband as their financial condition was very bad and she committed suicide after one such quarrel.