The incident has triggered public outrage, as the mounting workload and pressure of SIR duties is suspected to have driven the Village Assistant to suicide.
Published Nov 21, 2025 | 2:42 PM ⚊ Updated Nov 21, 2025 | 2:42 PM
BLO Jakitha Begum. (Supplied)
Synopsis: Out of the 800 forms assigned to her, she had reportedly managed to complete only 80 applications, following which officials and local political functionaries allegedly reprimanded her. Deeply distressed over this, Jakitha Begum is said to have taken her own life.
A Booth Level Officer (BLO), Jakitha Begum, who worked as a Village Assistant in Sivanarthangal village under the Tirukkovilur Revenue Division in Kallakurichi district, engaged in the special voter revision (SIR) duties, allegedly died by suicide, on Thursday, 20 November.
Out of the 800 forms assigned to her, she had reportedly managed to complete only 80 applications, following which officials and local political functionaries allegedly reprimanded her.
Deeply distressed over this, Jakitha Begum is said to have taken her own life. Her body has been sent to the Kallakurichi Government Hospital for post-mortem examination.
The incident has triggered public outrage, as the mounting workload and pressure of SIR duties is suspected to have driven the Village Assistant to suicide.
According to an earlier report by South First, Anganwadi workers, who have been assigned to the voter revision drive said they were being pushed to complete two full-time jobs at once.
Besides Anganwadi workers, corporation employees, ASHAs, and field staff from other departments have also been deployed. In total, 68,467 Booth Level Officers (BLOs) are involved in the exercise. They are expected to distribute, collect, and upload all the voter revision forms by 4 December.
However, the BLOs said they had not received proper training, equipment, or sufficient time to complete the task.
The Election Commission’s official schedule mentions that training and preparation were to take place between 28 October and 3 November, but few workers say they received no proper training.
“They only told us how to give and collect the forms—nothing about how to fill or upload them,” one worker said, and added, “We weren’t given a full-day session. Just a half-hour briefing by the zonal officials.”
“Even a small mistake could lead to officials blaming us entirely,” a few Anganwadi workers said, expressing frustration over the burden placed on them.
(Edited by Sumavarsha, with inputs from Subash Chandra Bose)
