BLO seeks cop protection after threats, abuse

Howrah: A school headmaster, who had been appointed as a booth level officer (BLO), lodged a complaint at the Bagnan Police Station, seeking protection after he allegedly faced abuse, death threats and protests inside the school, after voters in his area found their names being marked "pending" in Hallan village panchayat under the Bagnan assembly constituency.Sk Ansar Ali, the BLO of Booth 246, is the teacher-in-charge of Aima Hallan Primary School. His booth had 1,097 voters, among whom 496 were called for hearing. When the final list was released, 323 names had "pending" written next to them. Some of those names reportedly belong to some of the family members of Ali.
The "pending" status sparked outrage among residents who reportedly blamed Ali, alleging he did not submit the documents properly and so, their names were marked as ‘pending'. Although the BLO claimed to have explained that he did submit all the documents correctly and had no role in the matter, and even pointed out that some of his family members' names were also marked as ‘pending', the residents refused to accept his argument.Ali claimed that since Saturday night, he had been receiving threats and abuse. On Monday, some gheraoed him at the school. Police said they were investigating the matter.Masudur Rahman, the head of the Hallan village panchayat, said there might be a conspiracy against the BLO and that they were looking into the matter and working on a resolution. Mohammad Shariful Islam, the BDO of Bagnan Block 2, said they were addressing the issue and trying to solve the problem.