Kannur BLO suicide: Election Commission seeks detailed report

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala’s Chief Electoral Officer Rathan U Kelkar has sought a report from the Kannur District Collector after a booth-level officer (BLO) died by suicide at Ettukudukka in Kannur. Aneesh George, the BLO of Booth 18 in Kankol–Alappadamba panchayat, was found hanging at his home on Sunday morning.

Family members allege that Aneesh took his life due to intense work pressure linked to election duties. He had reportedly told relatives earlier that he was struggling to cope. The CEO said a police inquiry is in progress.

Aneesh, an office attendant at Kannur AUP School, had been assigned the distribution, filling and collection of electoral forms. A recent complaint filed against him by a local Congress worker, accusing him of not cooperating in distributing forms, had added to his stress, the family said. He had also submitted three requests seeking exemption from election duty, citing workload. According to his father, Aneesh had worked on form-related tasks until 1.30 a.m. on Saturday night.

He had been tasked with delivering 1,149 forms across 417 houses, of which about 70 per cent were completed. A camp had been planned at the Vallathol Smaraka Library near his house on Sunday morning. Aneesh, who had gone to church with his family earlier, returned home saying he had work, and was later found dead.

The funeral will be held at 3 p.m. on Monday at the Lourde Matha Church cemetery, Pallimukku. He is survived by his parents, George and Marykutty; his wife, Fami; children, Libia and Juvan; and siblings, Latheesh and Ancy.