A 63-year-old man, Dilip Kumar Saha, was found dead in his Anandapally West home in Kolkata on Sunday morning. His family believes that fears of being deported to Bangladesh due to potential NRC (National Register of Citizens) implementation led to his tragic death.
Saha, originally from Nawabganj in Dhaka, had been living in Kolkata since 1972. He worked as non-teaching staff at a private school in Dhakuria. According to police, he was found hanging from a ceiling fan, and a suicide note was recovered from the room. Preliminary investigations suggest he may have been under intense psychological distress over his citizenship status.
His wife, Arati Saha, shared that he had been deeply anxious in recent weeks, fearing he would be sent to a detention centre and deported to a country where he had no remaining family.
“He had a valid voter ID and all documents. But he constantly worried about being declared ‘illegal’ and pushed back to Bangladesh,” she said.
The incident came to light when Arati found the bedroom door locked and unresponsive. She sought help from a relative to break it open, only to find him unresponsive.
Local MLA and West Bengal Power Minister Arup Biswas visited the family and condemned the atmosphere of fear allegedly created by the Centre:
“This is what their anti-people policies lead to,” he said.
Police have confirmed that the suicide note is under analysis, and the case remains under investigation.