Ex-India cricketer Laxmi Ratan Shukla misses SIR hearing, away for Vijay Hazare Trophy

Kolkata: Former India cricketer and Bengal team coach Laxmi Ratan Shukla could not appear for SIR hearing as he is currently in Rajkot for the Vijay Hazare Trophy, officials said on Monday.

Shukla was scheduled to attend the hearing on January 7, a family source said.

He is the second Bengal cricketer after Mohammed Shami to be summoned for the SIR process.

The all-rounder, who represented the Indian cricket team briefly in 1999, has assured that he will comply with the summons upon his return, they said.

Shukla had also served as a legislator from the Howrah Uttar Assembly constituency and was the minister of state for sports. He retired from active politics in July 2022.

Incidentally, Shami, also part of the Bengal team for the Vijay Hazare Trophy and a voter from Kolkata's Rasbehari constituency, was summoned for a hearing between January 9 and 11 but could not appear for similar reasons.

Meanwhile, amid the SIR process, a group of former footballers staged a protest outside Bhawanipur Club on Rani Rashmoni Avenue in Dharmatala, alleging that the attempt to complete two years of SIR work in just two months has caused widespread harassment.

In a post on X, West Bengal CEO said the enumeration form of the cricketer clearly showed that the linkage column had been incorrectly mapped by the elector, without mentioning the assembly constituency number, part number and serial number of the elector in 2022.

"He (Shukla) has, therefore, been called for a hearing along with all other similarly placed electors, in accordance with the Election Commission notification," it added.