Kamal Ghorui
KOLKATA: “I am a proud Indian and Bengal citizen. If called 10 times I will come and prove my citizenship on every single occasion,” said Indian fast bowler Md Shami, who has 462 wickets across formats, after appearing for an SIR hearing on Tuesday to protect his vote.Shami, who shifted to Kolkata as a youngster, has been a resident of Katjunagar in Jadavpur since early 2000s and is registered as a voter of KMC ward no. 93. He and his brother, Md Kaif, had received hearing notices earlier this month. They fell in the Election Commission’s ‘unmapped voter’ category after failing to map their parents to previous SIR lists of any state. Sources said Shami’s parents’ names do not feature in the 2003 electoral rolls of UP, their home state. There are also some ‘logical discrepancies’ in Shami’s enumeration form.The brothers provided their passports as proof of identity during the 15-minute hearing, the sources said.Dressed in a black T-shirt, a pair of jeans and cap, Shami, along with his brother, reached the SIR hearing centre at Katjunagar Swarnamayee Vidyapith — the same centre where actor-MP Dev appeared for his hearing last week — around 1 pm amid tight security. Emerging 15 minutes later, the seasoned pacer spoke to journalists waiting for him.“I believe it is every citizen’s duty to get his or her name and details corrected. I did so, and I urge every citizen to appear for hearing if called and get the necessary corrections done,” said the seasoned cricketer.I faced no problem and they (poll officials) handled it really well. I have been staying here for the last 25 years. If they call me again, I will come back and cooperate with them in the process,” he said before leaving the venue in a white SUV. His estranged wife and daughter still live in his Katjunagar apartment.Shami had received the hearing notice at the start of the new year and was asked to appear for hearing in the second week of January. “However, he couldn’t attend the hearing on that date as he was in Rajkot representing Bengal in Vijay Hazare trophy. He informed the BLO and was assigned a new date,” said a poll official.The 35-year-old right-arm pacer, who was instrumental in India’s 2023 ODI World Cup campaign, was not picked for India for the ODI series against New Zealand, but he continues to remain active in domestic cricket and will represent Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL.
