Bankura, December 28, 2025: A Booth Level Officer was found dead in West Bengal’s Bankura district on Sunday, triggering allegations that intense work pressure linked to the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls may have contributed to the incident, police said.
The body of Haradhan Mandal was recovered from a school premises in the Ranibandh block on Sunday morning. Mandal, a schoolteacher by profession, was serving as the Booth Level Officer for Booth No. 206 in the Rajakata area of the block.
Police officials said a handwritten note bearing Mandal’s signature was found at the spot, in which he reportedly expressed his inability to cope with work-related pressure. The note has been seized and sent for forensic examination, while the body has been forwarded for post-mortem to determine the exact cause of death.
An officer associated with the investigation said all possible angles are being examined and no conclusion has been drawn at this stage. “We are looking into the circumstances surrounding the death and waiting for the post-mortem report,” the officer said.
The incident has once again brought the Special Intensive Revision exercise under scrutiny. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had earlier claimed that panic linked to the revision process had led to the deaths of 39 ordinary citizens, including four Booth Level Officers, some of whom died by suicide.
The Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls began in West Bengal on November 4 and has been marked by political controversy and allegations of administrative pressure on field-level officials.
