West Bengal reported its fourth Booth Level Officer (BLO) death since the start of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls on November 4. Zakir Hossain, a primary school teacher serving as a BLO in Murshidabad district, died of cardiac arrest on Thursday night.
His family alleged that he had been struggling with extreme workload pressure from both the SIR duties and teaching responsibilities. They also claimed that the school authorities refused to relieve him from regular duties during the revision exercise, further adding to his stress. Hossain suffered severe chest pain on Thursday afternoon and was rushed to a nearby hospital, where doctors were unable to save him.
This incident marks the fourth reported BLO death linked to alleged SIR-related stress. Earlier, one BLO in East Burdwan died of a heart attack, while two others in Nadia&rsquo;s Chapra and Jalpaiguri&rsquo;s Malbazar allegedly died by suicide, reportedly due to mounting work pressure.
The deaths have triggered political tensions in the state. The Trinamool Congress, including Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, has accused the Election Commission of India of placing excessive and unplanned workload on BLOs. Meanwhile, the BJP has countered that the real pressure comes from the state administration and the ruling party&rsquo;s alleged interference in the revision process.
The situation continues to spark debate over the safety, workload and protection of BLOs during large-scale electoral exercises.
[Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by the Benefit News editorial team and is published directly from the IANS news feed.]
&nbsp;

Another BLO in West Bengal dies amid claims of pressure from intensive voter list revision

Fourth BLO Death in Bengal Sparks Outrage

Another BLO in West Bengal dies amid claims of pressure from intensive voter list revision

November 28, 2025 | 11:26 IST