A 65-year-old voter in Jalpaiguri died of a cardiac arrest on Wednesday afternoon, allegedly because of mental stress, after receiving a notice related to a “logical discrepancy” in his details during the ongoing SIR (special intensive revision) of the electoral roll.

Mokbul Haque was a resident of Pradhanpara on the outskirts of Jalpaiguri town. He was a farmer.

The family members said he had received a notice on Monday, summoning him for a hearing scheduled for January 28.

“My father was under mental stress and kept worrying about why he was being called despite having his name on the voters’ list since 2002. He became mentally depressed thinking about what would happen next,” Anarul, his son, said.

The sexagenarian suffered a heart attack at home and died on Wednesday.

Trinamool Congress leader Shahjahan Alam said the elderly voter was not summoned during the first phase of the “no-mapping” hearings but was called this time.

“He was already unwell. Receiving the notice at this age caused him immense anxiety,” Alam claimed.

Dung in BJP office

An unusual form of protest was witnessed on Wednesday at Maruganj in Tufanganj-I block of Cooch Behar where Trinamool supporters staged a demonstration against Mihir Goswami, the BJP MLA of Natabari Assembly seat, by dumping two trolley-loads of cow dung outside the BJP office.

According to eyewitnesses, the protesters later hurled cow dung at the tin walls of the party office, smearing the structure.

A banner was also put up at the site, accusing the MLA of remaining absent from the locality for the past five years and failing to undertake any development work.

It was mentioned in the banner that after securing votes, the MLA did not visit Maruganj and that “not even worth five paise” of work had been carried out from the MLA development fund.

The cow dung was described as a “gift,” with an appeal to the MLA and BJP leadership to accept it as an account of development over the last five years.

Goswami, local people said, has remained politically active but largely absent from the constituency.

“This is an expression of public anger. The MLA is never seen in the area, and there has been no development,” said Tapan Roy, head of the TMC-run Maruganj panchayat.

Goswami said the party office remained closed for the past two years. “This area is under unchecked Trinamool terror. When BJP MLAs initiate projects using MLA development funds, the money is not released because the ruling party does not want development work to be associated with BJP representatives,” he alleged.

Leaders attacked

Tahidul Islam, the deputy of Putimari-Fuleswari panchayat in Cooch Behar-I block and a Trinamool leader, was attacked allegedly by BJP workers on Wednesday.

He is under treatment at the MJN Medical College & Hospital. Trinamool said the incident occurred while the party’s “Unnayaner Panchali” programme was underway.

The BJP, however, denied the allegations and termed it a fallout of Trinamool's infighting. The party also alleged that its workers were assaulted by Trinamool supporters during an SC Morcha outreach programme in the same panchayat on Tuesday.