Suspended Booth Level Officer Dies Amid Election Duty Pressure
A suspended Booth Level Officer (BLO) in Madhya Pradesh's Jhabua district collapsed and died just one day after facing suspension for alleged negligence in his election duties. The tragic incident occurred on Wednesday, November 22, 2025, raising serious questions about the immense pressure faced by officials involved in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.
Bhuvan Singh Chauhan, who also worked as an assistant teacher in Soliya village, was suspended on Tuesday following complaints about his performance in the crucial voter roll revision work. According to his family, the suspension and the preceding work pressure proved too much for him to bear.
Family Reveals Intense Workload and Final Hours
Chauhan's daughter, Sangeeta Chauhan, provided heartbreaking details about her father's final days. "He was facing issues as there was pressure to survey at least 100 voters daily. On the day he was suspended, he couldn't bear the pressure," she revealed. The family confirmed that after his suspension on Tuesday, Chauhan was so distressed that he neither ate dinner nor slept through the night.
His wife, Mishri Chauhan, described his final moments: "He suddenly felt dizzy and collapsed from the stairs. He was immediately taken to the Community Health Centre in Bori, where doctors declared him dead." The sudden death has left the family devastated and questioning the system that placed such enormous pressure on a single individual.
Suspension Order Details Serious Allegations
The official suspension order painted a different picture, citing serious negligence in Chauhan's duties. The document stated that all Booth Level Officers were instructed to conduct door-to-door surveys for the intensive revision of the voter roll, with tasks set according to the January 1, 2026 qualifying date.
Despite receiving notifications and training for this work, the order alleged that Chauhan did not attend sessions or perform the required EFS digitisation, leaving progress at only three percent. The suspension document further noted: "He has displayed serious negligence and apathy towards an important and time-bound election duty, which is contrary to official responsibilities and falls under the category of serious misconduct."
The order specifically mentioned that Chauhan's actions violated Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, citing "serious negligence and apathy towards election duty, disobedience of senior orders."
Wider Pattern of Pressure on Election Officials
Jhabua sub-divisional magistrate Bhaskar Gachle confirmed that the suspension followed a complaint from the Naib Tehsildar, who reported Chauhan's alleged repeated absence and failure to perform election duties. This incident is not isolated, as reports indicate widespread pressure on teachers tasked with SIR work across Madhya Pradesh.
In a separate but related case on November 11 in Datia, a teacher reportedly died by suicide on school grounds, with the family similarly blaming SIR-linked stress. The pattern of pressure appears systematic, with authorities taking strict action against underperforming BLOs across multiple districts.
In Sagar district alone, nine BLOs have been suspended for SIR lapses, while showcause notices have been issued to three SDMs and 15 tehsildars over tardy or negligible progress in the survey. This indicates a broader systemic issue affecting election officials throughout the state.
The tragic death of Bhuvan Singh Chauhan has highlighted the human cost of election preparation processes and raised important questions about the working conditions and pressure faced by ground-level election officials in Madhya Pradesh.
