A 52-year-old man, claimed to be a Congress activist, was hacked to death outside a booth during polling in Murshidabad Lok Sabha constituency, a senior state police officer said. Two other persons were also injured in the attack which, the Congress alleged, was perpetrated by workers of the ruling Trinamool Congress.
"One person was killed in poll violence in Murshidabad," ADG (Law and Order) Siddihathnath Gupta told PTI.
The victim, identified as Tiyarul Sheikh, went to vote at a booth in Baligram Primary School under Bhagwangola police station limits when a group of men attacked him with sharp weapons following an altercation, police sources said. When taken to hospital, he was declared brought dead.
The clash occurred outside polling booth No. 188 of the Bhagwangola Assembly segment in the Murshidabad parliamentary constituency.
"Two other persons were also injured in the attack. They were admitted to hospital," the sources said.
Voters at the booth revealed that Trinamool and Congress workers attacked each other with bamboo sticks and sickles.
The Election Commission sought a report from the Murshidabad district magistrate, a senior official said.
Congress candidate of Murshidabad Lok Sabha seat, Abu Hena, claimed, "Tiyarul was our party worker. TMC goons killed him when he went to cast his vote. The TMC men were indulged in malpractices inside the booth when Tiyarul reached there. There was an altercation between them following which he was attacked."
The deceased's son Mohtab Sheikh said that his father had accompanied him to the booth as he was a first-time voter.
"My father accompanied me to the polling station as I was voting for the first time," Mohtab said, as he broke into tears.
Polling was held on five West Bengal Lok Sabha constituencies - Balurghat, Maldaha North, Maldaha South, Jangipur and Murshidabad in the third phase of elections on Tuesday.
The ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, BJP and Congress are the main contenders in the five seats in which the fate of 61 candidates will be decided by a 80,23,852-strong electorate.
Four seats will see four-cornered contests between the three parties and the Left. It will be a three-cornered contest in Maldaha South as no Left party is in the fray in the seat.
(With inputs from agencies)