WB: Polling-duty vehicle allegedly set ablaze in Purulia's Bandwan a night before election, no casualty

According to reports, the incident was reported from Talsidi village in Bandwan at around 7:30 pm when a polling-duty van was returning after dropping the polling personnel at a polling station.

The driver of the vehicle, who was alone in the van during the incident, had escaped unhurt and claimed that two masked miscreants set the vehicle alight after throwing some chemicals into it.

"Two masked men came out from the roadside jungle and asked me to stop my van," the driver of the vehicle said.

"When I stopped my vehicle, they threw some chemicals inside it and set it ablaze and the duo also tried to prevent me from coming out of the van on fire," the driver alleged.

"Soon after they ran away into the jungle and I escaped from the vehicle unhurt," he added.

Following the incident, local police and Central paramilitary force personnel rushed to the scene and carried out a search operation in the area.

"An investigation has been initiated into the incident to confirm if the Maoists were involved in it as the location where the incident took place falls under Left Wing Extremism (LWE) zone," a senior official of Purulia district police said.

"Prima facie and eye-witness's accounts are indicating that petrol bomb-like object was used to torch the vehicle," the officer added.