Sourav Kanti Mandal on Tuesday officially replaced Prashanta Barman as the Block Development Officer (BDO) of Rajganj Block in Jalpaiguri district.
The decision was taken by the Jalpaiguri district administration following a recent Supreme Court verdict, which rejected Mr Barman’s bail plea and directed him to surrender before the court.
Mr Barman has been accused in a gold trader murder case and had been seeking anticipatory bail for the past several months. After failing to secure relief from lower courts, he had approached the Supreme Court, which ultimately denied his plea.
Sources said that following the murder allegations, Mr Barman was facing administrative, social, and operational difficulties in continuing his duties as BDO, particularly at a time when the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise was underway in full swing in the block.
In view of the developments, the administration appointed Mr Mandal to take charge of the Rajganj Block.
The decision was welcomed by block officials, local residents, and leaders of the ruling party, who expressed satisfaction over the administrative move.
Local MLA from Rajganj and Trinamul Congress leader Khageshwar Roy met the newly-appointed BDO, Mr Mandal, and felicitated him, encouraging him to carry out his responsibilities effectively.
“Several development projects had remained pending for long and I hope the situation would improve,” Roy told the media.
The incident dates back to October 29 last year, when the body of gold trader Swapan Kamilya was recovered from Yatragachhi in New Town on the city’s north east fringes.
Acting on a complaint filed by his family, police have so far arrested five people.
During the course of the investigation, Barman’s name surfaced, with Bidhannagar Police identifying him as the “main accused” in the case.
Following this, Barman allegedly went into hiding.