Kolkata, 03 January (H.S.) :

The chairman of Egara Municipality in West Bengal’s Purba Medinipur district, Swapan Nayak, has been arrested by the police on charges of corruption linked to the illegal transfer of government land. He was apprehended from Kolkata.

Police officials said on Saturday morning that an investigation had been underway for a long time against Nayak over alleged violations of rules and illegal buying and selling of government land. The case was registered following a complaint by the Land and Land Reforms Department. Anticipating arrest, Nayak had reportedly been staying away from Egara for several days. Late on Friday night, a special police team conducted a raid at a location in Kolkata, took him into custody, and formally arrested him after questioning.

Notably, over the past few months, Nayak had been facing not only administrative scrutiny but also mounting political pressure. Local councillors of the Trinamool Congress had moved a no-confidence motion against him. The party’s top leadership had reportedly directed him to step down from his post, but he refused to resign. During this period, posters declaring him “missing” had also appeared across the town.

Police officials stated that the arrested municipal chairman will be produced before the district court on Saturday. The administration is likely to seek his police custody to investigate the larger network involved in the alleged illegal transfer of government land and to trace the financial transactions linked to the scam.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh