Kolkata, Jan 20 (NationPress) The Supreme Court has mandated that Prashant Barman, the Block Development Officer (BDO) of Rajganj, must surrender in relation to the abduction and murder case of gold merchant Swapan Kamilya in Salt Lake's Dattabad, Kolkata.

In less than a day following the apex court's ruling, Prashant Barman was dismissed from his position as BDO in the Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal.

Simultaneously, the West Bengal government appointed Saurav Kanti Mandal as the new BDO for Rajganj. Mandal had previously held the role of Joint BDO in the same area.

On this day, local Trinamool Congress MLA Khageshwar Roy congratulated the newly appointed BDO, expressing optimism that administrative activities in Rajganj would regain speed.

Roy remarked, "The halted administrative work is set to resume, which will benefit the people. Developmental initiatives for the community had been stalled."

The corpse of gold dealer Swapan Kamilya was discovered on October 29 of the previous year in Jatragachi, near Kolkata.

Based on a complaint filed by Kamilya's family, the police have apprehended five individuals thus far.

Prashant Barman's name was implicated in this case, with the Bidhannagar Police identifying him as the 'main accused.'

Following these allegations, Barman went into hiding.

The Opposition BJP criticized the West Bengal government for its inaction despite Barman's involvement in the murder case.

However, following the Supreme Court's ruling, the BDO was swiftly replaced.

To evade arrest, Prashant Barman made multiple court appeals. Initially, he sought anticipatory bail from the Barasat court, which was granted. Subsequently, Bidhannagar Police contested this decision in the Calcutta High Court.

The Calcutta High Court questioned the rationale behind granting Barman anticipatory bail, ultimately overturning the Barasat court's decision.

Justice Tirthankar Ghosh denied the anticipatory bail request and instructed Barman to surrender to the lower court within 72 hours.

Despite this, Barman failed to surrender, prompting the police to pursue an arrest warrant from the Bidhannagar court.

Barman subsequently challenged the Calcutta High Court's ruling in the Supreme Court.

However, he did not find favor in the Supreme Court either, which mandated his surrender to the lower court by Friday. The bench led by Justices Rajesh Bindal and Vijay Bishnoi also stated that Barman could request bail post-surrender, with the police permitted to oppose this application if necessary for the investigation.

Within a day of the Supreme Court's directive, Prashant Barman was officially dismissed from his role as BDO.