Vishnubardhan Mahato, a land surveyor, and Partha Das, an upper division clerk, employees of the Balurghat block land & land reforms officer’s (BL&LRO) office, were arrested on Wednesday in South Dinajpur, for e-challan fraud.
A source said in July 2025, a special audit team from Nabanna's finance department visited the Balurghat BL&LRO’s office to investigate discrepancies in e-challan transactions.
Ranendranath Mondal, from the same office, later filed a complaint at the Balurghat police station and submitted several key documents.
Evidence of deliberate underreporting was found in at least 35 online challans, with an estimated loss of ₹4-5 lakh in government revenue.
Less money was collected for land mutation, conversion, and purchase of soil from brick kilns, while fines collected for illegal pond digging and soil transportation were manipulated.
Physical or manual records showed higher amounts, while the online system reflected much lower figures, resulting in a significant amount being embezzled before reaching the government treasury.
Bikram Prasad, the deputy superintendent of police (headquarters) of South Dinajpur, said three persons have been arrested so far.