Alipurduar police have arrested Debi Shah, a Trinamool Congress leader and the pradhan (head) of Satali panchayat in Kalchini block of the district, and her husband Ram Prasad in connection with an alleged fake caste certificate submitted during the 2023 panchayat elections.
Police said the arrests were made late on Wednesday in Nagrakata, in the neighbouring Jalpaiguri district, following a complaint lodged by Bishal Choudhury, a resident of Satali.
He alleged that while filing her nomination as a Trinamool candidate, Debi had submitted a forged scheduled caste certificate. Ram Prasad, a Trinamool leader, was also named in the complaint.
The arrest was triggered by a tragedy in Alipurduar’s Hasimara, where a girl was swept away by the overflowing waters of Bhola Nullah or stream after heavy rainfall last Friday. Her body was later recovered from a distant location.
The incident prompted residents to stage protests, blocking the Hasimara–Jaigaon state highway for hours.
The protesters had alleged that Debi allowed encroachment on the drainage channel, including the construction of a permanent house, which obstructed the natural flow of rainwater, causing flooding in nearby areas.
Police intensified their investigation into the claims and reopened the 2023 case related to the alleged submission of a forged caste certificate.
After the child’s death, the couple had fled the area in fear of backlash. The police tracked them down and arrested them in Nagrakata.
“After the panchayat elections, I lodged the complaint with the police and had even approached Prashanta Barman, the then BDO of Kalchini. However, nobody believed my allegations. Now, it has been proved that I was right,” said Choudhury
Mithu Das, the Alipurduar district BJP president, said: “Many Trinamool leaders have been involved in various forms of corruption. In this case, the Pradhan committed an illegal act and should face the consequences.”
Embankment funds
The state government has sanctioned ₹14 crore for the construction of a 2.2-kilometre-long embankment along the Torsha river for the flood-ravaged Subhashini tea estate in Alipurduar district.
The project aims to protect the tea garden from further erosion and flooding after the river changed its course and entered the estate during the devastating floods last October.
A source in the tea garden said that more than 100 acres of tea plantation and heavy silt deposition rendered large portions of the land almost barren.
This has affected tea cultivation and caused financial losses for the estate.
The tea garden management recently approached Bishal Lama, a minister of state and the Kalchini MLA, seeking his intervention. Soon after, the state approved the funds for the embankment project.
“We have heard about the approval, but we are concerned as to whether the work could be carried out during the ongoing monsoon. If no effective protection measures are implemented this season, the labour lines as well as the tea factory will face a serious threat from the river,” Shirsendu Mukherjee, the garden’s manager, said.
