DM who supported suspended IAS officer transferred by UP govt

Gautam Budh Nagar District Magistrate Ravikant Singh, who had given a clean chit to suspended Uttar Pradesh IAS officer Durga Shakti Nagpal, has been transferred.

The action comes days after Singh supported Nagpal, the 28-year-old sub-divisional magistrate of Gautam Budh Nagar who led the crackdown on the sand mining mafia in her district and was suspended on July 27, ostensibly for ordering the demolition of a wall of a under-construction mosque, allegedly without following due process.

Singh had, in his report to the UP government, supported Nagpal and said that the wall was demolished by villagers themselves and no JCB machine was put in operation to demolish it.

Though no official reason has been given for Singh's transfer, it comes after villagers at Sorkha village in Sector 115 in Noida on Tuesday protested against a demolition drive in the area. They pelted stones and set ablaze a police vehicle.

District Magistrate Singh had reached the site and pacified the mob.

Officials said on Wednesday that Singh has been put on a wait list and replaced by Unnao DM Hiralal Gupta.

Besides Singh, others who have been transferred include Special Secretary in Infrastructure and Industrial Development department Kaushal Raj Sharma, who has been made the new DM of Muzaffarnagar, replacing Surendra Singh, who has also been put on the wait list.

DM of Mainpuri Vijay Karan Anand has been shifted to Unnao.

Special Secretary of IT Vinod Kumar Pawar has been made the new DM of Mainpuri.

Image: Durga Shakti Nagpal