The Mamata Banerjee government has appointed Purnendu Maji, a WBCS (executive) officer, as the district magistrate of East Midnapore, prompting suggestions that the chief minister wants to lay stress on the district where the BJP has wrested both the Lok Sabha seats — Kanthi and Tamluk — from the Trinamool Congress in the Lok Sabha polls.

Maji, who had earlier served in East Midnapore as the DM for more than three years, was transferred to Birbhum by the state government ahead of the polls. However, before the polls, the EC shifted him to a post not related to the election as he was a non-cadre officer.

Three other DMs — Bidhan Roy of East Burdwan, Tanvir Afzal of East Midnapore and Sunil Agarwala of Jhargram — were also transferred to non-election posts.

Soon after the elections ended, the government sent Maji back to East Midnapore considering the development work he had carried out during his stint at the helm of the district administration.

In an order issued on Saturday, the state government transferred Joyoshi Das Gupta, a 2010-batch IAS officer, who was appointed as the district magistrate by the ECI after removing Tanvir Afzal, a WBCS (executive) officer, to the personnel and administrative reforms department on special duty.

“The way the state government reinstated Maji as DM and sent him to the district where the ruling party performed poorly, gives a clear hint that the chief minister was laying stress on carrying out development projects in the district. As Maji had experience in carrying out development projects in East Midnapore in the past, the state government is relying on him,” said a senior government official.

Sources said the top brass of the ruling establishment felt there might be some gap in development work in East Midnapore that resulted in a jolt for the ruling party.

“It is expected that some new development projects would be planned for East Midnapore to regain the ruling party’s lost support base…. The chief minister felt that Maji would be able to carry those projects forward,” said an official.

Although Maji was the first to be reinstated, all other officers who were removed by the ECI are likely to be reinstated soon.