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BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, who is also the frontrunner for the West Bengal Chief Minister's post, claimed on Thursday that “the only reason behind Chandranath Rath’s murder is that he was my executive assistant and that I had defeated Mamata Banerjee in Bhabanipur."
In the West Bengal Elections 2026, Suvendu Adhikari won the Bhabanipur and Nandigram constituencies. He defeated the TMC chief Mamata Banerjee from Bhabanipur by over 15,000 votes.
Rath was a close aide and personal assistant of the party's senior leader Suvendu Adhikari. He was shot dead in Madhyamgram in the North 24 Parganas district on Wednesday night.
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Suvendu Adhikari claimed the murder of his personal assistant Chandranath Rath was solely because Rath was his executive assistant and that Adhikari had defeated Mamata Banerjee in Bhabanipur. Adhikari alleged contract killers were involved and that Rath had no political enmity.
Chandranath Rath was shot dead at close range by unidentified assailants on a motorcycle. His SUV was intercepted and forced to stop, after which multiple shots were fired through the window, fatally wounding him.
Chandranath Rath was a former Indian Air Force (IAF) serviceman who had served for nearly two decades. After voluntary retirement, he briefly worked in the corporate sector before moving into political coordination and administrative roles.
Suvendu Adhikari expressed confidence in the police investigation, stating that leads have been found and some people have been rounded up. He believes the police are heading in the right direction and urged for capital punishment for all involved.
Chandranath Rath was a close aide and executive assistant to Suvendu Adhikari, coordinating organizational work, managing logistics, and maintaining communication with party workers. He was considered a key backroom figure and enjoyed Adhikari's complete confidence.
Bike-borne assailants reportedly intercepted Rath's vehicle near Doltala in Madhyamgram around 10.30 pm on Wednesday, forced it to stop and opened fire at point-blank range before fleeing.
What did Suvendu Adhikari say?
On the murder of his PA Chandranath Rath, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari said, "The only reason behind Chandranath Rath’s murder is that he was my executive assistant and that I had defeated Mamata Banerjee in Bhabanipur. I will fulfil all my responsibilities."
He assured Rath's family that the culprits will be nabbed, a chargesheet will be filed against them, and they will be convicted.
Earlier, Adhikari alleged that contract killers were involved in the murder of Rath, and claimed that his close aide had no political enmity.
Speaking before Rath's body was taken to his native place Chandipur in Purba Medinipur district for the last rites, Adhikari was quoted by PTI as saying that the former Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel was killed because of his association with him.
Adhikari was speaking to reporters at Barasat State General Hospital, where the post-mortem examination of Rath's body was conducted.
"The ex-serviceman of the Indian Air Force might not have been killed had he not been my PA and had I not won from Bhabanipur. His only fault was Suvendu Adhikari's personal assistant. Five bullets were fired at him to ensure his death," the BJP leader said.
Senior BJP leaders, including the party's state unit president Samik Bhattacharya, paid tributes to Rath before the hearse left for Chandipur around 3 pm.
BJP's West Bengal unit president Samik Bhattacharya also reacted to the incident on Thursday, describing Rath's killing as a "planned political murder."
Bhattacharya claimed that it was designed to cause instability in the state. "It was a targeted violence," he told reporters at the Barasat Hospital where the post-mortem of Chandranath Rath was carried out.
"By the killing, did the assailants want to send a political message to BJP or was it intended for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is arriving in Kolkata in two days?" he posed and said that he would inform Governor RN Ravi about the incident.
The state BJP chief said he could not get into details as the investigation is underway and the model code of conduct was still in place.
According to PTI, the TMC had denied involvement in the killing and alleged that BJP-backed miscreants had killed three of its workers over the preceding three days.
Referring to the probe, Adhikari said the DGP had informed him that a motorcycle allegedly used in the crime had been recovered around four kilometres away from the spot.
"Police are working. I spoke with the DGP; they have leads, and some people have been rounded up. I am confident the police will be able to arrest the assailants. CID, forensic and SIT are in action, and police are heading in the right direction," Adhikari told reporters outside the hospital.
He claimed that the police were capable of solving cases but alleged that "they were not allowed" to do so earlier, in an apparent dig at the TMC government.
When asked about the TMC's demand for a CBI inquiry into the killing, Adhikari said, "There is no relevance of the TMC now. Police will be able to solve this."
The BJP leader urged the police to identify everyone involved in the killing and ensure they receive capital punishment.
Rath's mother, however, demanded life imprisonment instead of a death sentence, as she understood a mother's pain. She is also a BJP activist in Purba Medinipur.
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