Shortly after his executive assistant, Chandranath Rath, was shot dead in Madhyamgram last night, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari said the party was “shocked, pained and hurt” and appealed to BJP workers not to take the law into their hands.
Adhikari said the BJP, which defeated the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress in these Assembly polls, will form the government in two days and ensure justice. He said Rath’s murder may have a political link, and added that an investigation is on. “We are shocked, pained and hurt. We have no language to condemn this incident. JP Nadda ji has called to take stock of the situation. We are not coming to any conclusions,” he told the media outside the hospital Rath was rushed to after the shooting.
“The DGP had come and has assured us that the investigation is on and that they will identify the culprits. They have said this is a pre-planned and cold-blooded murder that was carried out after a recce for two to three days. We appeal to all BJP supporters and leaders: don’t take the law into your hands,” Adhikari said as a large crowd of BJP supporters gathered at the hospital after Rath’s killing. Several BJP leaders have accused Trinamool of plotting Rath’s murder.
Adhikari, a frontrunner for the Chief Minister post after the BJP’s thumping win against Trinamool Congress, said the BJP will form a government in Bengal in the next two days. “We will ensure that justice is served and what happened in the RG Kar (rape-murder) case is not repeated. We will ensure that no mother loses their child. We are not coming to any conclusions, but there may be a political link,” he said.
According to police sources, Rath was returning home in Barasat last night in a Scorpio SUV. Suddenly, a car blocked the road. At the same time, bike-borne assailants approached the co-passenger seat, in which Rath was sitting, and pumped several bullets through the rolled-up window. Rath suffered three bullet injuries and died soon after. The car’s driver was also injured and is now under treatment.
Police sources said the killing appears to have been carried out by professionals.
Siddh Nath Gupta, Director General of Police for Bengal, said the car that blocked the road has been seized. “The number plate has been tampered with and it belongs to someone in Siliguri (in north Bengal). We have seized cartridges and live rounds from the spot. We are processing all the evidence and speaking to the witnesses. Investigation is on,” he said.
Police said they are also scanning CCTV footage and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has joined the probe. The BSF has also been alerted so that the killers cannot cross the border into Bangladesh.
Rath, fondly called “Chandra” by BJP leaders in Bengal, was considered Adhikari’s shadow. Formerly employed with the Indian Air Force, Rath joined Adhikari after a voluntary retirement from the force. He had been with Adhikari since he was with the Trinamool Congress. His mother, Hashi Rath, is a panchayat member at Chandipur in Bengal’s Purba Medinipur district.
The Trinamool Congress has condemned the murder of Rath and demanded strict action. “We strongly condemn the brutal murder of Chandranath Rath in Madhyamgram tonight, along with the killing of three other TMC workers in incidents of post-poll violence allegedly carried out by BJP-backed miscreants over the last three days, despite the Model Code of Conduct being in force,” the party said on X.
“We demand the strongest possible action in this matter, including a court-monitored CBI investigation so that those responsible are identified and brought to justice without delay. Violence and political killings have no place in a democracy and the guilty must be held accountable at the earliest,” it added.