CBI takes over Chandranath Rath murder case, forms SIT to probe into Suvendu aide killing
Telegraph | 13 May 2026
The CBI on Tuesday took over the investigation into the murder of Chandranath Rath, personal assistant to Suvendu Adhikari, who was gunned down on May 6 in Madhyamgram.
The central agency has formed a special investigation team (SIT) to pursue the case.
So far, Bengal Police have arrested three men, including an alleged professional shooter from Uttar Pradesh who investigators suspect was the main gunman. Police sources said the accused has known links to the BJP.
The CBI SIT includes officers drawn from various units of the agency in Delhi, Dhanbad, Patna, Ranchi, Lucknow and Calcutta. The team will be supervised by a joint director based in Calcutta, sources said.
A CBI officer said leads suggested the suspects were spread across multiple states, making it necessary to constitute a team capable of carrying out inter-state operations.
Investigators have found that the group involved in the attack had entered and exited Calcutta several times in the days leading up to the murder to conduct recce in the area.
A team of CBI officers visited the murder site in Madhyamgram on Tuesday.
Earlier, a forensic team from the Directorate of Forensic Sciences in Gujarat had also visited the spot.
Rath was travelling home in a Mahindra Scorpio when the vehicle was intercepted on a narrow lane by a Nissan Micra. At least two bikers who had allegedly been tailing the SUV also closed in. The attackers struck from both sides of the vehicle to ensure that no one could escape.
Rath sustained two bullet injuries to the chest, with both bullets piercing his heart. He died on the spot. His driver, who suffered three bullet wounds, remains hospitalised in critical condition.
Of the three arrested, two were apprehended in Buxar in Bihar, while the third was arrested in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh.
Investigators said evidence collected so far points to the involvement of at least five more people in the execution of the operation.
“Who hired these men is yet to be established,” an officer associated with the investigation said.
The three accused were brought to Calcutta on Monday and produced before a court, which remanded them in police custody for 13 days. Their custody will now be transferred to the CBI.
Two of the accused — Mayank Raj Mishra and Vicky Maurya — are allegedly associated with the Onkar Singh gang, which has been linked to several crimes, including the assassination of gangster Chandan Mishra inside Paras Hospital in Patna last year.
The third accused, Raj Singh, a resident of Ballia in Uttar Pradesh, was traced after investigators tracked an online payment made at the Nivedita Setu toll plaza, which led police to the suspects.