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India post-elections: Three people detained in killing of BJP chief's aide in West Bengal
Chandranath Rath, executive assistant of BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, was shot dead inside a car by men on bike on Wednesday night; eight armed men were said to be tailing his vehicle
- PUBLISHED: Thu 7 May 2026, 1:26 PM UPDATED: Thu 7 May 2026, 4:48 PM
Three people were detained for questioning by the Kolkata police on Thursday in connection with the brutal murder of Chandranath Rath, executive assistant of BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari in the city late Wednesday.
According to reports, a car blocked the roads when Rath was being driven home and two men on a bike fired multiple shots, killing him instantly.
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Sushanta Sarkar, who witnessed the incident, told reporters that he saw two people bleeding in the car. “The road was empty because of the rains and the police came and took them to the hospital.”
The killing could have been the work of professional shooters. Siddh Nath Gupta, director-general of police, West Bengal, said the number plate of the car that blocked the road had been tampered. “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 added.
According to preliminary police findings, eight armed men were tailing Rath’s vehicle on four motorcycles late at night. After the vehicle was blocked, they fired indiscriminately, seriously injuring the driver, Buddhadeb Bera, and killing Rath.
A former Indian Air Force employee, Rath, 41, has been with Adhikari for many years. “We are shocked, pained and hurt,” Adhikari told the media. “We have no words to condemn this incident. The police have said this is a pre-planned and cold-blooded murder that was carried out after a recce for two to three days.
"We are not coming to any conclusions, but there may be a political link,” he added.
BJP condemnation
Hundreds of BJP workers gathered outside the Barasat Government Medical College late Wednesday, shouting slogans against the Trinamool Congress (TMC), and demanding immediate action.
A former Indian Air Force employee, Rath, 41, has been with Adhikari for many years. “We are shocked, pained and hurt,” Adhikari told the media. “We have no words to condemn this incident. The police have said this is a pre-planned and cold-blooded murder that was carried out after a recce for two to three days. We are not coming to any conclusions, but there may be a political link,” he added. According to him, the killing was “the result of 15 years of Maha-Jungle Raj (massive lawlessness). The BJP will start the cleansing work of the goons here.”
Samik Bhattacharya, the BJP chief of West Bengal, accused the TMC (which was trounced by the BJP in the recent elections) of being behind the attack. “They are responsible for his death,” he told the media. Swapan Dasgupta, another BJP leader described the killing as “a pre-planned political assassination.”
BJP leader and former MP Arjun Singh accused Abhishek Banerjee, general secretary of the TMC, of orchestrating the killing of Rath. “They want to send a message that even though they are not in power, they are still a force to be reckoned with over you,” he told the media. “This is a planned murder where a sharpshooter did the job. Abhishek Banerjee has some police officials who do this only. This is Abhishek Banerjee's doing.”
TMC strongly denied all the allegations and condemned the killing. It also sought a court-monitored investigation into the murder and said political violence had no place in a democracy.
