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3 people detained in connection with murder of Suvendu Adhikari’s aide: Police
Adhikari, a front runner for the chief minister’s post in the BJP-government, defeated sitting chief minister Mamata Banerjee in her home turf Bhabanipur in South Kolkata
At least three persons were detained for questioning in connection with the murder of Chandranath Rath, personal assistant of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Suvendu Adhikari, a senior official said.
“Investigation is going on. Some persons were being questioned,” said a senior police official.
Adhikari, a front runner for the chief minister’s post in the BJP-government, defeated sitting chief minister Mamata Banerjee in her home turf Bhabanipur in South Kolkata.
Rath was Adhikari’s PA for around five years and was his close aide who played a key role in managing Adhikari’s election in both Nandigram and Bhabanipur. Adhikari won both the seats.
“Union home minister Amit Shah has been informed,” said a BJP leader.
Around 10:15pm on Wednesday night, unidentified motorcycle-borne assailants shot Rath from a point-blank range while he was returning to his residence at Madhyamgram in North 24 Parganas. A car was used to intercept Rath’s vehicle, which was later abandoned as the assailants fled on two motorcycles, according to eyewitness accounts.
“Three persons, wearing helmets, were waiting with two motorcycles in a dark lane beside a packaging unit at Doharia. As Rath’s white Scorpio arrived, another vehicle (a Nissan Micra hatchback) approached from the opposite direction and blocked the road. The three then came out of the lane. They started firing at Rath’s vehicle. After that they fled in two motorcycles in two opposite directions abandoning the car,” a local resident told media persons.
Investigation has revealed that the number plate of the hatchback vehicle and its chassis number were tampered with. The number belongs to a vehicle registered in Siliguri. Investigators later contacted Siliguri police after tracing the registration number. Police found that the number plate belonged to another vehicle owned by a Siliguri resident named William Joseph.
“The vehicle used is not mine. The number used in the license plate is mine. I had put up my car on an online platform for sale a few months ago. The police called me at the police station with my car and the documents. They asked me a few questions,” Joseph, who works in the tea industry, told the media.
“From whatever the police have got so far, it is a planned cold-blooded. The killers had done recce for the past two to three days and had used false number plates,” Adhikari, told the media.
While Rath was shot dead and his driver Budddadeb Bera was critically wounded after sustaining three bullet injuries, a third BJP worker in the car, sitting in the rear seat, escaped unhurt, BJP members aware of the developments said.
“Police have taken his statements. While Rath was seated next to the driver, the BJP worker was sitting in the rear. As soon as the shootout started, he bent down and hit behind the seat,” said a BJP leader.
While top officials of the state police including director general of police (DGP) Siddh Nath Gupta, rushed to the spot on Wednesday night, CID officials and forensic experts reached in the morning.
Samples, such as blood stain seat cover and cartridge shells, were collected from the spot. CCTV footage was being analysed.
Preliminary investigations suggest that the hatchback car used in the crime could have reached Doharia and Madhyamgram at least six to seven hours before the crime. It was seen on CCTV around 3pm near Doltala.
“I am a mother too. So, I will not demand the death sentence for the killers. But I want life imprisonment for them. I wouldn’t have felt so much pain had my son died in an accident. I think the TMC is behind this because my son was in charge of the election management for Suvendu in many areas including Chandipur,” Hasirani Rath, the deceased’s mother, told the media from their house at Chandipur in Purba Medinipur.
