Chandranath Rath, personal assistant to BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, was shot dead by unidentified assailants on Wednesday night, sending shock waves through the state’s political circles.
The incident took place at Doharia in Madhyamgram’s Doltala area in North 24 Parganas district, where Rath, who served as the executive assistant to the leader of the opposition in the state assembly, was shot at point-blank range by motorcycle-borne assailants, sources said.
The incident occurred in the Madhyamgram area, on Jessore Road near the Chowmatha crossing, around three kilometres from Kolkata airport, when Rath was travelling in a car along the national highway. According to preliminary information, he was shot at from close range by motorcycle-borne assailants who fled the scene immediately after the attack.
According to preliminary information, the attackers followed Rath’s car, intercepted it, shot him through the rolled-up window from the opposite side and fled the scene immediately after carrying out the attack. He was seated in the front seat next to the driver.
Rath sustained multiple bullet injuries and was rushed to a private hospital, where doctors declared him dead. An associate travelling with him was also hit in the firing and remains in critical condition.
"The victim was brought dead with multiple bullet injuries to the chest, including wounds that had pierced the heart, as well as another bullet injury to the abdomen, and no opportunity for resuscitation was available," a doctor from the hospital told news agency PTI.
The killing comes just two days after the BJP’s historic victory in the West Bengal Assembly elections.
Rath, according to party sources, played a crucial role in Adhikari's campaigns in the Bhabanipur constituency where the BJP leader triumphed over former chief minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee.
News of the killing spread quickly, prompting BJP workers and supporters to gather outside the medical facility and vent their anger.
Senior BJP leaders rushed to the spot, while Adhikari also visited the area later in the night, and was on the way to the hospital.
Reacting to the incident, newly elected BJP MLA Tarunjyoti Tewari alleged political motives, saying, “We have been preaching peace but TMC has made the biggest blunder.”
In a statement to a vernacular news channel, BJP leader and MLA-elect Kaustav Bagchi, who was present at the hospital, said, "This was a targeted attack. The assailants followed Rath's car for a long time before pumping him with bullets. This is the handiwork of Mamata and Abhishek Banerjee. We will not rest until the criminals are identified. We will not cremate the body till then."
Meanwhile, the Trinamool Congress condemned the killing of Rath and demanded a court-monitored CBI probe into the incident.
"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 in a statement.
"We demand the strongest possible action in this matter, including a court-monitored CBI probe so that those responsible are identified and brought to justice without delay," it said.
Violence and political killings have no place in a democracy, and the guilty must be held accountable at the earliest, the statement added.
Tension prevailed in the area, prompting the deployment of a large police contingent. Senior police officers rushed to the spot and launched an investigation.
Police are examining CCTV footage from, the area and efforts are underway to identify the assailants and ascertain the motive behind the attack. No arrests have been reported so far, and further details are awaited.
Suvendu Adhikari is a candidate in the race for the CM post after the BJP secured a landslide victory in West Bengal. Repeating Nandigram of 2021, Suvendu Adhikari had defeated the outgoing CM Mamata Banerjee in Bhabanipur.
(With inputs from PTI)