West Bengal plunged into fresh political violence after BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari’s close aide Chandranath Rath was shot dead near Kolkata late Wednesday night.
Rath, who served as Adhikari’s personal assistant and played a key role in the BJP’s Bengal campaign, was attacked by bike-borne assailants in Madhyamgram’s Doltala area near Kolkata airport. According to sources, the attackers chased his car on Jessore Road before firing multiple rounds through the rolled-up window at point-blank range.
Rath suffered multiple bullet injuries to the chest and abdomen and was declared dead at a private hospital. Another associate travelling with him remains critical.
The sensational killing comes barely two days after BJP’s massive victory in the West Bengal Assembly elections, intensifying the already volatile post-poll atmosphere in the state.
BJP leaders called it a “targeted political assassination,” with party leaders directly accusing the TMC leadership of orchestrating violence. Furious supporters gathered outside the hospital demanding immediate arrests.
Meanwhile, the Trinamool Congress condemned the murder and demanded a court-monitored CBI probe, while also alleging attacks on its own workers during post-poll clashes.
Heavy police deployment has been made in the area as investigators scan CCTV footage to identify the shooters. No arrests have been made so far.
