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Vehicles with fake fig plates were used to people and kill Chandranath Rath, idiosyncratic adjunct to Suvendu Adhikari, the outgoing Leader of Opposition successful the West Bengal Assembly, precocious connected Wednesday night (May 6, 2026), according to the West Bengal police. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed to probe the attack, and forensic experts have visited the scene of the crime in North 24 Parganas, Madhyamgram.
“If he was not my adjutant oregon I did not decision [outgoing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee] in Bhabanipur, maybe they would not person targeted Rath. His transgression was being my idiosyncratic assistant,” Mr. Adhikari said, aft visiting his aide’s family astatine the Barasat Medical College and Hospital wherever a post-mortem was being conducted on Rath’s body.
Alleging that this was a targeted onslaught by hired assassins who had recced the determination for a week earlier carrying retired the murder, the BJP person called for the killers to look the decease penalty.
Crowd seen connected the infirmary premises. | Photo Credit: Shrabana Chatterjee
Car, getaway motorcycle utilized fake plates
Rath, 41, was in a achromatic SUV when helium was shot 3 times at point-blank range and sustained terrible injuries. He was declared dormant aft helium was rushed to a adjacent backstage hospital. A silver car utilized by the attackers was abandoned adjacent the transgression spot, and the culprits reportedly fled the spot on two-wheelers. The four-wheeler has been seized by the police.
“The fig sheet of the car was tampered with because the original registration number is from Siliguri. This was a fake fig plate. We have collected evidence from the spot. We are conducting further investigation,” Director General of West Bengal Police Siddhi Nath Gupta said in the aboriginal hours of Thursday. One of the motorbikes utilized to fly the transgression country has besides been recovered, and is besides reported to person utilized a fake fig plate.
Rath, fondly remembered arsenic Chandra, was a aviator by profession, but had discontinue and held a backstage occupation for immoderate clip earlier helium started moving for Mr. Adhikari 8 years ago. He had a residence in Madhyamgram’s Doharia area which is wherever helium was heading connected Wednesday nighttime erstwhile helium was changeable dead.
“I heard gunshots and ran to the place. The car had 3 people, 2 of them were bleeding, and 1 was crying for help. But they were inactive live and breathing, truthful we asked them to unreserved to the infirmary wherever he was declared dead,” Sushanta Sarkar, a BJP idiosyncratic and a nonmigratory of Doharia, told The Hindu on Thursday. He was 1 of the eyewitnesses who helped rescue the victims.
‘Heaven for criminals’
After the post-mortem, a monolithic assemblage gathered wrong the infirmary and mourners, BJP leaders, and workers paid their respects to Rath before his assemblage was taken to his household location in Purba Medinipur district’s Chandipur area, which is besides Mr. Adhikari’s native place.
BJP State president Samik Bhattacharya, who visited the State-run hospital again connected Thursday (May 7) morning, said that West Bengal has go a “heaven” for criminals acknowledgment to the 15-year tenure of the Trinamool Congress authorities successful the State.
“Yesterday’s incidental proves the existent authorities of instrumentality and bid successful West Bengal. In the last 15 years, they person destroyed the medication and politicised the police and have made each the criminals escaped of fear,” Mr. Bhattacharya said.
‘Revenge killing’
Rath’s grieving parent told reporters that this was a revenge sidesplitting due to the fact that her lad worked for the BJP. “As a mother, I cannot question decease for anyone. But I volition request beingness imprisonment for the culprits,” she said.
The Trinamool Congress was speedy to condemn the attack. “We request the strongest imaginable enactment successful this matter, including a court-monitored CBI probe truthful that those liable are identified and brought to justness without delay,” said a station connected the TMC’s authoritative grip connected X.
Another BJP idiosyncratic besides changeable connected Wednesday nighttime in Bashirhath has sustained injuries and is undergoing treatment.
Post-poll violence
West Bengal constabulary said that astatine slightest 2 deaths person been reported since May 4, erstwhile the Assembly predetermination results were declared, though it has not been confirmed whether they were owed to post-poll violence alone. At least 200 FIRs person been filed, 433 arrests person been made, and 1,100 different preventive arrests person been made.
People carrying BJP flags bulldozed a TMC enactment bureau successful the bosom of Kolkata in the New Market country connected Tuesday evening. Though the Kolkata police said that enactment would beryllium taken against officers who were contiguous astatine the site, nary specified enactment has yet been carried out.
Multiple incidents of vandalism, clashes, and arson person been reported from aggregate parts of the State aft the landslide triumph of the BJP which besides near the TMC with a humiliating nonaccomplishment successful the Assembly aft 15 years.
