Accused in murder of Suvendu Adhikari's PA arrested; was fleeing from Haridwar to Delhi; hails from Ballia

Muzaffarnagar: The accused in the murder of Chandranath Rath—the PA to West Bengal's newly elected Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari—has been arrested. A joint team comprising the CBI and the Muzaffarnagar Police apprehended him. The accused, Rajkumar, was attempting to flee from Haridwar to Delhi. He is a native of Ballia. He was arrested at the Chapar Toll Plaza on National Highway 58 (NH-58).

The murder accused, Rajkumar, hails from Ratopur Sanwara in the Rasra area of ​​Ballia district. His mobile phone had remained switched off since the day of the PA's murder. A joint team of the CBI and the Bengal Police is currently engaged in a search for several other suspects in Ballia. Prior to this, Thakur Raj Singh had already been arrested in connection with the case.

When did the murder take place?

In this case, the Kolkata Police had previously arrested three sharpshooters hailing from Uttar Pradesh. Suvendu's PA was murdered on May 6—earlier this month—at Doharia Lane, located just 7 kilometers from Kolkata. The murder, which took place two days after the BJP's resounding victory in the Bengal Assembly elections, sent shockwaves across the region. The police stated that Rath's SUV was intercepted near his residence by a silver-colored car; however, the actual attack was carried out by armed individuals riding on two-wheelers. Rath was shot at point-blank range. Following the attack, the assailants abandoned their car and fled the scene using other vehicles. Subsequently, investigations revealed that several of the assailants had links to Uttar Pradesh. The case was later handed over to the CBI.

Who Provided Shelter to the Accused? 

The investigating agency is currently working to ascertain who provided shelter to these criminals from UP and Bihar while they were in Bengal, and who supplied them with the necessary weapons and resources to carry out the murder. The agency is also investigating the financial aspect of this "contract killing"—specifically, how much money was paid for the job and through what channels those funds were transferred to the perpetrators. Given the professional manner in which the attack was executed—including the prior reconnaissance (recce) and the precise firing—it is evident that the assailants possess an extensive and far-reaching network.