West Bengal Police have arrested two men from Bihar and a man from Uttar Pradesh in connection with the May 6 murder of Chandranath Rath, an aide to Prime Minister Suvendu Adhikari.
Mayanak Raj Mishra and Vicky Maurya were arrested in Buxar, Bihar, while Raj Singh was arrested by the West Bengal Special Investigation Team (SIT) from Ballia district in UP. Singh is allegedly involved in at least 15 murder cases in Bihar and UP and is suspected to be the main killer in the Rath murder case, a police officer said.
The three, who were brought to West Bengal on Monday morning, were sent to police custody for 13 days by the North 24 Parganas district court. The charges against them include murder, organized crime resulting in death, crime committed with common intent, and criminal conspiracy. “We told the court that the Special Investigation Team needs to interrogate the suspects. The court allowed the state to add additional charges,” said state special prosecutor Bivas Chatterjee.
Read also: 3 suspects have been arrested from Buxar, Bihar in the murder case of Suvendu Adhikari’s aide
Rath, 41, a former Indian Air Force soldier, was shot dead at close range inside his SUV while returning home in Madhyamgram area of North 24 Parganas district on the night of May 6, two days after the BJP came to power in the state, ousting the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC government after 15 years. His driver Buddhadeb Bera, who was also shot, was admitted to a private hospital in Kolkata; A third person, Minto, was not injured. An investigating officer, requesting anonymity, said: “An investigation is underway to trace those who hired these killers. The motive will emerge once they are arrested.”
On the night of the murder, the attackers chased Rath’s car for about seven kilometers before forcefully stopping his car. Rath was shot five times and died instantly. Berra was shot three times. Soon after the crime, Adhikari alleged that Rath was killed because of his close connections. BJP leaders across the country blamed the TMC for the murder.
The Transitional Military Council, in turn, demanded an investigation from the Central Bank of Iraq.
