CBI takes over probe into Suvendu aide Chandranath Rath’s killing 

The Central Bureau of Investigation has taken over the probe into the killing of Chandranath Rath, aide of West Bengal leader Suvendu Adhikari, forming a Special Investigation Team to examine possible interstate and conspiracy angles. The case involves a suspected planned shooting near Kolkata, with multiple arrests already made

Kolkata: The CBI took over the probe into the killing of West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari’s aide Chandranath Rath, officials said on Tuesday.

The agency constituted a seven-member Special Investigation Team (SIT), comprising seasoned officers from multiple states, to probe the killing that rocked the state two days after the BJP won a landslide mandate in the assembly elections.

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The CBI team is expected to arrive here later in the day, officials said.

The central probe agency has also re-registered the FIR earlier lodged by the police, they said, adding that a DIG-rank officer is heading the SIT.

“The CBI took over the investigation on Monday night and formed a multi-disciplinary team to ensure a comprehensive and time-bound investigation into the case. All possible angles, including interstate criminal links and conspiracy, are being examined. The CBI SIT will now focus on unravelling the larger conspiracy behind the murder,” a senior official said.

Rath was shot dead in Madhyamgram’s Doharia Lane, around 7 km from Kolkata airport, on the night of May 6, in what BJP leaders described as a “planned assassination”.

His SUV was intercepted by the silver car near his residence, following which armed men on two-wheelers opened fire, according to police.

After the attack, the assailants abandoned the silver car and fled in a red car and a motorcycle. Two motorcycles linked to the crime were later found, one near the spot and another in Barasat, around 6 km away.

The registration plates of all the vehicles were allegedly forged, and their engine and chassis numbers were tampered with, police said.

Three persons, including a “sharp shooter”, were arrested from UP and Bihar in connection with the killing. They were identified as Mayank Raj Mishra, Vicky Maurya and Raj Singh.

The accused were traced following a UPI payment made at a toll plaza in Howrah’s Bally, police said.

Investigators have been suspecting the involvement of interstate criminal operatives due to the manner in which the killing was executed.

Officers of the SIT earlier formed by the West Bengal Police said at least eight persons could have been involved in the conspiracy behind the killing.

Investigators claimed that the accused repeatedly changed their statements during interrogation. A court has remanded them to 13 days of police custody till May 24.

“The accused are being questioned to ascertain how they received precise information regarding Rath’s movements and who else was present at the crime scene,” an officer said.

However, investigators have not yet disclosed who masterminded the killing, who financed the alleged contract hit, or the motive behind it.