Sharpshooters from Bihar, UP behind Suvendu Adhikari's PA Chandranath Rath's murder; Three arrested

NEW DELHI: Three sharpshooters were arrested in the murder case of West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari's Personal Assistant, Chandranath Rath. Mayank Mishra and Vicky Maurya were arrested from Buxar in Bihar, and Raj Singh, a native of Ballia in Uttar Pradesh, from a hideout in Ayodhya. The accused were taken to Kolkata.

Apart from them, two others in custody are being grilled. Special Investigation Team of the Bengal Police is investigating the case. When the modus operandi of the murder was examined, the police suspected the presence of sharpshooters. At that stage, the investigation was extended to UP, Bihar and Odisha. Chandranath, who was travelling in a car, was shot dead in Madhyamgram in North 24 Parganas on May 6. Chandranath died on the spot. Chandranath’s driver, Buddhadeb Bera, is in critical condition. The police have received indications that more than eight people are involved in the murder. The search for the other accused has been intensified.

The police concluded that the murder was meticulously planned. The assailants chased Chandranath for seven kilometres in a car and two bikes. Just before the murder, the car in which the accused was travelling passed through a toll plaza in the nearby Bali area. One of the accused paid the toll amount through UPI. This proved crucial.

The investigation into the mobile phone used for the digital payment led to the accused. It is reported that the accused were identified by comparing them with the CCTV footage at the toll plaza.