TNI Bureau: The assassination of Chandranath Rath, close aide and personal assistant to Suvendu Adhikari, is increasingly being viewed as a meticulously planned conspiracy rather than a spontaneous act of violence. Fresh details emerging from the police investigation point to a coordinated operation involving multiple attackers, sophisticated weapons, fake vehicle registration plates, and careful surveillance of the victim’s movements.

According to investigators, Rath was travelling in an SUV near Madhyamgram in West Bengal when motorcycle-borne assailants intercepted the vehicle and opened fire from both sides at point-blank range. Police sources said nearly ten rounds may have been fired during the ambush. Rath suffered multiple bullet injuries and died shortly after being rushed to hospital, while another aide travelling with him was critically injured.

The probe has now widened significantly after police seized a suspicious car allegedly linked to the conspiracy. Investigators believe the attackers used both motorcycles and a car to track, intercept, and corner Rath’s vehicle before executing the attack. Fake number plates were reportedly used to conceal identities and movements. Police have also recovered live rounds, spent cartridges, and are scanning CCTV footage from multiple routes to identify those involved.

Suvendu Adhikari described the killing as a “cold-blooded, pre-planned murder,” claiming the assailants had conducted reconnaissance for two to three days before the attack. He alleged that Rath’s routine movements had been closely monitored prior to the assassination. He vowed to end TMC’s “goondaraj” once the new administration takes charge.

The murder has sharply escalated political tensions in Bengal, already witnessing widespread post-poll violence. As investigators piece together the conspiracy, the incident has once again raised serious concerns over law and order, political targeting, and the growing sophistication of violent attacks in the state.