Chandranath Rath spent the day asking BJP workers to avoid violence. Just hours later, gunmen blocked his SUV near his home and shot him dead at close range

New Delhi: Chandranath Rath, the close aide and executive assistant of BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, was shot dead by unidentified attackers near his Madhyamgram residence in North 24 Parganas on the night of May 6, 2026, just hours after he appealed to BJP workers to maintain peace following the West Bengal Assembly election results. Gunmen intercepted Rath’s SUV around 10:30 PM, opened fire at point-blank range, and fled the scene, triggering massive political outrage and fresh tensions in Bengal amid escalating post-poll violence.

From Air Force Veteran to Suvendu Adhikari’s Most Trusted Man

Chandranath Rath, 41, grew up in Chandipur in Purba Medinipur — the same region closely linked to Suvendu Adhikari’s political rise.

He studied at Rahara Ramakrishna Mission, where he reportedly became deeply influenced by discipline and spiritual values. At one point, he even considered dedicating his life to the institution.

Instead, he joined the Indian Air Force and served for nearly two decades.

People who knew him described him as disciplined, loyal, calm, and highly organised. After taking voluntary retirement from the Air Force, he briefly worked in the corporate sector before entering politics.

Rath’s family already shared old ties with the TMC during the party’s dominance in Purba Medinipur. His mother, Hasi Rath, reportedly held a position in a local panchayat body during those years. The Rath family had known the Adhikari family for more than two decades.

Around 2019, Rath officially joined Suvendu Adhikari’s team when Adhikari was still a minister in the Mamata Banerjee government. When Adhikari left the TMC and joined the BJP in 2020, Rath followed him without hesitation.

Over time, Rath became Adhikari’s executive assistant and one of his closest and most trusted aides.

The Man BJP Leaders Called “Suvendu’s Shadow”

Inside BJP circles, many leaders referred to Chandranath Rath as “Suvendu’s shadow.”

He managed schedules, coordinated political work, handled party workers, and quietly ran many behind-the-scenes operations for Adhikari. Despite his influence, he stayed away from media attention and rarely gave interviews.

He played an important role in several major BJP campaigns in Bengal, including the Bhabanipur election campaign. Party insiders believed Rath would likely receive a bigger political role after the BJP’s strong 2026 election performance.

Unlike many political operators, Rath avoided public drama and preferred to work silently in the background.

That is exactly why his murder shocked Bengal’s political circles.

Investigators and BJP leaders believe the attack was not random violence but a carefully planned assassination.

How Gunmen Shot Chandranath Rath Dead

Investigators pieced together the attack using CCTV footage, eyewitness accounts, and forensic evidence.

After spending the day in Chandipur, Rath returned to Madhyamgram in North 24 Parganas. He travelled in a white Scorpio SUV with his aide and driver, Buddhadev Bera.

Around 10:30 PM, near Doharia junction close to Doltala, a small four-wheeler with a Siliguri registration number suddenly blocked Rath’s SUV.

As the Scorpio stopped, several attackers on motorcycles surrounded the vehicle. Investigators believe at least eight men on four motorcycles took part in the attack. All of them wore helmets.

One gunman walked up to the SUV, pressed a firearm against the window, and opened fire at point-blank range.

Bullets struck Rath twice in the chest. The attackers also shot Buddhadev Bera multiple times in the chest, abdomen, and hand.

After the shooting, the attackers escaped on motorcycles. The people inside the blocking vehicle abandoned it and fled as well.

Witnesses who reached the spot found Rath bleeding heavily inside the Scorpio. Doctors declared him dead after he was rushed to a nearby private hospital.

Doctors later shifted Buddhadev Bera to Apollo Multispeciality Hospital for treatment, where he remained in critical condition.

West Bengal Director General of Police Siddhnath Gupta confirmed that police recovered cartridges from the crime scene and seized the abandoned vehicle. Investigators also collected forensic samples and examined CCTV footage from nearby areas.

Police suspect the Siliguri registration plate on the blocking vehicle was fake, indicating detailed planning before the attack.

BJP Calls It a Planned Political Murder

Suvendu Adhikari reached the hospital shortly after midnight and called the killing a “cold-blooded murder.”

He claimed attackers had monitored Rath for several days before carrying out the attack. Sukanta Majumdar described the murder as “deeply disturbing” but asked party workers to wait for the post-mortem report before drawing conclusions.

Rajya Sabha MP Rahul Sinha alleged that a larger conspiracy may have targeted Suvendu Adhikari himself and claimed the attackers killed Rath instead.

Newly elected BJP MLA Tarunjyoti Tewari accused the TMC of reacting violently after the election defeat.

Senior BJP leaders, including Arjun Singh, Shankar Ghosh, Piyush Kanoria and Kaustav Bagchi, rushed to the hospital after the shooting.

The BJP directly blamed the TMC and called the murder a political revenge killing after the BJP’s election victory.

The timing intensified suspicion. Attackers killed Rath less than 48 hours after the election results came out on May 4.

TMC Denies Role, Demands CBI Probe

The TMC condemned Rath’s murder and demanded a court-monitored CBI investigation. The party argued that the demand showed it wanted a fair investigation and had nothing to hide.

At the same time, the TMC accused BJP supporters of killing three TMC workers in separate incidents during the same period. Both parties blamed each other while violence spread across Bengal after the election results.

Rath’s murder became the biggest and most shocking incident in a wider wave of post-poll clashes. Just hours after his killing, BJP worker Rohit Roy, also known as Chintu, died after a shooting during a clash in Basirhat over BJP flags.

Earlier, on May 4, attackers allegedly beat BJP worker Jadhav Bor to death in Howrah’s Udaynarayanpur area during post-election celebrations.

By May 7, political violence had spread across several districts in Bengal.

The Tragic Irony Behind Chandranath Rath’s Death

One detail makes Chandranath Rath’s killing especially tragic.

On the same day gunmen murdered him, Rath spent hours asking BJP workers not to respond with violence after the election victory.

He personally carried Suvendu Adhikari’s message of restraint to party workers in his village. He believed the political fight had already ended through voting and did not need bloodshed afterward.

But just hours later, armed attackers stopped his SUV on a dark road near Kolkata airport and opened fire.

The motive behind the murder has not yet been officially confirmed.