Murder of Suvendu Adhikari’s aide: CBI arrests 2 suspects, allegedly linked to rival political party

The CBI has arrested two suspects in the assassination of Chandranath Rath, aide to West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. Brothers Sagar and Sahib Sonkar were arrested on 31 July, PTI reported. Investigators have found links to a rival political party.

Rath was fatally shot on 6 May, soon after the West Bengal election results. Motorcycle-borne assailants attacked him near Madhyamgram. The incident occurred in the North 24 Parganas district.

Sagar reportedly maintained regular contact with the rival party’s office via landline. Both accused worked closely with Rath before the murder. They will appear before a special court in Kolkata.

Back in June, the CBI took custody of Gyanendra Pratap Singh, a seasoned criminal. Singh, alias Monu, hails from Ballia district, Uttar Pradesh.

Singh faced 12 criminal cases across various jurisdictions at the time. Singh surrendered earlier before a Gangsters Act court. This occurred in an unrelated case at that time.

He was remanded to judicial custody in Mau jail. The CBI acted on a warrant from Barasat's ACJM court. Officials took him from Mau jail to Kolkata.

Rath's murder case was registered at Madhyamgram police station. Charges included provisions under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Arms Act.

A non-bailable warrant was earlier issued against Singh. This followed his failure to appear in another case. That case involved Gangsters Act charges from Bansdih Road station.

Throughout the process, Singh's wife insisted that her husband was innocent. She expressed confidence in the CBI's ongoing investigation at the time.

A video and Facebook post attributed to Singh surfaced. In it, he sought a fair probe into Rath's murder. He also named several alleged conspirators in these posts.

By June, the CBI brought two other accused to Kolkata. These included Naveen Kumar Singh and Golu Singh, alias Tiger. Another accused, Raj Kumar Singh, was also arrested.

Death of Suvendu Adhikari's aides

Chandranath Rath's assassination isn't the first such incident. Over 13 years, four people close to Adhikari have died. Each death involved suspicious or unnatural circumstances, reports suggest.

Pradip Jha, Adhikari's former personal assistant, died in 2013. His body was found on Kolkata's Strand Road. Adhikari suspected foul play and demanded an investigation then. The case remains unsolved to this day.

Subhabrata Chakraborty, Adhikari’s longtime bodyguard, died in 2018. He allegedly shot himself with his service revolver. This occurred at a security camp near Adhikari's residence. The case subsequently triggered a West Bengal CID investigation.

Pulak Lahiri, a close political aide, died in 2021. This happened during the volatile assembly election period. Rath's murder in May marks the fourth such death.