Suvendu Adhikari's PA Killing: BJP's Response May Reveal its Bengal Playbook

How the saffron party handles the incident could give a preview to its future course in Bengal, reports Arka Deb.

Chandranath Rath was an active member of the special team that worked for Suvendu Adhikari during the Bhabanipur bypoll, especially in campaigning.

(Photo: Kamran Akhter/The Quint)

"From where I was standing, his car was stopped about 30 metres away. I first heard three gunshots, then three more," Madhyamgram resident Jaya Kundu tells The Quint, a day after the horrific killing of Chandranath Rath, personal assistant to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Suvendu Adhikari.

"They chased him from the crossing and did it here. All of them had black scarves on their faces. They deliberately chose a spot with no CCTV," Kundu alleges.

A newly minted supporter of the BJP who voted against the Trinamool Congress (TMC) this year, Kundu is clear on who the perpetrator is. "We know who is behind this. Locals know," she states assertively.

Post-poll violence in West Bengal is nothing new. Since counting day on 4 May, four other people have reportedly been killed in violent incidents across Bengal.

Reports of arson, vandalism, and intimidation have also emerged. But the gunning down of a top political leader's aide in the middle of a busy road is unprecedented.

The brazen killing of Rath has left people across Bengal both shocked and scared. Many are now asking if President's Rule is the only way out of the cycle of violence.

How it Happened

It was 10:20 pm on 6 May, Wednesday. Four miscreants on two motorcycles had been tailing Rath for several kilometres before he reached home. As his car entered Doharia Lane, a four-wheeler came from the opposite direction and blocked its path. The bikers then got down and fired at him. They shot by pressing the gun against the window glass. At least three bullets hit his body. One missed and struck his iPhone. The entire operation was over in about 50 seconds.

Rath's driver, Buddhadeb Berao, was also shot. Both were rushed to a local hospital, where doctors declared Rath dead. Berao's condition remains critical.

By Thursday morning, CID officials reached the spot along with state police. A joint team has been formed. Forensic experts have already collected samples from the car. Pieces of the car's window glass and bullet casings were recovered from the crime scene.

Police suspect the attackers had been reconnoitring the area for days. All wore helmets, so no one has been identified yet. CCTV footage from nearby areas is being checked to trace their escape route. According to police sources, three vehicles had been in the area at least six hours before the incident.

The four-wheeler used in the crime was abandoned on Wednesday evening. Its number plate read WB74AK2270, registered in Siliguri. The owner, William Joseph, was questioned at Matigara police station. He claimed his car was still in Siliguri. It became clear that a fake number plate was used, and even the chassis number had been scratched off.

Nearly two days after the incident, police are yet to identify anyone or make any arrests. "We have started the investigation. We have seized a car linked to the crime. The number plate of the car has been tampered with," West Bengal's Director General of Police Siddhinath Gupta tells The Quint.

"The number plate of the car visible is from Siliguri. But the number plate of the car has been tampered with. Eyewitness accounts are being recorded, and evidence is being processed. Further investigation is underway," he adds.

Politicisation, Investigation, and a Show of Strength

As soon as news of the murder spread, central forces cordoned off the entire area. DGP Gupta reached the spot after 1 am on the night of 6 May. Forensic experts examined the site, and vehicle movement was stopped on the road near Rath's house.

Crowds quickly gathered at the hospital after his death was announced. Since the change of power in the state, senior BJP leaders like Shamik Bhattacharya have repeatedly said they won't tolerate any violence. BJP supporters were furious, demanding immediate encounter of the accused.

Adhikari reached the spot, along with Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar. Agnimitra Paul and Rudranil Ghosh also arrived at the hospital. Standing with Majumdar, Adhikari called it a "pre-planned, cold-blooded murder." He added that the DGP had told him the attackers had been doing reconnaissance for the last two-three days using a car with a fake number plate.

To calm the angry party workers, BJP unit President Shamik Bhattacharya had to step in.

"This is a completely planned, revenge-driven political murder. I can't say more than that."

Shamik Bhattacharya was also heard saying, "Do we not have the power? If anyone thinks the lion is old and weak and kicks it, they are making a mistake. We can speak in the TMC's language, we know how to. But we are not saying it, and we won't. This is our stand."

Noapara's winning BJP MLA Arjun Singh claimed professional killers were used. Rajya Sabha MP Rahul Sinha echoed the same view.

Thr incident has left Madhyamgram locals abuzz, with the theory of political revenge gaining ground. On Thursday, Adhikari said, "Chandranath had no criminal history. He wasn't even directly into politics. He was killed just because he was my aide."

The leader, who won both Nandigram as well as Bhabanipur seat, beating Mamata Banerjee by over 15,000 votes in the latter following a highly polarised campaign, has also said Rath would not have been killed, had he lost.

Meanwhile, the TMC strongly condemned the "brutal murder" of Rath. In a statement, the party also protested the killing of three of its workers in post-poll violence allegedly by BJP-backed miscreants.

It demanded the strictest action, including a CBI probe under court supervision, to identify and punish those involved quickly. "There is no place for violence and political killings in a democracy," the statement read.

Who Was Chandranath Rath?

Back at Rath's home in Madhyamgram, his mother Hasi Rath, grieving her son's death, wants the culprits to get life imprisonment—not the death penalty. "I am also a mother. I don't want anyone else's lap to be empty," she tells The Quint.

Chandranath Rath's ancestral home is in Chandipur. After studying at Rahara Ramakrishna Mission, he joined the Indian Air Force. He took voluntary retirement and worked with the conglomerate, Future Group.

His mother Hasi was once a Panchayat Samiti chairperson and is now with the BJP. It was through her that Adhikari met Rath. He gradually became one of Adhikari's closest aides, and was appointed his personal assistant in 2019.

Rath was an active member of the special team that worked for Adhikari during the Bhabanipur bypoll, especially in campaigning.

Rath's body was taken to Barasat Medical College and Hospital morgue on Wednesday night, and later to Chandipur. Adhikari has assured that every demand of Rath's family will be met.

Trail of Unsolved Cases

Rath isn't the first. From 2013 to 2026, four of Adhikari’s close associates including Nath have died under suspicious circumstances, according to reports.

On 3 August 2013, when Adikari was the TMC MP from Tamluk, his political secretary and personal assistant Pradeep Jha, and known as the leader's "political brain", died under mysterious circumstances. While his family has since cried foul, so far, no final chargesheet has been filed in the case and and no culprit has been identified.

Exactly five years later, in 2018, Adhikari's personal security officer Shubhrata Chakraborty died after being shot. It was initially reported that the bullet came from his own service revolver, and police closed the case labelling it a "suicide".

But soon after Adhikari joined the BJP, Chakraborty's widow Suparna Chakraborty filed a fresh complaint in the case, alleging that her her husband was the target of "a well-planned murder".

Yet another case rocked Adhikari's office the same year when one of his most trsuted lieutenants during the high-voltage 2021 Nandigram battle, Pulak Lahiri, was found dead soon after Adhikari won the seat. Lahiri had accompanied Adhikari when he joined the BJP. Unlike the deaths of Jha or Chakraborty, no clear police report or FIR regarding Lahiri's death has ever come to light and the circumstances of his death remain unclear to this day.

Litmus Test for Suvendu and BJP

Questioning the opacity and lack of investigative findings in these cases, CPI(M) leader Dipankar Bhattacharya tells The Quint, "No matter which party Adhikari belongs to, these deaths and mysteries never get resolved."

"The deaths of Pulak Lahiri and Chandranath Rath occurred immediately after Suvendu’s major political victories. These are all people closest to him—those who knew his most confidential matters. Adhikari is in the epicentre of power for a long. He shall peruse a holistic probe of four murders."

Dipankar Bhattacharya

Adhikari himself has stated that he will ensure there is no delay in delivering justice in Rath's case, unlike in the Abhaya rape incident.

Was the incident, just before the crucial phase of government formation, meant to create an obstacle in Adhikari’s political ascent? Some analysts feel that the BJP is likely to downplay the incident for now. A big victory has come and the BJP does not want to get entangled in any fresh controversy now.

"This was not an ordinary political clash rather a planned attack. In such a situation, without identifying the real culprit, blatantly blaming TMC or vandalising their party offices and beating up leaders can pose a serious risk to the law and order situation in the state. Since the BJP is now the ruling party, it is it's main responsibility to maintain peace and order in the state," political analyst Zaad Mahmood noted.

When the BJP campaigned against TMC, their main complaints were administrative inefficiency, corruption and politicisation of the administration. In contrast, they promised the people transparent and good governance, Mahmood said.

"Now, after coming to power for the first time with a huge mandate, indulding in violence would go against the promises made by Narendra Modi or Amit Shah. So they need to be much more responsible."

Zaad Mahmood

Others believe this incident will make him even more indispensable. Defeating Mamata Banerjee twice in elections is proof of Adhikari's political acumen. This achievement has put him ahead of others in the race, but he has also paid a heavy price. From 2021 to 2025, he was embroiled in countless cases. The killing of his close aide Rath has become the latest addition to his "sacrifices".

Those who had doubts about his leadership because he once came from TMC will now have no questions left. The incident is also a litmus test for the BJP. How the party handles the incident could give a preview to its future course in Bengal.

Adhikari's response is telling. Outside the hospital where Rath was brought, Adhikari told the media,

"No one should take the law into their own hands. I urge everyone to maintain peace. We will take responsibility so that this doesn't become another unsolved case like Abhaya's."