The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has formally registered an FIR in the murder case of Chandranath Rath, personal assistant to West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, nearly a week after he was shot near Madhyamgram in North 24 Parganas.
Rath, a former Indian Air Force serviceman, was attacked late on the night of May 6 and later died during treatment. With the case now shifting from the West Bengal Police to the CBI, investigators have widened the scope of the probe by invoking charges related to organised crime and criminal conspiracy under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
The agency stepped in after parallel notifications were issued by the West Bengal government and the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), Government of India. Re-registering the matter as a regular case, the CBI invoked provisions including Section 103(1) dealing with murder, Section 61(1) linked to criminal conspiracy, and Section 111(2)(a) concerning organised crime, apart from provisions under the Arms Act.
Victim’s brother alleged a planned conspiracy
According to the FIR, the case has been registered on the basis of a complaint filed by Rath’s brother, who alleged that the killing was carried out through a “professional and highly organised conspiracy” involving multiple unidentified individuals.
Subhash Chander Kundu, Superintendent of Police with the CBI’s Special Crime unit in New Delhi, has been appointed as the investigation officer in the case.
On Tuesday, teams from the CBI and the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) visited the crime scene at Madhyamgram as part of the ongoing investigation.
A CBI official, while speaking to ANI at the spot, said, “We are doing our work,” but declined to share further details related to the probe.
Three accused sent to police custody till May 24
Meanwhile, three accused arrested in connection with the case have been remanded to police custody till May 24.
The accused, identified as Mayank Raj Mishra, Vicky Maurya and Raj Singh, were arrested from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
Public Prosecutor Advocate Bivas Chatterjee said the prosecution had also sought the inclusion of charges related to the destruction of evidence, which the court later accepted.
“Three persons have been arrested, and the court has sent them to police custody till May 24, i.e., 13 days of police custody. We also sought the addition of the section relating to the destruction of evidence, which has been added by the court,” Chatterjee told reporters.