An eyewitness to the killing of BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari’s close aide Chandranath Rath claimed the attack appeared “pre-planned”, saying a bike-borne assailant fired at point-blank range. The witness said the shooter appeared “like an expert” and fled immediately after opening fire.

Adhikari's close aide Chandranath Rath was shot dead in the North 24 Parganas district on Wednesday night. According to preliminary information, Rath was intercepted near Doltala in Madhyamgram around 10.30 pm by motorcycle-borne assailants who tailed his vehicle, forced it to stop and opened fire before fleeing.

"Just as Chandra's car crossed mine, it suddenly stopped mid-way, and a bike-borne person came and started shooting on the left side of the car. The person seemed to be an expert. He fled immediately. It seemed that this was pre-planned. The shots were fired at point-blank range," an eyewitness was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

"I heard the sound of 2 rounds. This incident occurred between 10.30 PM and 11 PM. The incident occurred 200-300 metres from the hospital. The public brought the victim to the hospital, and the driver of the car was also shot..." he added.

Suvendu Adhikari called it a pre-planned attack, alleging that the killers had conducted a recce before carrying out the attack.

"This is a cold-blooded murder. The DGP has assured that they will investigate the matter. The way the attack was executed clearly suggests that the assailants had done a recce beforehand," the BJP leader said.

While Suvendu blamed the "15 years of Mahajungle Raj in Bengal," the outgoing Trinamool Congress (TMC) condemned Nath's killing, saying that three of the party's workers were also killed in post-poll violence.

“We demand the strongest possible action in this matter, including a court-monitored CBI investigation so that those responsible are identified and brought to justice without delay. Violence and political killings have no place in a democracy and the guilty must be held accountable at the earliest," the party said.

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Apoorva Shukla is a journalist at Times Now, where she thrives on dissecting political developments both at home and abroad. A graduate of Delhi Univ...View More

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