The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) carried out searches at multiple locations on Saturday in connection with the murder of Chandrakant Rath, an aide to West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, officials confirmed. The searches commenced late Friday night and extended into the early hours of Saturday.
The agency recently took over the investigation into Rath's murder from the West Bengal Police following a request from the state government. A seven-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been constituted, headed by a Deputy Inspector General (DIG) from the CBI's Special Crime unit in Delhi. The SIT comprises experienced investigators from various wings of the agency and will function under the supervision of the Joint Director in Kolkata.
Rath, who served as executive assistant to Adhikari, was shot dead on May 6 in Madhyamgram, just two days after the results of the closely contested West Bengal assembly elections were announced. The attack occurred on a public road in the Doharia area of Madhyamgram.
State police had earlier arrested three individuals in connection with the case. Two accused, Mayank Raj Mishra and Vicky Maurya, were apprehended in Bihar's Buxar district, while the third accused, Raj Singh, was detained from Ballia in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday. According to police, at least eight people were allegedly involved in planning and executing the murder. Investigators suspect the attackers conducted extensive surveillance before targeting Rath.
