A multi-state manhunt is underway as a special investigation team (SIT) claimed to have made a technical breakthrough that shifted the needle of the probe to Jharkhand, even as cops are questioning three men in Uttar Pradesh's Badaun with regard to the murder of Chandranath Rath. A close aide of chief minister Suvendu Adhikari, Rath was gunned down in Madhyamgram's Dohariya area on the night of May 6, barely 170 metres from his residence.
The investigators traced a technical trail — a UPI payment made at a toll plaza on Nivedita Setu on May 6 — leading them to Jharkhand. Cops now say that the car used to commit the murder might actually have been procured from Jharkhand. Cops yet again suggested that the murder was a meticulously planned operation involving inter-state criminal networks. Sources close to the investigation revealed on Sunday that the primary vehicle used in the ambush — a silver-colour hatchback fitted with a fake north Bengal number plate — was traced back to Jharkhand.
Sources have claimed that a critical lead emerged when the investigators discovered that the assailants had paid the toll at Bally using an UPI transaction rather than cash or FASTag. This digital footprint allowed the SIT to track the vehicle's movement as it passed the toll plaza and headed to Kolkata. While several individuals have been detained for questioning across Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha and Jharkhand, the police admit they are still piecing together evidence to formalise arrests.
The assassination, which investigators believe was planned weeks in advance, was executed with military-style precision. On Wednesday night, Rath's vehicle was intercepted and blocked by another car, forcing it to a halt. Two assailants on motorcycles then pulled up alongside and opened fire at close range, targeting both Rath and his driver, Buddhadeb Bera. Rath was declared dead on arrival at the hospital, while Bera remains in critical condition in a hospital intensive care unit.
Following the incident, the police recovered the car and two motorcycles used in the attack—one found near the Kolkata airport and the second discovered on Friday near Barasat Rail Gates 11 and 12. All three vehicles were found with fake number plates, a deliberate move intended to mislead technical surveillance.
The probe has now expanded significantly beyond state borders. One SIT contingent has travelled to Uttar Pradesh following the identification of suspicious mobile numbers active in the area during the planning phase. Three youths have already been questioned in the Badaun and Sambhal districts of UP, though their identities remain undisclosed as officers verify their links to the conspiracy. Simultaneously, another team is coordinating with the Odisha Police to investigate potential escape routes or local logistical support. Investigators are also searching for a red hatchback suspected of being part of the wider operation, which is also believed to have been stolen from outside the state to further obscure the trail.
