The bike-borne assailants, who shot Suvendu Adhikari's aide Chandranath Rath, at point-blank range, used a stolen two-wheeler, the latest investigation has revealed.
Seated in the front passenger seat of his Mahindra Scorpio, Rath was on his way home when the bikers blocked his car and rained bullets upon him before fleeing. Visuals showed that the left front window of the car cracked with bullet holes.
The incident took place on Wednesday night, between 10 and 10:10, less than 200 metres away from Rath's home in North 24 Parganas' Madhyamgram.
The initial investigation has revealed that the bike used in the crime bears a West Bengal registration number 'WB44D1990', registered in the name of one Vibhash Kumar Bhattacharya. The bike was registered on May 4, 2012, with validity active till May 2, 2027.
On Thursday, when the police visited the address listed for Vibhash, they found no trace of him. The residence is occupied by one Dharamvir, a government employee. Dharamvir claimed to have been residing there since 2014 and stated that he does not know anyone named Vibhash.
The bike used by the attackers was also not present at the location.
Today, the police managed to trace the original bike owner, who, according to sources, informed investigators that his bike had been stolen.
Chandranath Rath's Mother Blames Trinamool's "Gundagardi"
"I hold the TMC responsible, it's their gundagardi, they are behind this," Chandranath Rath's mother Hasirani Rath said in an interview with NDTV.
Hasirani Rath, who learned about the accident through news, said she does not want the accused to be given death sentence. Instead, she demanded life imprisonment for the gunmen.
"My son is gone. I want justice for my son; I want the new government to ensure my son gets justice. I don't want the perpetrators to be given the death sentence. I just want them to be given life imprisonment. I am also a mother, I don't want any other child to die," she said.
Hasirani pinned her hopes on the new government to catch and punish her son's perpetrators.
"I am grateful to Suvendu Adhikari. He took my son under his wings and he has done a lot for us," she added.
Suvendu Adhikari has called the killing of Rath a "pre-planned" and "cold-blooded murder" which showcases the "15 years of Maha-Jungle Raj." He believes that the gunmen carried out a "recce for two to three days."
A special investigative team has been set up to investigate the murder.
(With inputs from Mohan Singh)
