Chandranath Rath, the personal assistant to senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Suvendu Adhikari, was shot dead on Wednesday in what appears to be a targeted assassination amid escalating post-poll unrest in West Bengal.
The incident occurred in Madhyamgram, located in the state’s North 24 Parganas district, just two days after the BJP secured a historic landslide victory in the West Bengal assembly elections, reports NDTV.
The BJP, with Adhikari serving as its de-facto face in the state, achieved its first-ever majority by winning 207 of the 293 contested seats.
The ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) was reduced to 80 constituencies. Adhikari himself retained his incumbent seat of Nandigram and successfully wrested the Bhabanipur constituency from Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
Despite the electoral outcome, Banerjee has refused to accept the verdict, alleging that at least 100 seats were “stolen” through the manipulation of electronic voting machines. At a press briefing on Tuesday, the TMC supremo declared, “I will not resign. I have not lost the election.”
The assassination of Rath follows a wave of violence reported across the state since the declaration of results, despite the presence of central security forces. The political atmosphere remains highly charged, with both major parties trading accusations.
The TMC has alleged that BJP supporters are targeting its workers, while the BJP has accused the TMC of orchestrating the disturbances.
BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra dismissed allegations of BJP-led violence, asserting that the party does not resort to such tactics after electoral victories.
He further claimed that TMC cadres were attempting to tarnish the BJP’s reputation by wearing the party’s scarves and carrying its flags while carrying out acts of arson.
Characterising the TMC’s alleged actions as a product of “frustration” following their defeat, Patra noted that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has specifically called upon BJP workers to shun revenge politics and focus instead on the state’s development.
