Madhyanagar: Chandranath Rath, the man who travelled a long path from serving in the Indian Air Force to being the most trusted aides in political associates lost his life in West Bengal’s North 24 Paragnas district by being shot dead.
Rath was 41 years old and hailed from Chandipur in Purba Medinipur district. His turning point emerged with the rise of Suvendhu Adhikari in Bengal Politics, sources said.
Soft-spoken and low-profile, he mainly remained away from the mainstream politics despite being a part of Ashikarui’s inner circle for years.
Before stepping in active political organisational work, Rath had spent nearly two decades in the Indian Air Force. He completed his studies from Rahara Ramakrishna Mission.
People familiar to him said he had once considered a spiritual life and was deeply influenced by the Ramakrishna Mission while he was studying.
After taking voluntary retirement from the air force, he briefly worked in the corporate sector before getting into the politics and administrative responsibilities.
VIDEO | Barasat: BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari’s close aide Chandranath Rath’s mortal remains being taken out of Government Medical College Hospital morgue.
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Advocate Somraj Bandyopadhyay says, “It will around two hours (postmortem). We have got the information that five bullets… pic.twitter.com/UKAhYwLe2x
His Family similar to that of Adhikari’s had earlier been associated with the Trinamool Congress.
His mother Hasi Rath had held a position in a local panchayat body in Purba Medinipur during the TMC years before shifting allegiance to the BJP in 2020.
Family acquaintances said the link between the Rath family and Adhikari went back more than two decades to the early years when the TMC was proliferating in Purba Medinipur.
Then in 2019, Rath officially became a part of Adhikari’s team, when Mamata Banerjee was serving as Chief Minister in Bengal.
Initially he held Adhikari’s ministerial office and then later on he crossed over Adhikari’s saffron campaign.
Gradually, Rath emerged as a key figure in Adhikari’s political operations such as coordinating organisational work, handling logistics, and bridging communications among the party workers.
BJP insiders described him as someone who dearly enjoyed working with Adhikari and was often seen as a part of his sensitive assignments in connection with campaign management and political coordination.
The speculation suggests that Rath could have been entrusted with a larger administrative role if Adhikari would become the Chief Minister of West Bengal.
Now, those discussions have no meaning as on Wednesday night when motorcycle-borne assailants allegedly intercepted his vehicle near Madhyagram’s Doharia area, opened fire at close range which led to his demise.
His killing has triggered sharp political reactions in Bengal and intense volatile atmosphere following the elections.
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