3 held from UP, Bihar in Suvendu Adhikari aide murder case, lawyer claims illegal detention

KOLKATA: Five days after the murder of Chandranath Rath, the personal assistant of Suvendu Adhikari, by gunmen, barely 170 metres from his Madhyamgram residence, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the case and camping in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar has nabbed three persons in connection with the incident. One of the accused has been identified as the sharpshooter.

All three accused were brought to Kolkata by late Sunday night and produced before a Barasat court on Monday. The court has sent the accused to police custody till May 24.

"Three suspects have so far been arrested in connection with the gruesome murder of Chandranath Rath on May 6 at Madhyamgram. Based on specific leads, two persons — Mayank Raj Mishra and Vicky Maurya — were detained from Buxar in Bihar. A third accused, Raj Singh, was detained from Ballia (UP) on Sunday. On subsequent interrogation, all three were arrested this morning by Madhyamgram PS," said a press release issued by CID.

Sources claimed that Raj has been identified as the possible sharpshooter, though cops stated further investigation is required to establish the same.

The investigators refused to define the role of the accused in the murder or identify the masterminds. "Nothing can be revealed till we question the accused further," said a top officer.

In the Barasat court, special public prosecutor Bivas Chatterjee informed the court that the accused had come to the city through Bally Nivedita Setu and had paid toll using UPI. This payment was made using the SIM card of one of the accused. However, this SIM card was used from the phone of another person. "However, we got a registered mobile number linked to the UPI payment and have used the lead to nab the accused," said Chatterjee.

The police also moved the court to add BNS Section 238 (destruction of evidence) to the case.

Mobile tower data collected at the time of the incident revealed two numbers from Uttar Pradesh.

According to sources, shooter Raj from Ballia was reportedly detained in Ayodhya. Bengal Police Special Task Force ASP Sanjay Verma said that Raj Singh was caught near Ayodhya Highway in a joint operation by Ayodhya Police and Bengal STF and that his criminal record is being scrutinised.

Raj Singh's lawyer, Harivant Singh, also alleged illegal detention and claimed no proper transit remand had initially been obtained. Addressing reporters at Ballia District Court, the lawyer said CCTV footage showed Raj Singh at his home on April 4, 5 and 6 and maintained that his client had no connection with the Kolkata murder case.

The Bengal STF also questioned Vishal Srivastava, a criminal from Buxar who is facing more than 22 criminal cases. He was later released after investigators found no direct link to the murder case.