The man who handled much of the back-office work for Suvendu Adhikari during the Bengal elections was remembered on Thursday by friends and party colleagues as “soft-spoken”, “dependable” and “meticulous”.
Chandranath Rath, 42, was shot on Wednesday night while travelling in a Mahindra Scorpio. At least two bullets hit him in the chest as he sat in the front seat beside the driver.
He had managed Suvendu’s election expenses in Nandigram and Bhabanipur during the Assembly polls.
Rath studied at Rahara Ramakrishna Mission, around 25km north of central Calcutta, and had earlier served in the Indian Air Force.
Originally from Chandipur in East Midnapore, Rath lived with his parents and brother until his father died in 2024.
Sources said he had been staying in an apartment in Madhyamgram over the past few years for professional convenience.
One of Rath’s childhood friends said he had always wanted to “serve the nation” and joined the air force to fulfil that ambition. “He was a bright student and did very well in school. Joining the air force was his long-cherished dream,” the friend said.
After taking voluntary retirement from the air force, Rath came in contact with Suvendu, then a Trinamool Congress MLA from Nandigram. When Suvendu quit the Trinamool and joined the BJP in 2020, Rath also switched political allegiance.
Although known for keeping a “low-profile” in the BJP, party workers described him as the “go-to” person for matters related to Suvendu, from maintaining records to handling finances.
A BJP leader from south Calcutta described Rath as “caring and compassionate towards party karyakartas” and someone adept at handling legal matters involving party workers.
“I remember how Chandra da ran around to secure bail for us when we were arrested during the Nabanna Abhiyan earlier this year. We were all taken to Lalbazar. On
Dada’s (Suvendu’s) instructions, he (Rath) did all the legwork to get us out,” another BJP leader from south Calcutta said.
BJP workers recalled that Rath spoke “softly” and was approachable, never letting
on the “power he actually wielded”.
“Whenever we needed to meet Dada (Suvendu), we would call Chandra da. He would speak to all of us. Despite his proximity to the power centre, he never made anyone feel small,” a BJP functionary said.
At her home in Chandipur, East Midnapore, Rath’s mother Hasirani Rath accused the Trinamool of being behind the killing.
“My son had documents related to TMC’s corruption and scams. He had worked during the elections too.
They took revenge because they lost Nandigram and Bhabanipur,” she said on Thursday.
Some BJP supporters echoed the allegation. “Chandra da was targeted because he knew too much about TMC scams and corruption. He had documents related to those cases,” a party functionary alleged.
Rath’s body was taken to his Chandipur home on Thursday evening after the post-mortem.