‘Targeted attack?’ TMC block chief arrested as CBI probes murder of Suvendu Adhikari’s aide

The political temperature in West Bengal continued to rise on Friday after police arrested Shubhankar De, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) president of Cooch Behar-2 block, in connection with the alleged attack on the convoy of Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari.

De was arrested by Pundibari police as part of an ongoing investigation into the violent incident that has intensified the confrontation between the TMC and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state.

Along with him, a TMC panchayat member, a former deputy chief of a gram panchayat, and three others were also arrested in the case.

According to police sources, a total of 41 individuals have been named in the FIR linked to the alleged convoy attack.

The list reportedly includes former West Bengal minister Udayan Guha and TMC district president Abhijit De Bhowmik, among several other senior Trinamool Congress leaders.

The latest arrests come at a time when West Bengal is witnessing escalating political violence in the aftermath of the elections, with both the BJP and TMC accusing each other of intimidation, attacks, and targeted killings.

The attack on Adhikari’s convoy has gained additional political significance following the recent murder of his close aide and personal assistant Chandranath Rath, who was shot dead by unidentified assailants in the Madhyamgram area of North 24 Parganas district on May 6.

Rath, considered one of Adhikari’s most trusted associates, was allegedly attacked by bike-borne gunmen late at night amid growing post-poll unrest in the state.

He sustained critical injuries in the firing and was rushed to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

The killing triggered massive outrage within the BJP, with party leaders accusing the ruling dispensation of failing to control political violence in the state.

The incident soon snowballed into a major political flashpoint, prompting demands for a central investigation.

Following a request from the West Bengal government, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has now taken over the probe into Rath’s murder.

The agency has re-registered the FIR initially filed by Madhyamgram police and has begun an independent investigation into the high-profile killing.

A team of CBI officials has already visited West Bengal as part of the preliminary phase of the probe.

Investigators are expected to examine possible political links, conspiracy angles, and interstate criminal involvement in the murder.

Earlier, West Bengal Police had arrested three accused in connection with the case following coordinated raids in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.

The arrested men were identified as Mayank Raj Mishra, Vicky Maurya, and Raj Singh.

Mayank Raj Mishra and Vicky Maurya were detained from Bihar’s Buxar district, while Raj Singh was arrested from Ballia in Uttar Pradesh.

Police suspect the attackers may have been hired assailants, though investigators have yet to establish the full motive behind the killing.

The twin developments, the arrests in the convoy attack case and the CBI probe into Rath’s murder, have further sharpened the political battle in West Bengal, with the BJP alleging systematic targeting of opposition leaders and the TMC dismissing the accusations as politically motivated.