 has formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by Deputy Inspector General Pankaj Kumar Singh){kind=link}
The CBI has constituted a special investigation team to probe the murder of Chandranath Rath
May 12, 2026: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by Deputy Inspector General Pankaj Kumar Singh to investigate the murder of Chandranath Rath, a close aide of West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. Officials said the probe would focus on possible interstate links and a larger conspiracy behind the killing. The agency has already taken over the FIR registered earlier by the West Bengal Police and has begun examining all case-related documents.
According to officials, the seven-member SIT is currently taking custody of three accused — Mayank Raj Mishra and Vicky Maurya from Bihar, and Raj Singh from Uttar Pradesh. Investigators suspect Raj Singh to be the main contract killer involved in the case and said he is allegedly linked to multiple murder cases in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. The SIT, along with forensic experts, has also visited the crime scene in North 24 Parganas district to recreate the sequence of events.
Chandranath Rath, a former Indian Air Force serviceman, was shot dead inside his SUV on May 6 while returning home in the Madhyamgram area. His driver, Buddhadeb Bera, sustained bullet injuries and remains hospitalised, while another passenger escaped unharmed. Police said the attackers chased Rath’s vehicle for nearly seven kilometres before intercepting it and opening fire. The murder triggered sharp political reactions, with BJP leaders accusing the Trinamool Congress of involvement, while the TMC itself demanded a CBI investigation into the incident.