Car used in Suvendu Adhikari's aide murder purchased in Ballia: Police

A Nissan Micra car linked to the murder of Chandranath Rath, aide to West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, was purchased in Ballia and later sold to a key suspect.

The car used in the murder of Chandranath Rath, aide of West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, was purchased in Ballia, police and eyewitnesses said on Thursday.

The development comes as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) have been intensifying raids in several areas of the district to trace Ballia-based Gyanendra Pratap Singh, one of the key figures in the murder, who has been absconding since the incident.

Superintendent of Police Omveer Singh said the CBI was probing the matter and that local police have no information about the agency's ongoing investigation.

Amid the probe, a resident of Phulwaria village under Bansdih Road police station limits, Jitendra Singh, claimed that a man identified as Mitthu, alias Deepak, had purchased a Nissan Micra car through him for Rs 35,000 in October last year. He alleged that the same vehicle was later sold on May 1 to Gyanendra Pratap, alias Mannu, for Rs 50,000.

Jitendra told reporters that a CBI team had visited his house recently and questioned him regarding the vehicle. He said he had fully cooperated with the investigators and shared all the information available to them.

Meanwhile, a CCTV clip circulating on social media purportedly showed a CBI team conducting a raid at the residence of Gyanendra Pratap in Sheetal Davni village under the Bansdih Road police station area. However, Mannu was not found during the raid.

Bansdih Road police station SHO Vansh Bahadur Singh confirmed on Thursday that the CBI had conducted a raid at Mannu's residence in recent days, but he was absconding. The officer said no family members were present at the house, and all relatives were also missing.

According to police, Gyanendra Pratap has around 12 criminal cases, including murder and attempt to murder, registered against him in Ballia district. A criminal case is also registered against him in Chhattisgarh.

Investigators are also probing links between Mannu and Raj Kumar Singh, alias Raj Singh, who was arrested recently in Muzaffarnagar in connection with the murder case. Photographs purportedly showing the two together have surfaced on social media.

The developments come days after the Uttar Pradesh STF arrested alleged criminal Naveen Kumar Singh from Ballia district in connection with the case.

Acting on inputs shared by the CBI, the STF recovered a cache of arms and ammunition, including pistols, revolvers, and cartridges, from his possession.

During interrogation, Naveen allegedly told STF officials that Mannu had met him on May 7 along with Raj Kumar Singh and another associate identified as Golu Singh, and handed him a bag containing firearms. Police said the accused subsequently led STF personnel to a car showroom along a national highway from where the weapons were recovered.

Raj Kumar has already been arrested in the case, while Gyanendra Pratap and Golu Singh remain absconding.

Chandranath Rath was shot dead at point-blank range in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district on May 6, before the election results, triggering political tension and a multi-state investigation involving the CBI, STF, and the West Bengal Police.