CBI arrests another accused from UP in murder case of WB CM aide

The CBI has arrested a 35-year-old man from Uttar Pradesh's Ballia in connection with the murder of Chandranath Rath, an associate of West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari.

The CBI has arrested another accused from Uttar Pradesh's Ballia in connection with the murder of Chandranath Rath, an associate of West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, officials said on Thursday.

The accused, identified as Naveen Kumar Singh (35), a resident of Thamhanpura village under the Phephna Police Station area in Ballia, was arrested, they said.

In a joint operation with the Uttar Pradesh Police, the CBI arrested Singh following specific inputs about his alleged involvement in Rath's murder in West Bengal on May 6, officials mentioned.

The CBI believes that the arms recovered from Singh could have been used in the sensational murder, two days after the election results were declared in West Bengal, where the BJP has trounced the ruling TMC government.

The firearms have been sent for forensic examination to determine their involvement in the crime, officials informed.

In a related development, the CBI moved a plea in a West Bengal court to release Raj Singh, who was previously arrested in Ballia by the West Bengal Special Investigation Team (SIT) that was investigating the case earlier.

The CBI had nabbed ''real'' Raj Kumar Singh, also known as Raj Singh, in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh.

According to officials, the STF team from the Varanasi unit reached Ballia on May 19 and launched a search operation that led to the recovery of a cache of arms and ammunition from Naveen's possession.

Following the seizure, an FIR under relevant provisions of the Arms Act was registered at the Phephna Police Station on Wednesday on a complaint lodged by STF inspector Anil Kumar Singh.

During interrogation, Naveen allegedly told investigators that Gyanendra Pratap Singh alias Mannu, a known criminal from Ballia, had met him on May 7 along with two others identified as Raj Kumar Singh and Golu Singh.

Naveen allegedly claimed that Mannu later handed him a bag containing firearms.

Officials said Naveen led the STF team to a car showroom along a national highway, from where the bag containing the weapons was recovered. Three pistols, two revolvers, 45 live cartridges of .32 bore, three empty shells and a mobile phone were seized from the spot, police said.

According to police, one of the recovered pistols was manufactured in the United States.

Officials said Raj Kumar Singh has already been arrested from Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh in connection with the murder case, while Mannu and Golu Singh remain absconding.

CBI officials had previously visited Mannu's residence in Ballia as part of their investigation. Naveen was later produced before a local court in Ballia, which remanded him to judicial custody and sent him to Mau jail, according to the police.

Chandranath Rath was shot dead at point-blank range in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district on May 6, triggering political reactions and tension in the area.