Personal aide to West Bengal chief minister-elect shot dead amid post-poll violence

Chandranath Rath, personal assistant to Suvendu Adhikari, was shot dead on Wednesday night while he was in a car on his way home. Adhikari is the front-runner to become West Bengal's new chief minister after the BJP's victory in the state election. At least three people have been killed in West Bengal since Monday when election results were announced.

Police arrested more than 400 people in connection with incidents of violence and intimidation before Rath's death, according to West Bengal police. The BJP won the West Bengal state election, ending 15 years of rule by Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress. The BJP secured 207 seats out of 294 in the West Bengal state polls.

Suvendu Adhikari defeated Mamata Banerjee from the Bhabanipur constituency. The state's new chief minister is expected to be sworn in on Saturday. Police found a car that was used in the crime but its licence plate number was incorrect, West Bengal police said.

Police found live rounds and fired cartridges from the spot where Chandranath Rath was killed, Siddh Nath Gupta, West Bengal police chief, stated. A witness told media that the shot was fired by a person on a motorcycle. Adhikari called the death heartwrenching.

"This is a cold-blooded murder," he told reporters. The TMC strongly condemned the killing of Chandranath Rath. The party stated that violence and political killings have no place in a democracy and the guilty must be held accountable at the earliest.

The TMC demanded a court-monitored investigation into Rath's killing. Both BJP and TMC have claimed that their workers have been killed in post-poll violence.

Police have not confirmed the party affiliations of the two victims other than Rath, according to West Bengal police. Sukanta Majumdar, a junior federal minister, stated that as soon as our chief minister takes the oath and our government assumes power, everything will be set right though it may take a little time.

Samik Bhattacharya, state party chief of BJP in West Bengal, stated that the BJP did not support any act of violence. A senior police officer told PTI that there was a meeting in the market to celebrate the BJP's victory but that no untoward incident had taken place.

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar issued directives to monitor law and order in West Bengal and take immediate action in case of violence or vandalism, a senior police officer told the BBC.

BBC News reported that violence is not uncommon in West Bengal after elections, with clashes often breaking out between rival party workers. Tensions had been high in the state for weeks ahead of the vote. The BJP has conducted victory rallies across the state since Monday, with supporters chanting slogans of 'Jai Shree Ram'.

Visuals of arson and vandalism have emerged from districts including Murshidabad, Birbhum, Kolkata and Howrah since the results. The TMC has accused BJP workers of vandalising and setting fire to some of its party offices. The BJP has denied this.

The party also faced accusations from the TMC of bringing a bulldozer to demolish meat shops in a famous market in Kolkata. A senior police officer told the BBC on Wednesday that the police and district administration had received the directives from Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

BBC News reported that the state's recurring election violence stems from its entrenched "party society" in which party affiliation became embedded in daily rural life and livelihoods.