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Naba Das murder case: SIT questions elder brother of accused ASI
The eatery which was started by the ASI and his elder brother near Gandhi square (where the murder happened) a month ago, was mysteriously shut on Sunday morning
The special investigation team (SIT) probing the murder of Odisha health minister Naba Kishore Das by a police assistant sub-inspector on Sunday continued for the second day with officials trying to find whether the elder brother of the accused who ran an eatery near the murder spot knew about his plans.
The SIT of state CID picked up Satya Narayan Das, elder brother of accused ASI Gopal Krushna Das from Berhampur town of Ganjam district after it was found that the eatery which he ran in Brajarajnagar town of Jharsuguda was shut down on Sunday morning.
“The eatery which was started by elder brother of Das near Gandhi square (where the murder happened) a month ago, was mysteriously shut on Sunday morning. The ASI and his elder brother had started it after taking it on rent. As it was shut down on Sunday, we are trying to find if the elder brother knew about his younger brother’s devious plans,” said a member of SIT. The ASI ran a small eatery when he was posted in Kolabira block of Jharsuguda earlier, but had shut it down.
Also Read: Odisha health minister shot dead, accused cop arrested
Das, who was arrested and interrogated for a day first by the local police and SIT, was remanded to judicial custody on Monday evening after a court in Jharsuguda did not allow the police prayer for 7-day remand. The SIT hopes further interrogation of the ASI after taking him on remand would throw light on the motive of the crime.
“We are also trying to find out whether more people were involved or Das planned and executed the murder on his own,” said the officer.
The SIT on Tuesday put a FARO 3-D scanner on the murder spot to create photorealistic 3D representations that will help the team recreate the murder.
Laser beams from the machine will provide the geometry of the area that would be interpreted into 3D data. The car used by the minister was throughly inspected and the CCTV footage from nearby the spot verified.
Meanwhile, one of the eyewitnesses of the Sunday murder said he had spoken to the ASI some 15 minutes before the crime.
Subhendu Patnaik, an associate of the minister, said the ASI spoke to him for few minutes before the minister arrived.
“Soon after Naba Das arrived, he started pushing me saying he wanted to go near the minister. The moment the minister opened the door and started getting garlanded, the ASI pushed his hand close to the minister and fired within two feet of his chest. As people were beating drums, we could not know for first few seconds till the minister said he has been shot and slumped near the car door,” said Patnaik.
In another development, the state government transferred Jharsuguda SP Rahul Jain and Brajarajnagar SDPO Gupteswar Bhoi amid criticism that district police did not take into account the mental health of cops while giving them firearms.
Jain and Bhoi were transferred to state police headquarters.
Soon after Das killed the minister, his wife as well as a doctor claimed that he suffered from bipolar disorder for nearly a decade.
State Congress leader Panchanan Kanungo said the ASI may have been part of a larger conspiracy.
“If he suffered from bipolar disorder, how was he allowed to stay in police service. Did anyone use him to bump off the minister? Most importantly who had deployed the ASI on Sunday during the minister’s programme,” he asked.
State BJP president Samir Mohanty said though the CID has been entrusted to probe several sensitive cases, it has failed to deliver. We demand the Odisha government to hand over the responsibility of investigation to CBI without delay as there is every possibility to create a path to destroy evidence,” he said.
BJP MLA and leader of opposition Jayanarayan Mishra alleged that though the minister had died on the spot, a drama was enacted by taking him to hospital.
“Firstly, had the Jharsuguda hospital authorities certified that the patient was in a condition to be moved to elsewhere for further treatment? According to my information, Naba Kishore Das had died on the spot. I don’t understand why the drama of his treatment was enacted throughout the day,” Mishra asked.
“If a minister is not safe in the state, how can the government guarantee the safety of its people? Why is the DG silent over the issue?”
However, BJD said BJP was trying to politicise the issue.
“It is a sensitive issue and needs to be dealt with care. But BJP wants to play low level politics,” said BJD leader Srimayee Mishra.
