Naba Das Murder Accused Gopal Being Shifted To Odisha’s Choudwar Jail

Jharsuguda: Dismissed Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Gopal Das, accused of murdering Odisha Health Minister Naba Das on January 29, was being sent to Choudwar Circle Jail from Jharsuguda due to security reasons.

Sources said the Prisons department had requested the Court of Jharsuguda JMFC to allow shifting of the accused to the Choudwar Circle Jail citing security reasons. The process for his shifting started after the jail department obtained a permission from the court.

Before being taken to Choudwar, Gopal Das was produced before the JMFC court in Jharsuguda amid tight security. Following the court’s permission, his shifting from Jharsuguda jail was undertaken, they said.

The statement of the accused was also reportedly recorded under Section 164 of CrPC.

Earlier, Jail DG had approved the proposal to shift the accused out of Jharsuguda sub-jail, where he was lodged after returning to Odisha following polygraph and narco-analysis tests at the Directorate of Forensic Sciences at Gandhinagar in Gujarat on Friday and Saturday.

The jail authorities had then appealed to the Jharsuguda Court to allow the transfer.

As Gopal’s third phase remand ended on Monday, was produced before the JMFC court in Jharsuguda the same day. Thereafter, he was sent to the sub-jail.

According to the lie-detection and narco-analysis tests, Gopal had claimed that he skipped his medicines, which were subscribed to treat his bipolar disorder, for over two months to build up his anger against Naba, whom he considered to be highly corrupt.