Odisha Minister Naba Das Murder: OSRTC Bus Staff Deny Taking Medicines For Accused Gopal

Berhampur: In a new turn to the investigation into the murder of Odisha minister Naba Kishore Das, the staff of two buses have denied taking any medicine for the accused, Gopal Das, from his wife.

Continuing their investigation into the case, a 4-member team of the Crime Branch (CB) led by the DSP grilled nine employees of two OSRTC buses running from Berhampur to Jharsuguda. The CB team interrogated drivers and helpers of the buses of the state transport separately inside the police outpost situated in New Bus Stand in Berhampur from 5 am to 7 am on Friday.

“The Crime Branch asked me a few questions about whether we had taken any medicine packets from the family members to deliver to Gopal Krushna Das in Jharsuguda. I simply said no,” Swayam Dutta Padhihari, driver of a bus, told the media after his interrogation by the Crime Branch.

Another driver Rohit Pradhan gave the same response. Both Swayamdatta and Rohit have been engaged in this route for the last four years.

The Crime Branch also asked other crew members several questions like which bus Gopal preferred for his journey and how many times he had travelled.

It may be noted Jayanti Das, wife of the dismissed Assistant Sub-inspector of Police (ASI) Gopal Das who had shot dead Naba Das dead, had described her husband as a mental patient. She had also claimed that she was sending medicines to Gopal at regular intervals to Jharsuguda from Berhampur by OSRTC buses.

Speaking to media persons on the alleged bipolar disorder of the accused in the day, Director General of Police (DGP) Sunil Bansal said, “It’s important to ascertain if he had bipolar disorder and also whether it contributed to the crime. I am not competent to answer whether he was suffering from bipolar disorder. An expert can answer as to what extent it contributed to the crime.”

Also Read: Naba Das Killing: Confession Of Accused Not Enough; Odisha DGP Reveals Probe Details – odishabytes

Earlier, Prof Chandra Sekhar Tripathy, Head of Psychiatric Department, MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Berhampur had said Gopal was suffering from Bipolar Affective Disorder which is associated with episodes of mood swings ranging from depressive lows to manic highs. Prof Tripathy also said he had prescribed medicines for treatment of Gopal.

The CB team had questioned the professor in Berhampur on Thursday.

Also Read: Odisha Minister Naba Das Murder: CB Questions Psychiatrist Of Accused Gopal In Berhampur