Naba Das murder case accused Gopal Das to be shifted to Choudwar Jail in Cuttack

Jharsuguda: Minister Naba Das murder case accused Gopal Das was being shifted to the Choudwar Circle Jail in Cuttack from the Jharsuguda sub-jail amid tight security, today.

The Prisons Department had requested the Court of JMFC, Jharsuguda for shifting of the accused to the Choudwar Circle Jail citing security reasons. The process for his shifting started after the Prisons Department received a permission in this regard from the court.

Earlier in the day, he was produced before the court, where his statement was recorded under Section 164 of CrPC.

Yesterday, he was sent to Jharsuguda sub-jail after being produced before the court as his remand period came to an end. The Crime Branch had taken him on remand for his polygraph and narco tests in Gujarat. The agency didn’t seek further remand of the accused.

The findings of the tests were yet to be revealed by the investigators. In a bid to ascertain his motive behind the murder, the Crime Branch had conducted the tests at the Directorate of Forensic Science in Gandhinagar after getting permission for the same from the court.

Notably, the minister was allegedly shot in chest by Gopal Das, a former ASI of police, at Gandhi Chhak in Brajrajnagar area of Jharsuguda district on January 29. The firing took place when the minister alighted from a car to attend an inauguration programme and his supporters were garlanding him.

He was rescued in a critical condition and rushed to the Jharsuguda District Headquarters Hospital for treatment. As his condition deteriorated, the minister was then airlifted to Bhubaneswar, where he was admitted to Apollo Hospital.

However, he succumbed to bullet injuries while undergoing treatment at the private hospital.