‘Murder blueprint readied night before’

BHUBANESWAR: Gopal Das has told police that he spent Saturday night alone preparing the blueprint for killing health minister Naba Kishore Das on Sunday, imagining his own death after the crime either by mob lynching or from gunshots fired by the minister’s PSO, a Crime Branch officer said. Gopal was surprised that he was not killed after he shot Naba.
Gopal had sent his brother Satyanarayan Das, who managed their eatery near Gandhi Chowk, Brajarajnagar, back home in Ganjam district, around 400 km away, and other staff members on leave on Saturday night.
He spent some time in the eatery, located barely half a km from the police outpost where he was posted as an ASI and is close to the crime spot. The CB has questioned his brother too.
Police said though the sacked ASI has changed his statements on various aspects of the crime, he has stuck to the position that he was alone in his plan to eliminate Naba because of his personal hatred. Police are, however, still probing for possible accomplices by scanning data of recent unusual visitors to him and exploring other motives.
Gopal had told police that he shot the minister on Sunday in an agitated state of mind because he strongly believed Naba is the reason for many ills in society, including his personal problems. His medical treatment history for bipolar mental disorder somewhat supports his claim. But, his elaborate planning, its execution and cool and composed behaviour in custody made police explore other angles.
He later told the CB that the slain minister frequently humiliated him and never entertained any of his requests though he worked for a very long period of time in Naba’s home district, Jharsuguda.
Apprehending that he may be lynched or shot, Gopal had allegedly written a confession, which he carried with him. The statement was written in red ink and it was a mix of English and Odia.
Gopal told police that since he was not lynched, he flushed the note in a toilet at Jharsuguda airport police station where he was taken after the crime. His claim of a prior handwritten note seems to be true, as part of it were recovered, but its content may be meant to mislead the investigating team.
“That’s why the CB is still working on other leads to pinpoint his motive,” an officer said.