BHUBANESWAR: BJP on Tuesday reiterated its demand for a CBI probe into the murder of former minister Naba Kishore Das claiming the preliminary chargesheet filed by the Crime Branch in the court of JMFC, Jharsuguda, is vague as the investigative agency has not shed light on the motive behind the high-profile crime.
Alleging the motive of the Crime Branch investigation team was suspicious since the beginning, Opposition chief whip in Assembly Mohan Majhi told media persons here the agency has taken all care to see the prime accused Gopal Das goes scot-free. The investigating agency took nearly four months to submit the chargesheet which lacks clarity on the motive behind the murder and the conspirators who plotted it.
“Leader of Opposition Jaynarayan Mishra has been demanding to verify the call records of Gopal Das before he committed the crime to ascertain who were in touch with him. Alleging involvement of two powerful BJD leaders in the crime, Mishra had demanded to bring BJD MLAs Pranab Prakash Das and Susant Singh under the purview of investigation. While Congress supported Mishra, the Crime Branch did not deem it necessary to check the call records of the accused and the chargesheet is silent on it,” Majhi said.
The Crime Branch tried to prove the assailant is a mentally ill person suffering from bipolar disorder but he was found normal after medical examination. There are many unanswered questions and the Crime Branch has not explored how a mentally ill person was made in charge of a police out-post and issued a service revolver. The charge sheet is not clear on many important points, he added.
Meanwhile, BJD termed BJP’s allegations as baseless. Party spokesperson Lenin Mohanty alleged a particular group in the BJP led by Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan is levelling such baseless allegations in a sensitive case. He said people of Jharsuguda have given a fitting reply to the BJP in the bypoll. Stating BJD does not believe in replying to motivated statements, Mohanty challenged BJP to go to an investigating agency or a court if it has any evidence of what it is alleging.