Opposition targets Odisha govt over Naba Das murder case chargesheet, calls it a farce

The Opposition including the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress slammed the Odisha government after the Crime Branch submitted the chargesheet in the Naba Das murder case on Friday.

The BJP asked, when the Minister of State (MoS) Home had already admitted to a conspiracy behind Naba Das murder, then why the Crime Branch has not mentioned the fact in the chargesheet.

BJP Spokesperson, Manoj Mohapatra said, “The Opposition in the August Assembly had demanded a probe against several Ministers and MLAs of the ruling BJD. Why the Crime Branch did not put their names in the chargesheet? The Crime Branch should have mentioned the details of the conspirators in the chargesheet. The Chief Minister should reveal the names of the conspirators.”

Odisha BJP general secretary, Prithviraj Harichandan said, “Odisha government is trying to close the Naba Das murder case and acquit accused Gopal Das. The BJD does not have any sympathy for its minister, who was shot dead. The people of Odisha have realised it."

“There is a deep-rooted conspiracy in the murder of Naba Das. The Crime Branch has not mentioned anything about why was Gopal Das scared and why Gopal felt threatened by Naba Das and his supporters,” Harichandan added.

The Congress too was in no mood to provide any relief to the Crime Branch. Jatni MLA, Suresh Routray said, “Gopal shot Naba Das in front of everybody. It was a conspiracy to eliminate him. All the investigations and now this chargesheet is a farce; only meant to divert the attention of people from the real reason behind his murder. We know the success rate of Odisha Crime Branch. So there are no grounds to believe their chargesheet now.”

“The government never wanted to know the actual reason behind the murder. Whether it was a political murder, a business rivalry, or personal enmity; the actual reason is still under wraps,” said Odisha Congress chief, Sarat Patnaik.

The BJD however, refuted all the allegations and said that the law will take its own course. Speaking to the reporters, Revenue Minister Pramila Mallick said, “We should have faith in the Crime Branch. The guilty will surely be punished as per law.”