Naba Das murder case: BJP & Congress accuse BJD of shielding bigwigs, demand independent investigation

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress on Sunday targeted the BJD over the Naba Das murder case chargesheet accusing it of protecting some bigwigs involved in the case.

At a time when the opposition BJP has been alleging that Naba Das murder case was a government-sponsored and well-planned murder, the chargesheet submitted by the Crime Branch doesn’t have a mention of Section 120-B of IPC (criminal conspiracy). Over this, the BJP and the Congress cornered the BJD. 

“No investigation was done in the 120 days. The chargesheet was so prepared as to pave the way for his (Gopal Das) release. Words are doing the rounds that the Chief Minister is involved in the case. It has also been discussed that the Chief Minister’s close aides are involved in it. We demand an investigation by an independent agency,” said State BJP president Monmahan Samal. 

Seconding Samal, Congress leader Tara Prasad Bahinipati termed the CB’s chargesheet as valueless. 

“The chargesheet is not acceptable. It has been mentioned that he (Gopal Das) killed Naba Das on a personal grudge. Why he had nurtured a grudge against him? I am sure that a conspiracy is there. Many bigwigs are involved in the case and they are being protected. So there is a need of SIT probe,” said Bahinipati. 

Taking his government’s side, BJD MLA Prafulla Samal said, “Naveen Babu never interferes in anything. He says ‘Law will go its own course’. The allegations of the opposition BJP and the Congress are concocted.”

In another significant development in Naba Das murder case, the prime accused Gopal Das’s wife Jayanti Das while talking to OTV said she doesn’t know if her husband had any personal grudge against minister Naba Das. Her statement has fueled the ongoing controversy as the CB has mentioned in its chargesheet that Gopal had a personal grudge against Naba Das. 

“He (Gopal Das) has never told me about his personal enmity with Naba Das. I don’t know anything beyond this,” said Jayanti. 

On the other hand, local people alleged that they could smell something fishy in the case. 

“It is a conspiracy of the Crime Branch to close the case. People are mocking the CB for its chargesheet,” alleged Radheshyam Pradhan, a local resident.