Gopal feared Naba would kill him: CB

'He Had Scant Regard for Policemen'

Bhubaneswar: Dismissed ASI Gopal Das, who allegedly killed minister Naba Kisore Das following his reported hatred against the deceased for being an evil to the society, had been living in fear and suspicion that the minister would kill him, revealed crime branch sources.

Gopal, who claimed to have been suffering from bipolar disorder, recently told the interrogators that two close associates of the slain minister had been issuing him warning, saying dada (Naba) was upset with him and would kill him. Gopal assumed the warnings were true as he, according to his statement, had reportedly ignored so met illegal instructions of the minister and his men. Gopal claimed Naba and his men had scant regards for the men in khaki and government officials

Gopal told us that the minister was the root cause of all illegal activities in Jharsuguda. Gopal said he killed the minister as he thought the minister would kill him. "We verified his statement and questioned the two close The duo admitted that they had told Gopal about the minister's displeasure with him but denied having issued any death threat. The duo claimed that the minister was unhappy with Gopal's conduct and doubted his integrity," a Crime Branch officer said.

To verify whether Gopal was dishonest, separate tams of the Crime Branch visited the areas in Jharsuguda district where he had been pos ted in the last 10 years. Gopal served in Bandhabahal out- post, Banaharpali police station, Kolabira police station and Gandhi Chowk outpost.

During the financial investigation into Gopal's movable and immovable assets, the agency did not come across any disproportionate wealth, including Benami, amassed by him and his family. The sleuths seized Gopal's gold ring from a local jewelry store in Gandhi Chowk area where he had sold it for Rs 20,000 last year.

"We did not receive any adverse remarks about Gopal from locals, including the present and former sarpanch's, in the areas where he was posted. Some people told us that Gopal had been helping the needy from his own pocket," another Crime Branch official said.

In one village, a fisher- man told us that Gopal had bought fish worth over Rs 15,000 and distributed it among the villagers two years ago, he added.

Gopal's general provident fund has around Rs 2 lakh. He recently took a loan of around Rs 3 lakh from a bank for house repair.