Naba Kishore Das, the health minister for Odisha, was killed by a former security guard.
Hours after the assistant sub-inspector of police shot Mr. Das with his service pistol, Mr. Das passed away from his wounds. During the melee, an inspector and another person also got hurt.
On January 29, a police assistant sub inspector shot and killed Naba Kishore Das, the minister of health and family welfare for the state of Odisha.
Gopal Das, a police officer assigned to Brajarajnagar’s Gandhi Chowk police unit, was named as the shooter. He had previously worked for the Minister as his personal security guard.
On the afternoon of January 29, Mr. Gopal Das allegedly opened fire with his service revolver at Gandhi Chowk as the minister got out of his car to greet his supporters. It had been planned for Mr. Naba Kisore Das to open a workplace at Brajarajanagar.
“According to early information, the Minister was scheduled to attend a function inside the boundaries of the Brajarajnagar police station. According to Deepak Kumar, the Inspector General of Police (northern) area, “one individual started fire at him from a very close range about 12.10 p.m. when he came out of the vehicle.
The attacker was swiftly subdued by the supervisor of the Brajarajnagar police station and a constable. The two police officers were able to turn his revolver-wielding hand towards the sky after two rounds of gunfire. The lead inspector was hurt during this process, and another individual was struck by a gunshot, he continued.
Suffered injuries
The Minister lost consciousness after taking two bullet wounds. He was airlifted to Bhubaneswar for additional treatment at the Apollo Hospital after being brought to the Jharsuguda District Headquarters hospital.
Despite their best attempts, he was pronounced dead around 8 o’clock on Sunday night. “It was discovered that only one bullet had entered and exited the body, wounding the left lung and heart as well as causing severe internal haemorrhage. Injuries were fixed, and actions were taken to enhance the heart’s ability to pump blood. He received immediate ICU treatment. But despite all efforts, he was unable to be revived. According to a statement released by Apollo Hospital, he passed away from his wounds.
CM decries the assault
Naveen Patnaik, the chief minister, denounced the assault on the health minister. He expressed his sadness and distress over the terribly untimely death of Minister Das. “He was useful to the party and the government. In the health department, he has effectively carried out a number of projects for the good of the populace. The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) was strengthened thanks to him as a leader, according to the BJD supremo and chief minister of Odisha.
The State police’s crime division has been tasked with investigating the tragic assault. Arun Bothra, another additional director general of police, and a seven-person crime branch team sped over to the scene to do additional research. Regarding the shooter’s motives, his mental health, or whether the murder was preplanned, the Odisha police have not made any statements.
“The shooter suffered from manic depression”
The accused police officer’s family claimed that he had been experiencing mental depression. He was being treated by a Berhampur-based psychiatrist, who also acknowledged that Mr. Gopal Das was receiving care for manic depression.
“Due to consistent medication, the patient was able to recover from the illness. If prescription medications are not regularly taken, there is a very real possibility that the illness will relapse. I don’t know if he was taking the prescribed medications because he was stationed in the Jharsuguda district, according to Chandrasekhar Tripathy, the psychiatrist who is seeing Mr. Gopal Das.
Astronomical ascent in politics
One of the wealthiest politicians in Odisha and a three-term MLA from the Jharsuguda Assembly constituency was the victim, Mr. Naba Kishore Das. According to his property statement, he operated a successful transport company in the mineral-rich Jharsuguda region and possessed roughly 70 high-value vehicles.
Since 2009, he has won three elections in a row from Jharsuguda: twice as a Congress candidate and once as a BJD candidate. This marks a stratospheric climb in politics for him. Prior to the 2019 elections, he served as the functioning president of the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee until changing his allegiance. After winning, the BJD government appointed him as the State’s Minister of Health and Family Welfare.