Odisha minister's 'killer' not mentally ill: Medical Board

BHUBANESWAR: A medical board, consisting of four psychiatrists who recently evaluated the mental condition of sacked police ASI Gopal Das, arrested on charges of killing minister Naba Kisore Das in Jharsuguda district on January 29, reportedly did not come across any psychological abnormality with the accused.

The medical board, which was constituted by the government to assess Gopal’s mental state following allegations by his family members that he had been suffering from bipolar disorder for several years, conducted Gopal’s psychological evaluation on February 4 and submitted their report to the Crime Branch the next day.
"The board observed that the person (Gopal) is conscious, alert, cooperative and communicative. He is well groomed with eye to eye contact. His mood is appropriate to the situation. His speech is relevant, coherent and goal directed. No abnormality was found in thought content and perception. His memory (immediate, recent and remote) is all intact. In the above observations made by the medical board, nowhere it was found that the accused is suffering from mental illness,” read an order passed by the court of the additional district judge (ADJ) in Jharsuguda on March 3, while rejecting the plea of the state Crime Branch to take Gopal to National Institute of Mental Health & Neurosciences (NIMHANS) in Bangalore for a further mental evaluation.

Gopal’s suspected mental illness came to light minutes after he shot Naba dead from his service firearm at a public function at Brajarajnagar in Jharsuguda district on January 29, with his family members and a doctor telling the media that he was under medication for the last eight to nine years.
The medical board's finding is likely to come as a shot in the arm of the prosecution. “We are trying our best to ascertain with supported medical documents and evaluations that Gopal was mentally stable. He planned and executed the murder in a sane mind notwithstanding prescriptions shown by him about his bipolar disorder treatment. Our objective is to disprove his plea of mental illness. Had the court allowed Gopal’s mental check-up at NIMHANS, we would have got more proof about his sound state of mind. Even though he has already made his confessional statement before a judicial magistrate, he may take the plea and advantage of Section 84 (an act of unsound mind) of the IPC during the trial,” a Crime Branch official said.
Gopal reportedly told the investigators that he killed Naba as he developed hatred and anger for his alleged corrupt and unethical practices. Besides, Gopal told the cops that he had been apprehending a threat to his life from the minister. The probe agency, based on the investigation so far, has reportedly ruled out political conspiracy or business rivalry behind Naba’s murder.