NB Explains | Odisha Health Minister Naba Das, who was shot by cop, succumbs to bullet injuries

Bhubaneshwar, Jan 30: Odisha's Health Minister Naba Kishore Das, believed to be close to chief minister Naveen Patnaik, succumbed to bullet injuries hours after he was shot in the chest by a police officer in Brajrajnagar on Sunday. The accused, an assistant sub-inspector (ASI), has been detained.

A cop fired at least four to five bullets when Naba Das stepped out of his car at Gandhi square. The shooting took place around 1 pm when the 60-year-old minister was on his way to attend a program/meeting. 

 

 

The accused, identified as ASI Gopal Das, was nabbed by local people, who then handed him over to the police.

 

In a video, Das was seen bleeding from the bullet injury as people tried to lift him.

 

 

In a statement, the Apollo hospital said that the Odisha health minister, who was admitted with gunshot sounds to left chest, succumbed to his injuries on Sunday.

 

"Health Minister Naba Das was admitted to Apollo with gunshot wounds to the left chest. A team of doctors led by Dr Debashish Nayak immediately attended to and operated on him. On operation, it was found that a single bullet had entered and exited the body, injuring the heart and left lung and causing massive internal bleeding and injury. The injuries were repaired, and steps were taken to improve the pumping of the heart. He was given urgent ICU care. But despite best efforts, he could not be revived and succumbed to his injuries," the statement read.

 

Tension gripped in Brajrajnagar in the wake of the incident, with supporters of the BJD minister questioning "security lapses". Media reports suggest that a conspiracy was hatched to target him.

 

The accused, Gopal Das, was being treated for bipolar disorder by a psychiatrist, according to a PTI report. Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik had ordered a probe by the crime branch into the incident.

 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his grief at the death of Naba Kishore Das while Odisha CM Patnaik described him as a "grass root person" and said he was "loved and respected by all, cutting across parties and sections of people."

 

 

The minister, a strongman in the mining hub of Jharsuguda, had switched over to the BJD from the Congress ahead of 2019 elections. He is known to have business interests in coal mining, transportation and hospitality sectors.