Bibhas Nayak, an expert swimmer, had always encouraged his family members and friends to learn swimming. Yet, when it came to saving his own life, the skill he valued so much could not save him.
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Nayak, the 29-year-old from Odisha, lost his life near Hampi, Karnataka, reportedly while trying to protect women from being sexually assaulted by miscreants on March 6. Four days on, his grieving family is still struggling to come to terms with the loss as they seek answers on what went wrong.
Horrific crime
In the horrific crime that sparked nationwide outrage, the man from Odisha was murdered, and two women — including an Israeli national — were gang-raped. Two others, one from the United States and another from Maharashtra, managed to escape the deadly attack. Karnataka Police called the family around evening on March 7 and sought photographs to match with the body after they fished it out from canal on March 7.
Akash Paul, brother-in-law of Nayak, said, “We were told by survivors of the heinous crime that Bikash was hit with a big boulder and lost consciousness before being pushed into a canal. The two survivors were devastated as they recalled their three-day-old friendship with Bikash in the home-stay.”
Mr. Paul, accompanied by Nayak’s father, Bijay Kumar Nayak — who serves as the sixteenth Moderator of the Church of North India (CNI) and Bishop of the Diocese of Agra, CNI — travelled to Karnataka to claim his body. Despite being emotionally exhausted from the post-mortem, legal procedures, and overwhelming personal grief, they made efforts to piece together the events of that day from survivors.
“Bikash initially tried to diffuse the situation by paying money demanded by miscreants. When the troublemakers advanced to harm the women, all three male friends from different parts of globe tried to resist. Bikash was hit with a big boulder while others had relative lighter injuries. Two swam to the shore, but my brother-in-law could not,” said Mr. Paul.
The 29-year-old deceased, the only son of Mr. Bijay Nayak, had worked briefly in the administrative department at St Stephen’s Hospital, Delhi. A BBA graduate from Madras Christian College, Chennai, Bikash was pursuing his Masters in Finance and Administration at the Bombay Stock Exchange Institute, Mumbai. He was doing online assignments to follow his interest – travel.
“He had travelled abroad many times, but his heart always longed for the embrace of nature. On that fateful night, he and his four friends had set out for stargazing. He passed away in one of the places he loved most,” said Firoj Kumar Pradhan, cousin of Bikash. Mr. Pradhan, along with others, was awaiting his scheduled visit to Terabadi, his village, near Daringbadi, a scenic place in Odisha’s Kandhamal district, on March 22.
His funeral was performed on March 9, 2025 at G. Udaygiri of Kanadhal district, where the family of the deceased, had lived for a long time. Since his father was a highly placed community leader, bishops from different churches were present at the funeral.
Published – March 10, 2025 02:32 pm IST