BHUBANESWAR: Bibhas Nayak fought till the end. The 29-year-old youth from Gudripada village in Kandhamal, made all attempts to save the two women - an Israeli tourist and a homestay owner - who were raped near a canal close to Sanapur lake in Koppal, around 25 km from the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Hampi - till he drowned on March 6.
Even when he was thrown into the canal by two of the three accused, Bibhas tried to swim back and rescue his fellow tourists. However, he could no longer swim when a large stone thrown by the accused into the water hit him. “That is when, we suspect, he lost his life and drowned in the canal,” said Akash Paul, his brother-in-law who brought Bibhas’ body from Hampi to Kandhamal on Sunday. His body was found on Saturday, 2 km away from the spot.
An avid traveller, Bibhas had quit his job at the St Stephen’s Hospital in New Delhi four months back and was travelling solo around the country on his bike. He had reached Hampi last week. Bibhas stayed in the homestay where three other tourists including the Israeli woman and two male tourists - Daniel Pitas from the US and Pankaj Amrit Rao from Nashik - had put up.
“A local had told them that the site was a great place for stargazing. So after finishing their dinner, all of them along with the homestay owner went to the site. They were listening to music when the three accused, who were heavily inebriated, arrived at the spot and demanded Rs 100 for petrol,” said Akash, who interacted with one of the rape survivors.
While the rest had no money, Bibhas had Rs 20 in his bag which he handed over to the accused. Angry with the petty amount, the accused picked up a quarrel and started assaulting them.
Akash said when Bibhas and the two others made attempts to stop the accused from raping the women, the latter started pelting stones and pushed them into the canal. They continued throwing stones into the water but the two others managed to swim out. One stone hit Bibhas which was evident from a large injury mark on his head,” Akash said adding, Bibhas was an excellent swimmer.
The youngest among two siblings, Bibhas was the son of BK Nayak of Gudripada village under G Udaygiri. His mortal remains were buried in his village on Sunday.