Rayagada: Even though the autopsy report of Russian MP and businessman Pavel Antov indicates that he died of internal injuries after a fall, doubt still lingers about the actual reason behind his death. It seems ‘silence is the motto’ path has been adopted by all and sundry who may even be remotely connected with the demise of Pavel after his mysterious fall from a hotel in Rayagada district.
Pavel, 65, died December 24 after allegedly falling off the third floor of Rayagada’s Hotel Sai International, where he was on holiday with three other Russian nationals. Pavel’s death came two days after another member of the travel party and his close friend, Vladimir Bidenov, 61, was found unconscious after an apparent heart attack at the same hotel and could not be revived.
The four-member group of Russians, and their Delhi-based travel guide Jitendra Singh, had checked-in to the hotel December 21, it was learnt.
When asked about Pavel’s death, Hotel Sai International manager Koushik Thakre feigned ignorance. “I was not on duty when the mishap took place. Our staffers have also not seen anything,” Thakre said Wednesday.
According to Registration of Foreigners Act, the SP is the reporting officer of foreigners in the district. The Act also mandates the SP to have information on foreigners within 24 hours of their arrival to the district. Besides, the District Intelligence Bureau (DIB) should also have the information about the foreigners arriving in or leaving the district.
When contacted, Rayagada SP Vivekanand Sharma said he is well aware of the rules. “Pavel initially stayed at Daringbadi in Kandhamal district before coming to Rayagada. So, Kandhamal SP may have been informed about his arrival,” Sharma said. He added that why would a tourist bother to share his/her details everywhere.
Meanwhile Sudam Mallick, an official in charge of the Rayagada DIB, said, “Hotel Sai International falls under the jurisdiction of Rayagada Town Police. They should ideally share with us the details of the group (four). However, we didn’t receive any such info from them.”
Mallick’s statement is enough to prove that the police were lax in handling the overall situation.
On why Natalia Pansasenko, 44, and Mikhail Turov, 64, two of the group, were allowed to leave Rayagada at a time when the probe is still on, Sharma said, “There was no reason to detain them in Rayagada. They wanted to leave the place. We allowed. Pansasenko and Turov were very cooperative during the investigation.”
DIB officer Mallick, meanwhile, said that after the demise of the two Russians they got in touch with the concerned authorities. “We’ve already shared whatever details we had with the Ministry of External Affairs and the Home department,” said Mallick.
Repeated attempts to contact Rayagada Town inspector in-charge Rashmi Ranjan Pradhan proved futile.
Meanwhile, in a separate development in Bhubaneswar, officials of the Crime Branch stated that both Pansasenko and Turov were questioned Wednesday.
Officials said that the two foreigners have been asked not to leave Odisha at present. The officials informed that the two rooms of the Rayagada hotel, where the Russians had stayed in, have been sealed.
The last rites of the two deceased have been completed with the consent of their family members and the Russian Embassy, officials said. However, there have been doubts as to why the bodies were cremated in a hurried manner, leaving no chance for exhumation. Question also lingers on why burial of the deceased was not carried out and why they were cremated.
PNN