At a time when the Russia-Ukraine war is threatening to enter its second year in February, the ongoing hostilities have created intrigue and suspense over the unnatural death of a Russian national, Pavel Antov and his associate in a hotel in Odisha. Pavel, 64, was born in Moskovskaya and rose to become the deputy of the legislative assembly of Vladamir region and belonged to the ruling party of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Coincidentally yet tragically, Pavel’s death is being speculated as to whether it was an accident or not; as he died in an unnatural way while on a vacation to India with his friends this winter.
Pavel decided to celebrate his birthday on December 22 in the far quiet yet touristy southern state of Odisha with his associate companion Vladimir Bydanov and two other friends.
Official documents reveal he had a Russian passport and was issued a Tourist (E visa) visa by the ministry of home affairs. The purpose of the visit was ‘’recreation/ sightseeing.’’
Pavel, also known as a sausage tycoon, stayed at the Sai International Hotel in Rayagada district of Odisha for the holidays. On December 24, he was found dead, in a pool of blood under the windows of the hotel. What is more shocking is that Bydanov had also died in the same hotel two days before Pavel’s death.
Bydanov, 61, born in Marijskaya Assr had also been issued a similar tourist e-visa . According to Russian media sources, the Russian embassy in New Delhi has said that there is no connection between the death of Pavel and Bydanov.
The Odisha police, which is the first respondent, in this case, has said that Pavel died of internal injury after a fall, while Bydanov suffered a heart attack. The post-mortem reports and initial forensic and material evidences do not point towards a foul play, said state police sources.
The central agencies also swung into action and sought a report from the local police to ascertain the cause behind the death of foreign nationals. Senior officials at the Centre said the findings do not point towards any mischief or foul play, denying speculation of a foreign hand in it.
But some unanswered questions still remain for now like why did Pavel choose Odisha as his destination to celebrate his birthday, why was he keen to see rural India and whether was he depressed or suffering from any other ailments.
There are also concerns about Pavel’s viscera sample not being kept while Bydanov’s samples were kept. Was there any kind of lapse in the initial response by police or doctors?
New Delhi officials said the case is being blown up due to the tensions between Russia and Ukraine. ‘’It is a tragic death but there seems to be no foul play,’’ said a senior government official. The same has been conveyed to the Ministry of External Affairs which is abreast of the issue.
What led to the speculation of Pavel’s death is his seemingly utter disdain for the war. In June 2022, Pavel criticised the war and airstrikes on Kyiv as Russian “terror’’, only to withdraw the social media post later, but it was seen as an open criticism of Kremlin.
From day one, Putin has called the conflict ‘a special military operation’ and in his support, an emboldened Kremlin has frowned upon anyone calling it vojna or ‘’war’’. Pavel had gone a step further than fellow Russians and war critics, by calling it ‘’terror’’, a criticism that has come back to haunt the ongoing hostilities with his unnatural death.
The vagaries of war naturally carry with them not only tales of horror and plunder on either side but also unexplained and mysterious events as both sides try to outmanoeuvre each other in real and surreal ways. The outcomes are mostly unknown. In the ongoing war, while the United States has been trying to expose Russia’s aggressive role to the world, Ukraine seems to be preparing for escalated tensions even as information wars continue and conspiracy theories about plots and fake attacks gather steam on social media.
The case has caught the attention of some Russian websites as well as international media triggering the need for a thorough probe. After Odisha DGP Sunil Kumar Bansal ordered a CID probe to arrive at a final conclusion to end the speculation, a crime branch team of five officers has been constituted headed by DSP Tapan Kumar Daash.
The two Russian nationals who were with Pavel and Bydanov- Panasenko Natalia and Turov Mikhail are being examined. The CID-crime branch team has already examined the interpreter- Jitendra Rathod who was accompanying them and guiding them during their tour in Odisha. The driver of the Innova car- Natobar Mohanty – that took Pavel and his friends around has also been examined.
The CID will look into all possible angles, study the autopsy reports, examine CCTV footage, question the hotel staff, study all forensic evidence and even analyse the medical conditions of the deceased before closing the case. The CID has collected all the relevant material, police papers and photographs from the Rayagadha district police. The passports and travel documents regarding their India visit have also been taken over and New Delhi is being briefed about the developments.