No reason to link deaths of three Russians, says MEA

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday that “necessary investigation” is being carried out into the death of three Russians in Odisha.

Vladimir Bidenov (61) was found dead in his hotel room on December 22 and his lawmaker friend Pavel Antov (65) died after allegedly falling from the hotel’s third floor on December 24.

Now, another Russian – 51-year-old Milyakov Sergey who worked as a chief engineer on a vessel that was on its way to Mumbai from Bangladesh’s Chittagong Port – was found dead in the ship off the Paradip Port in Odisha’s Jagatsinghpur district on January 3.

The MEA, however, said today that there is “no reason to link” the deaths of three Russian nationals as the probe is underway.

“Necessary investigation is being carried out in death of Russians in Odisha. We are now aware of the death of a Russian sailor in international waters off the coast of Odisha. His body has been brought to Paradip Port for formalities. I wouldn’t like to link all three cases together,” said MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.

“India is a large country where a lot of foreigners visit,” he added.

Last week, Russian Ambassador to India Denis Alipov praised the investigation efforts by the Odisha Police into the death of Russian nationals in the Rayagada district.

“We appreciate the investigation efforts by the Indian authorities into the death of two Russian nationals in Odisha”, Alipov said.

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