Little did they know it would be their last trip

“He called on Thursday evening to tell me that they were about to leave for ‘darshan.’ That was the last call.  I tried his number in vain on Friday night. Within hours, I received the tragic news,” Manjunath’s cousin Lokesh told Deccan Herald.

Lokesh, fighting back tears, said Manjunath was the only son of his parents who are staying at Arsikere in Hassan district. The members of his family were finding it difficult to console his wife Vanitha. Manjunath’s children—Bharath (6) and Harshita (3)—are yet to realise the gravity of the tragedy.

Srinivas (33), an advocate, also died in the accident. However, Srinivas’s elder brother Raghavendra is lucky as he is recuperating in Kottayam.

Nagarjun (22), an employee in a private factory, also had made the last phone call to his mother on Thursday night, according to his  brother.

 P N Manikantan, a family friend of Raghavendra, said: “On Saturday evening, we got information that Srinivas was killed in the tragedy. His brother Raghavendra, injured seriously, is now out of danger and recovering at Kottayam Medical College Hospital.”
Devotees from H D Kote, Periyapatna, Kallur, Hubli, Hanumanahalli, Konewada and Gokak were also killed in the tragedy. According to official sources, the bodies of most victims are expected to reach their home towns by Sunday evening.