Sydney MP Seeks Coronial Inquest Into Nepali Student's Tragic Death In Hyde Park

Sydney MP Alex Greenwich has called for a coronial inquest into the death of Nepalese national Bikram Lama (inset). Photos: Facebook

Independent Sydney MP Alex Greenwich has sought a coronial inquiry into the tragic death of a former international student — Nepali national Bikram Lama — in Hyde Park.

Thirty-two-year-old Lama’s body was found in bushes above St James Station by station staff on December 7, 2025. His body had reportedly been lying there unnoticed for a week before it was discovered.

Lama, known as “the birdman” because of his care and feeding of pigeons in the area, had arrived in Australia as a student in 2013 to study computer science.

Lama's family had sold their farm to send him to Australia. His visa had expired, and he was a “non-resident”, sleeping rough in Hyde Park at the time of his death.

Sydney MP Alex Greenwich Seeks Inquiry Into Policy Failures

Greenwich said he had written a letter to NSW Attorney-General Michael Daley seeking a coronial inquest into Lama’s death.

“I was shocked and saddened to read about the death of Bikram Lama,” Greenwich said in a social media post. “Bikram was a student, slept rough in Hyde Park, and his visa restrictions limited his access to healthcare, housing, and work rights.” Greenwich urged that the inquiry should look into “any policy failures that may have contributed to it.”

“We know that people on temporary visas do not get access to the health and welfare support that can help other people who are homeless get back on their feet,” Greenwich said.

“A state coronial inquest into Bikram’s death that also considers policy failures, the role of universities in the welfare of foreign students, service gaps, and impediments to access to healthcare and support for non-resident people experiencing homelessness would help us understand how the system let Bikram and other homeless people down and what we can do better," the Sydney MP added.

Homelessness Crisis In Sydney

Bikram Lama arrived in Australia in 2013 as a student. Photo: Facebook

There were 346 rough sleepers in the Sydney CBD last year — up 24 per cent from the previous year, according to City of Sydney estimates. One in five rough sleepers in inner Sydney were not Australian residents.

The Refugee Council of Australia said it was “concerned about the state of homelessness among non-residents and people seeking asylum.”

In a letter to NSW Minister for Housing and Homelessness Rose Jackson, the Refugee Council pointed to daily casework reports from frontline agencies that revealed a growing number of asylum seekers were “experiencing deep poverty, deteriorating mental health, and destitution. They are without access to mainstream housing and social services.”

“These crisis situations are driven by intersecting factors, including lack of income, insecure visa status, housing stress, unsafe or overcrowded living conditions, and exposure to violence.”

“Specialist Homelessness Services (SHS) remain overstretched. Although people seeking asylum may be technically eligible, many cannot afford subsidised costs, and limited availability of beds further restricts access. This leaves many without viable pathways to emergency or short-term housing,” the letter said.

The Refugee Council of Australia has advocated for expanding access to housing services and emergency medical care to asylum seekers and people in crisis, regardless of their visa status.