Death of Bikram Lama, a non-resident rough sleeper in Sydney’s Hyde Park, exposes systemic homelessness failures
Consensus Summary
The death of Bikram Lama, a 32-year-old Nepali former international student, in Sydney’s Hyde Park in December 2025 has exposed critical failures in Australia’s homelessness support systems, particularly for non-resident rough sleepers. Lama’s body lay undiscovered for up to six days near St James station, a busy thoroughfare frequented by 100,000 daily commuters, highlighting how easily vulnerable individuals can become invisible in urban environments. His case underscores systemic barriers faced by non-residents, who cannot access social housing, Centrelink payments, Medicare, or legal work, trapping them in homelessness despite contributing to their communities. The City of Sydney reported a 24% increase in rough sleepers in 2025, with 18% being non-residents, while advocacy groups like St Vincent’s Hospital and Back Your Neighbour alliance have called for urgent policy reforms. Calls for a coronial inquest, led by independent MP Alex Greenwich, aim to investigate whether policy failures contributed to Lama’s death, with the NSW Attorney-General’s office stating the coroner awaits police evidence before proceeding. The tragedy has sparked widespread public and political outrage, with business groups, councils, and homelessness advocates demanding a complete overhaul of support systems to prevent similar deaths, framing Lama’s story as a reckoning with Australia’s humanitarian obligations.
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Key details reported by multiple sources:
- Bikram Lama, a 32-year-old Nepali national, died sleeping rough in bushes near St James station tunnel, Hyde Park, Sydney, in December 2025 (exact date disputed but all sources agree it was December).
- Lama’s body was undiscovered for up to six days, with estimates of 100,000 people walking past his decomposing body daily before discovery.
- Lama came to Australia as an international student to study computer science but fell into homelessness after his visa status lapsed, leaving him unable to access social housing, Centrelink payments, Medicare, or legal work rights.
- The City of Sydney identified 346 rough sleepers in the CBD in 2025, with 18% (about 62 people) being non-residents.
- Independent MP Alex Greenwich wrote to the NSW Attorney-General, Michael Daley, urging an inquest into Lama’s death to examine potential policy failures.
- St Vincent’s Hospital and the City of Sydney have repeatedly called for reforms to allow non-residents access to crisis shelters, healthcare, and housing support.
- The NSW Attorney-General’s office stated the coroner is awaiting a brief of evidence from NSW Police before deciding whether to hold an inquest.
- Lama was known as the ‘birdman’ of St James tunnel due to his daily routine of feeding pigeons in Hyde Park.
Points of Difference
Details reported by only one source:
- Brigid Delaney’s opinion piece compares Lama’s invisibility to Arthur Miller’s *Death of a Salesman*, framing the lack of human acknowledgment as a societal failure.
- The Guardian’s 2024 investigation into 600+ homelessness deaths found systemic gaps in housing, healthcare, and mental health support.
- The Victorian coroner’s 2026 inquest into Sacha Lefebvre’s death (Melbourne) called for housing to be treated as a human right, paralleling Lama’s case.
- Business Sydney’s peak group called for a CBD safety taskforce to overhaul protocols for interacting with rough sleepers, citing a ‘shocking systems failure’ for non-residents.
- Erin Longbottom (St Vincent’s) described Lama’s situation as ‘no way out’ and urged political pressure to fix policy gaps.
- The Albanese government described Lama’s death as ‘beyond tragic’ and emphasized collaboration with states and NGOs to prevent ‘falling through the cracks’.
- Nepalese national Bikram Lama’s death reignited concerns about non-resident rough sleepers being trapped in homelessness due to lack of access to support services.
- St Vincent’s Hospital’s Erin Longbottom explicitly stated non-residents are ‘one of the most vulnerable groups’ relying on charities for food and essentials.
- The City of Sydney council will hold a minute’s silence for Lama on April 29, 2026, and request funding for specialist homelessness services for non-residents.
Contradictions
Conflicting information between sources:
- The Guardian reports Lama’s body was found on December 7, 2025, while newscomau states it was found in December 2025 without specifying the exact date.
- The Guardian implies Lama’s visa expired in 2023, while newscomau does not specify the exact year but confirms his visa status lapsed.
- Guardian’s Article 6 states Lama’s Nepalese passport expired in 2023, but this detail is not confirmed by any other source.
- The NSW Attorney-General’s office in newscomau says the coroner is ‘waiting for a brief of evidence from police,’ while the Guardian (Article 4) states the coroner is ‘awaiting contact with Lama’s family in Nepal’ before reviewing the matter.
Source Articles
A homeless man died in public in Sydney. How did his death go unnoticed? – podcast
The strange and lonely death of Bikram Lama exposes a glaring gap in homelessness services. Reged Ahmad speaks with Guardian Australia’s chief investigations correspondent, Christopher Knaus, about what hopes and dreams brought Lama to Australia, and what went wrong Read more: Continue reading...
Call for action after student dies on street
An international student’s death has reignited calls for reform and scrutiny of policy failures after he died while sleeping rough in Sydney’s CBD.
The death of Bikram Lama – Sydney’s ‘birdman’ of St James tunnel – has shaken me. What is happening to our city? | Brigid Delaney
As individualistic as this place often is, I thought there still existed minimum standards when it came to how we see each other When ‘the birdman’ of St James tunnel died, Sydney commuters streamed past his body for days A homeless man died in public in Sydney. How did his death go unnoticed? – podcast In the daily horror of this year’s news cycle, it’s difficult to be shocked. But all yesterday I couldn’t stop thinking about Bikram Lama , with both shame and sadness. Continue reading...
‘This has to be a wake-up call’: NSW attorney general urged to order inquest into death of Sydney’s ‘birdman’
Alex Greenwich says inquest crucial to understand what failures led to Bikram Lama’s death and avoid similar deaths Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The New South Wales attorney-general, Michael Daley, has been urged to order an inquest into the death of Nepali rough sleeper Bikram Lama in Hyde Park. The death of Lama – who was also known as “the birdman” for his love of the area’s pigeons – has prompted widespread calls for change, after Guardian Australia revealed l
Bikram Lama’s quiet death prompts a reckoning with ‘human cost’ of homelessness policy failures
Alliance of 48 councils across Australia issue damning statement calling for more support for people in ‘immigration limbo’, joining growing chorus Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Bikram Lama’s death could have been invisible. It has instead prompted a reckoning. Continue reading...
Death of Sydney’s ‘birdman’ described as ‘beyond tragic’ by Albanese government
NSW housing and homelessness minister says Bikram Lama’s death shows the ‘gaps’ that people without residency can fall through Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Federal and state housing ministers have described the death of a young homeless man in Sydney’s Hyde Park as “beyond tragic” and say it reinforces the need to stop vulnerable rough sleepers from falling through the cracks. Bikram Lama, 32, was found dead on 7 December last year near the entrance to St James tu
Sydney business body calls for complete overhaul of homelessness response after ‘disturbingly lonely and tragic death’
Bikram Lama’s body lay undiscovered for up to a week in one of city’s busiest parks, prompting business lobby to call for greater welfare monitoring Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Sydney’s peak business group has called for the urgent establishment of a safety taskforce to help rough sleepers in the central business district after the disturbing death of a young Nepali man in Hyde Park. Guardian Australia reveal