Almost 300 people turn out for candlelight vigil held for Valpo U student in hospital after stabbing
Varun Raj Pucha’s parents put all of their resources toward their oldest son getting a graduate school education at Valparaiso University so he could succeed and ultimately assist his family, and he was on the cusp of graduating in December with a master’s degree in computer science.
Now Pucha, 29, the victim of a stabbing on Oct. 29 at a Planet Fitness in Valparaiso, is in critical condition and in a coma at Lutheran Hospital in Fort Wayne, attended to by his cousins who live in the U.S. and his roommate from his off campus apartment, as his parents scramble to get the passports and visas they need to come to Fort Wayne from Khammam, in the state of Telangana in India, to be at his bedside.
Sunday, almost 300 people from the Indian community in the region, as well as representatives from the university, the Valparaiso International Center and the Jewish Federation of Northwest Indiana came together to lift Pucha and his family in their prayers.
They spoke out against the violent nature of the stabbing that, according to court records, gives Pucha a 0-5% chance of survival, wondered if it would be categorized as a hate crime, and chanted Hindu prayers while they lit LED candles and held them above their heads in a darkened room at the Indian American Cultural Center in Merrillville.
“It’s one of the most powerful mantras we have for healing,” Sheela Kanda, who led the vigil, said of one of the prayers.
The prayer is for mental and emotional health and healing, and bestows longevity and immortality, “which is what we’re hoping for, for Varun.”
Police were called around 9 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 29, to Planet Fitness, 1270 Strongbow Centre Drive, after the altercation, in which Jordan Andrade used a knife for cutting open boxes to stab Pucha in the head with a wound so deep it reached his brain stem, according to charging documents.
Andrade, 24, of Porter Township, is being held in Porter County Jail on a Level 1 felony charge of attempted murder and a Level 3 felony charge of aggravated battery. During an initial hearing Friday, his bond was set at $500,000 cash and $500,000 surety and he was assigned a public defender.
Those charges are likely to be upgraded if Pucha dies from his injuries. Andrade has pleaded not guilty; his next court hearing is scheduled for Jan. 19.
Andrade told police Pucha threatened to assassinate him and the stabbing was how he reacted, court documents state. Andrade told police he requested a deep tissue massage when he arrived at the fitness center but “the guy,” referring to Pucha, was just lying there and was being “a little weird.”
He told police he didn’t know the man but described him as having a tan skin tone, according to the charges. Staff at the fitness center told police Pucha was a regular gym member and generally kept to himself, was quiet and reserved and did nothing indicating he was “creepy.”
Vivek Mishra, president of the Indian Medical Association of Northwest Indiana, said before the vigil began that from what he understands, the attack on Pucha was unprovoked.
“It’s truly shocking. I believe it’s a hate crime. I do,” he said, echoing the sentiment of several of the people who addressed the vigil.
Porter County Prosecutor Gary Germann said Monday he was unable to comment because the case is pending.
Pucha’s cousin, Anila Valleboina, who lives in Baltimore and has been staying in Fort Wayne, and Mohan Kesani, a Munster cardiologist who is a family friend, addressed the gathering together.
Valleboina said the attack on Pucha is “very devastating for my family right now” and wasn’t something his family expected. “His family has many dreams on him,” she said, adding they hoped he would help support them financially.
“I hope that this shouldn’t happen to any of the students,” she said. “I’m just expecting justice, and any help for his family.”
Kesani said he visited Pucha in the hospital Sunday and spoke to his trauma surgeon, as well as taking a look at Pucha’s medical chart and progress. Because of medical privacy laws, Kesani said, he couldn’t disclose everything he saw.
“What I saw is not good,” he said, adding Pucha’s condition is declining and is being monitored.
The violence, said Lissa Yogan, assistant provost for faculty affairs at VU, was “shattering” for the university’s international students.
“I want to assure you that Valparaiso University would not be the university it is if it was not for the international students,” she said. “You see a bond that we’re seeing less and less in the world.”
Bharath Ganesh Babu, president of the faculty senate, said he has stayed at VU for 17 years “because it was a welcoming environment and still is a welcoming environment.”
His son, now 12, also will attend the university.
“That’s the community I’ve known and why it’s so shocking,” he said. “I hope after we get through this incident, we can have a sense of dignity, a sense of pride and not be afraid.”
International students who took to the stage together said Pucha’s stabbing has been hard to take, including what his family is going through. They’ve had to tell their parents they are safe despite the violent nature of the off-campus crime.
One of those students, Karthik Mateti, arrived on campus from India in August 2022, the same time as Pucha.
“I’ve never felt unsafe at Valpo,” he said after the vigil. He is working on a master's degree in sports administration. “Everyone is welcoming.”
In a statement released Monday morning, Valparaiso Mayor Matt Murphy said all of the city was shocked to learn about the stabbing, and that he has been in regular contact with Jose Padilla, VU’s president, and has offered the city’s assistance as needed.
Murphy also said he has been working with U.S. Sen. Todd Young’s office to secure emergency visas so that Pucha’s family can travel to the United States, and that the Valparaiso Police Department is working with the Porter County Prosecutor’s Office to move the matter forward.
“Although there is much about this senseless act that we do not know, one thing is clear — a young man looking to better his education in our community now clings for his life,” Murphy said. “At this time, I would ask all of Valparaiso to keep Varun and his family in your thoughts and prayers.”
Back at the Indian American Cultural Center, Kanda, who was leading the vigil, said Pucha’s younger sister has asked what her brother did to deserve being stabbed.
“Nothing,” Kanda said.
Valleboina, Pucha’s cousin, started the candlelight vigil, turning on her LED candle. Soon, the soft sound of crinkling paper washed through the room as participants turned on their candles, placed them in white paper bags labeled with Pucha’s name and lifted them above their heads.
The bags and candles were later collected and will be placed at the Chapel of the Resurrection on campus.
The Hindu festival of lights, Diwali, begins Sunday, and Kanda said she hopes Pucha’s parents are here by then.
“One light is enough to make the entire light brighter,” she said. “We hope that he recovers and knows that his family has all of our support.”
