Parents of Ankita Bhandari met with senior officials at the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) headquarters in Delhi and provided information regarding various aspects of the case. The CBI officials assured them that the investigation would be conducted in a fair and impartial manner, with a thorough examination of every aspect of the case.
This comes amid the row over the alleged involvement of a “VIP” in Ankita Bhandari’s murder case, which has escalated following the appointment of former BJP Uttarakhand in-charge Dushyant Gautam as the Governor of Sikkim. Additional Director General of Police (Crime and Law & Order), Uttarakhand, V Murugesan, on Thursday said police acted promptly in the Ankita Bhandari murder case and arrested all three accused within 24 hours of the incident.
“Regarding the tragic incident involving the late Ankita Bhandari, who was employed at the Vantara Resort, located within the jurisdiction of the Laxman Jhula Police Station, the police took immediate action and arrested three individuals within 24 hours; they are still in jail,” Murugesan said while briefing the media on the investigation of the case at police headquarters in Dehradun.
The ADG said,”Special Investigation Team (SIT) was constituted immediately on the directions of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. A woman IPS officer of DIG rank was appointed to head the SIT to ensure a thorough and effective investigation.” Earlier, Ankita Bhandari’s parents staged a sit-in at the India Gate in Delhi to oppose the appointment of Dushyant Kumar Gautam until the ongoing CBI probe is fully concluded. The parents were detained by the police and later released from Tilak Marg Police Station.
Following the police action, the parents made a fresh appeal for justice while raising concerns over the appointment of Dushyant Gautam as Governor of Sikkim. Speaking to reporters after an early-morning police action in the national capital, Ankita’s parents demanded that the gubernatorial appointment be kept on hold pending a thorough investigation into the unresolved allegations surrounding the case. Ankita’s father expressed deep concern over the recent political appointment and issued an ultimatum to the authorities.
The family demanded the immediate public disclosure of location details and call records for both Ajay Kumar and Dushyant Kumar spanning September 18–19, 2022. Questions were raised regarding an old mobile phone belonging to key accused Pulkit Arya, which the family claims the Special Investigation Team (SIT) failed to recover. The family demanded a complete clarification regarding the circumstances under which the resort was demolished, alongside its full reconstruction to preserve physical context and accountability.
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The row is linked to the September 2022 murder of Ankita Bhandari, a receptionist at a resort near Rishikesh, Uttarakhand. Her family has objected to any individual whose name surfaced during the investigation being appointed to constitutional office without being cleared by investigative agencies. She was murdered on September 18, 2022, and her body was recovered from the Chilla Canal on September 24, 2022. The resort owner Pulkit Arya (son of expelled BJP leader Vinod Arya) and two staff members, Saurabh Bhaskar and Ankit Gupta, were arrested, chargesheeted and on May 30, 2025, sentenced to life imprisonment by Additional District Judge Reena Negi in Kotdwar for murder, destruction of evidence and other charges.
Allegations of VIP involvement have surfaced in public discourse since the murder. The SIT probe mentioned “VIP” in relation to a room, but police stated the conviction was based on evidence against the three accused. Ankita Bhandari’s parents have long demanded the identity of the “VIP” guest mentioned in the case, alleging that powerful individuals have been shielded throughout the investigation. They argue that elevating a leader associated with such allegations to a high constitutional office undermines the pursuit of justice.
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