Ankita Bhandari case becomes Congress-BJP battleground in Uttarakhand

Indian Express

2 days ago

WHILE the Pushkar Singh Dhami-led BJP government is claiming credit for 'swift justice' after a Uttarakhand court on Friday sentenced three persons, including former BJP minister Vinod Arya's son, Pulkit, to life imprisonment in the Ankita Bhandari murder case, the Congress has alleged that evidence was destroyed and there were 'lapses in the probe'.
Referring to the September 23, 2022, demolition of the 'illegal' Vanantara resort where Ankita was employed and lived, a day before her body was recovered from the Chilla canal, state Congress spokesperson Garima Dasauni targeted a BJP MLA. All India Mahila Congress president Alka Lamba was also present at the press conference held by the party Monday.
'The MLA, acting on what she claimed were instructions from Dhami, demolished the resort where the girl was staying. She then released a video thanking the CM for his sensitive response. Even as tampering with a crime scene is a grave offence, Dhami himself in a social media post on September 24 boasted about the demolition of the Vanantara resort,' Dasauni said.
Acting DGP Abhinav Kumar said the judgment was based on evidence.
Dasauni also pointed to the 'irregularities' in the BJP's poster, circulated widely on social media by party workers, which claimed that the government had changed lawyers thrice at the victim's family's behest, provided jobs to Ankita's kin, ensured that the accused's bail was rejected due to strong arguments by prosecutors and provided Rs 25 lakh financial assistance to the family. 'It also falsely claimed that the accused were arrested within 24 hours but in reality it took six days,' she said.
Claiming that 'Ankita had to die' due to the VIP that the Dhami government was 'shielding', former CM Harish Rawat said the Congress would reinvestigate the case if voted to power in the 2027 Assembly polls. 'We will set up an SIT within 10 days of government formation… The incident is of great significance as Ankita sacrificed her life for honour. There is a general feeling among the people that the BJP government helped cover up the case,' Rawat told The Indian Express, adding that Bisht's role also needed to be probed.
Following the court's verdict Anikta's father, Virendra Bhandari called for the BJP MLA's role and the VIP's details to be made public even as Dhami cited his government's 'sankalp (resolve)' in ensuring justice for Ankita. 'She was a daughter and sister of the mountains… Soon after the incident came to light, we directed the police to arrest the accused, and constituted an SIT headed by a woman IPS officer. Due to this, the accused were not granted bail and have been sentenced to life in prison. We are also in touch with her family,' he said.
State BJP chief and Rajya Sabha MP Mahendra Bhatt also sought to credit Dhami's leadership for the verdict and hailed the role of investigating agencies. 'The CM had made it clear that the culprits would be awarded the strictest punishment. Acting upon his directives, all proceedings – from investigation to trial – were conducted with the consent and involvement of the victim's family. Despite the high number of witnesses and evidence, justice was delivered in a minimal timeframe,' he said.
A receptionist at the Vanantara resort, 19-year-old Ankita was murdered on September 18, 2022, for allegedly refusing to 'offer special services' to a VIP guest, whose identity is yet to be revealed. While the Congress alleged 'malpractice' in keeping the guest's details hidden, Ankita's parents had moved the Uttarakhand High Court seeking the case be transferred to the CBI. However, the petition was dismissed.
Protests had erupted across the state after the case came to light with the Congress demanding a CBI probe into it while accusing the BJP of tampering with the evidence. Arya as well as his elder son Ankit, who was the vice-president of the OBC Commission, were expelled in the wake of the incident.
The Congress had also taken up the case ahead of the Lok Sabha polls with its state chief Karan Mahara urging the Election Commission (EC) to transfer DGP Kumar. '…The investigation of Ankita Bhandari's heinous murder case is still ongoing but the statement of the current DGP regarding the investigation, in which he has been found defending the government like the spokesperson of the ruling party, is against the dignity of his current post,' he had said in his letter to the EC.
The BJP had gone on to win all five Lok Sabha seats in the state.
Aiswarya Raj is a correspondent with The Indian Express who covers South Haryana. An alumna of Asian College of Journalism and the University of Kerala, she started her career at The Indian Express as a sub-editor in the Delhi city team. In her current position, she reports from Gurgaon and covers the neighbouring districts. She likes to tell stories of people and hopes to find moorings in narrative journalism. ... Read More