New Delhi: The parents of Ankita Bhandari, the 19-year-old receptionist murdered at a resort in Uttarakhand in 2022, were released early Thursday morning, hours after Delhi Police detained them for protesting against the appointment of BJP leader Dushyant Kumar Gautam as Sikkim Governor. The family has alleged that Gautam was involved in the circumstances surrounding Ankita’s death.
Ankita’s parents were detained at India Gate around 3:45 am along with Congress leaders Pawan Khera, Imran Pratapgarhi, Jothimani and R. Sudha, as well as Supriya Shrinate, Uday Bhanu Chib, Vinod Jakhar and Varun Chaudhary. They were released around 5 am, a senior police officer told ThePrint.
Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi criticised the early morning police action. “While the world was asleep, Ankita Bhandari’s parents were taken into custody,” he wrote on X.
सुबह के 4 बजे। जब दुनिया सो रही थी, तब अंकिता भंडारी के माता-पिता को हिरासत में ले लिया गया।
उनका गुनाह? वे इंडिया गेट पर चुपचाप बैठे थे – बोझिल कंधों के साथ, बिना किसी हंगामे के और सिर्फ़ इतना माँग रहे थे कि CBI जाँच पूरी होने तक दुष्यंत गौतम को सिक्किम का राज्यपाल न बनाया जाए।… pic.twitter.com/XkqNGsZ7F3
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) October 15, 2026
On Wednesday, Ankita’s father, Virendra Bhandari, had issued a 24-hour ultimatum to the government, demanding that Gautam’s appointment be put on hold until the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) probe into the alleged role of Gautam and other BJP leaders in Ankita’s death was completed.
“We give a 24-hour ultimatum to the government for the cancellation of Dushyant’s appointment. Nationwide protests will be launched if the government does not accept our demand,” he told the media.
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Congress backs family’s demand
Rahul Gandhi and Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had joined Ankita’s parents at India Gate and in demanding that President Droupadi Murmu revoke Gautam’s appointment.
“For four years, Ankita Bhandari’s family has not received justice, but a ‘VIP’ accused has certainly been rewarded with protection and a constitutional position,” Rahul Gandhi wrote on X.
“Where rapists and murderers are welcomed with garlands and criminals are honored with the power of authority—no hope can be expected from such a misogynistic BJP either,” he added.
He said Ankita’s parents had travelled far from home to sit at India Gate and seek justice for their daughter, adding that he and the Congress stood with the family in its fight for justice.
Congress general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal also urged the President to revoke Gautam’s appointment, calling the family’s demand “absolutely genuine”.
The BJP, meanwhile, defended the Uttarakhand government’s handling of the case. Mahendra Bhatt, the party’s state president and a Rajya Sabha MP, said the government had taken several steps to ensure justice for Ankita.
“The state government under Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami took several important steps in the case, from the swift arrest of the accused and the constitution of an SIT to effective prosecution and financial assistance of Rs 25 lakh to the victim’s family,” Bhatt said.
He added that Dhami had agreed to advance the process for a CBI investigation after Ankita’s parents sought one. “The government treated this sensitive case seriously and gave due consideration to the family’s demands,” he added.
What is the Ankita Bhandari case?
Ankita, 19, worked as a receptionist at the Vanantra resort in Uttarakhand’s Pauri district, near Rishikesh. She was murdered on 18 September 2022, and her body was recovered from the Chilla canal six days later.
In May 2025, a sessions court in Kotdwar convicted resort owner Pulkit Arya, son of former BJP leader Vinod Arya, and two resort employees, Saurabh Bhaskar and Ankit Gupta, of her murder. All three were sentenced to life imprisonment.
The case returned to the spotlight in December 2025 after audio clips allegedly released by actor Urmila Sanawar surfaced. In the recordings, expelled former BJP MLA Suresh Rathore could purportedly be heard referring to a “VIP”, whom Sanawar identified as Gautam, then the BJP’s national general secretary and Uttarakhand in-charge. She also named Ajaey Kumar, then the party’s Uttarakhand general secretary (organisation), in connection with allegations that Ankita had been pressured to provide “extra services”.
Rathore later claimed the clips were fake. Gautam filed a defamation case against Rathore and Sanawar, who claims to be Rathore’s second wife.
Ankita’s parents have continued to demand an investigation into the alleged VIP angle. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami met them on 7 January this year following renewed protests, after which a CBI probe was ordered.
The family has also demanded that a sitting Supreme Court judge monitor the investigation. Their other demands include identifying the alleged VIP and releasing call details linked to the three convicted men and the VIPs named in the recordings.
(Edited by Chingkheinganbi Mayengbam)
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