Uttarakhand: Missing receptionist's body found; BJP leader's son arrested
What's the story
The body of Ankita Bhandari (19)—a resort receptionist who went missing several days ago—was fished out from Rishikesh's Chilla canal on Saturday. Pulkit Arya—the resort owner and son of Uttarakhand BJP leader Vinod Arya—and two others were arrested on Friday for pushing Bhandari into the canal following a dispute on Sunday. Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami has ordered an SIT probe into the incident.
Information
Bhandari was recently hired at the resort
Bhandari hailed from Srikot village in Pauri Garhwal district and was recently hired as a receptionist at Vanantra Resort on the banks of Ganga in Rishikesh. As per police sources, Arya had tried to make a pass at her and even forced her to provide sexual services to clients, which she refused, reported Firstpost. Later, she went missing under "mysterious circumstances" on Monday.
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SDRF had been searching for the body for some time
Rishikesh, Uttarakhand | The deceased's brother and father were here and they identified the body. The body found at the barrage is of Ankita Bhandari: Shekhar Suyal, Addl SP pic.twitter.com/4foegm91fr
— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) September 24, 2022
Aftermath
What exactly happened?
Arya was reportedly angry over Bhandari spilling the beans to her colleagues about his unsolicited advances. Arya and the other accused—his friend Ankit and resort manager Saurabh—took Bhandari out on Sunday to resolve the dispute. They headed to Rishikesh on two bikes—with Arya and Bhandari riding together. They stopped midway, where Arya and Ankit drank together, and later she was pushed into the river.
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Locals gheraoed police vehicle, tried to thrash the accused
#WATCH | Rishikesh, Uttarakhand: Women gherao the Police vehicle that was carrying the accused in Ankita Bhandari murder case
— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) September 23, 2022
The 19-yr-old receptionist went missing a few days ago her body was found today. 3 accused, incl Pulkit -owner of the resort where she worked- arrested pic.twitter.com/v3IK8zE1xI
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The resort was demolished on Friday night
#WATCH | Uttarakhand: Demolition underway on orders of CM PS Dhami, at the Vanatara Resort in Rishikesh owned by Pulkit Arya who allegedly murdered Ankita Bhandari: Abhinav Kumar, Special Principal Secretary to the CM
— ANI (@ANI) September 24, 2022
(Earlier visuals) pic.twitter.com/8iklpWw0y6
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Congress questions police action
Meanwhile, the opposition Congress accused the police of not acting in time "because the accused has links with the RSS-BJP." "It's horrific. When the girl went missing on September 18, why did the police register the FIR on September 21?" asked state Congress spokesperson Garima Mehra Dasauni. However, Dhami said, "This is a very sad incident. Harshest action will be taken against the culprits."
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Brother of main accused relieved from government post
Ankita Bhandari murder case | Ankit Arya, the brother of main accused Pulkit Arya and son of BJP leader Vinod Arya, relieved by the Uttarakhand government from the post of Deputy Chairman of the Uttarakhand Other Backward Classes Commission. pic.twitter.com/vZwXHywVNK
— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) September 24, 2022