NEW DELHI: Leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra arrived at India Gate in New Delhi on Wednesday to meet the parents of Ankita Bhandari, who was murdered in Uttarakhand in 2022.Ankita’s parents staged a protest near India Gate, demanding that the appointment of BJP leader Dushyant Kumar Gautam as Sikkim Governor be put on hold until the ongoing Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the case is completed.Rahul had previously met Bhandari’s parents in August and mentioned that four years have passed, yet they are still awaiting justice for the unforgivable crime committed against their daughter.Ankita’s father, Virendra Singh Bhandari, urged President Droupadi Murmu not to appoint Gautam as Governor until the investigation concludes.“Dushyant Kumar should be behind bars… I earnestly request the Honorable President not to appoint Dushyant Kumar as Governor until the CBI investigation is concluded,” he said, according to news agency ANI.Ankita’s mother, Soni Devi, also appealed to the President to halt the appointment.“We were deeply pained when we heard the news on the 12th that he (BJP leader Dushyant Kumar Gautam) has now been named Governor. I appeal to the Honorable President, who is herself a woman and will surely understand my sentiments, to halt the move to appoint this individual as Governor until the CBI investigation against him is concluded,” she said.
What is the Ankita Bhandari murder case?
Ankita, 19, worked as a receptionist at the Vanantra Resort in Rishikesh. She was killed on September 18, 2022, and her body was recovered from the Chilla canal four days later.Resort owner Pulkit Arya, the son of former BJP leader Vinod Arya, and two accomplices were convicted in the case and sentenced to life imprisonment.The case also drew political attention over allegations that an unidentified VIP was linked to the crime.Ankita’s family and activists have repeatedly demanded an investigation into this alleged VIP angle, with Gautam’s name being raised in connection with the allegations.The allegations against Gautam remain unproven. He has denied them and initiated defamation proceedings against those making the accusations.
Why are Ankita’s parents opposing Gautam’s appointment?
Gautam was appointed Sikkim Governor on Monday. Ankita’s parents have demanded that the appointment be put on hold until the CBI investigation is complete.Her father alleged that a VIP had played a major role in his daughter’s murder and claimed that Gautam was responsible. He questioned the decision to appoint Gautam as Governor while the investigation was ongoing.“We have heard that the VIP had a major role in my daughter’s murder. Now, the Centre and the Uttarakhand government have appointed Gautam as the governor of Sikkim,” he said.“We humbly request the government and the President of India that he should not be appointed Sikkim governor until the CBI investigation into the case is over,” he added.Her mother, Soni Devi, also urged that the appointment be stopped until the probe concludes.The parents said they had sought an appointment with President Droupadi Murmu to raise their concerns. They warned that if their demand was not met, they would sit on a hunger strike outside the Uttarakhand chief minister’s Office at the Secretariat in Dehradun.
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Political row over the appointment
The appointment has also drawn opposition from the Uttarakhand Congress, which has alleged that Gautam’s name surfaced in connection with the murder case.The Congress has claimed that the appointment was intended to shield Gautam, arguing that a Governor cannot be subjected to criminal proceedings while holding office.Gautam, a former national general secretary of the BJP, had served as the party’s in-charge for Uttarakhand.
