Ankita Bhandari murder case: U’khand High Court rejects petition demanding CBI probe
Thursday, 22 December 2022 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The Uttarakhand High Court has dismissed a petition seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the Ankita Bhandari murder case. A bench of Justice Sanjay Kumar Mishra rejected the petition on Wednesday stating that the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Uttarakhand is doing satisfactory work in the murder case. The victim Ankita’s parents Sona Devi and Virender Singh Bhandari had filed a petition in the HC on November 4 seeking CBI probe into the case as they claimed to be unsatisfied with the SIT’s investigation. However the court has deemed it to be unnecessary for now.
The Police have recently filed a 500-page chargesheet against the three accused Pulkit Arya, Bhaskar and Ankit Gupta and submitted it in the Kotdwar Judicial Court. The SIT has filed the chargesheet based on about 100 witnesses and 30 pieces of concrete evidence in this case, as per the officials. The officials said that SIT has almost completed the investigation into the murder case. They have sought permission from the court to conduct Narco and Polygraph tests of all the three accused. The main accused Pulkit Arya and his accomplice Saurabh had given their consent for both tests but Ankit filed an application in the court seeking 10 days time. The court will hear the plea on the matter on Thursday.
The 19-year-old Ankita Bhandari worked as a receptionist at the Vanantara Resort of Pulkit Arya, the son of expelled BJP leader Vinod Arya in Yamkeshwar area of Pauri district. Her body was recovered from the Chilla canal in Rishikesh on September 24 almost six days after the resort owner first reported her missing. The case was initially transferred from the Revenue police to the regular police but the SIT was formed later to investigate the case. Ankita was allegedly being pressured to provide “special service” to some VIP guests at the resort which she had refused. Along with Pulkit Arya, the resort manager Saurabh Bhaskar and Pulkit Gupta are also accused in the murder case who had confessed to pushing her into the canal as per the police.
