Kotdwar, 30 May

In a significant verdict, the Additional District Judge (ADJ) court in Kotdwar has sentenced all three accused in the Ankita Bhandari murder case--resort owner Pulkit Arya, Saurabh Bhaskar, and Ankit Gupta--to life imprisonment.

The Additional District and Sessions Judge Court Kotdwar in Uttarakhand convicted the trio under multiple sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including Section 302 (murder), Section 201 (destruction of evidence), Section 120B (criminal conspiracy), Section 354A (sexual harassment), and provisions of the Immoral Traffic Prevention Act.

The court pronounced the verdict after a thorough trial, confirming the charges against the trio. Earlier, the accused were found guilty of the brutal murder of 19-year-old Ankita Bhandari, a receptionist at a resort in Rishikesh, whose case had sparked widespread outrage across the state.

Meanwhile, while speaking to ANI, the victim's mother, Soni Devi, broke down in grief, urging the people of Uttarakhand to continue supporting the family and demanding capital punishment for those accused in the case that shook the state in 2022.

Speaking to ANI, the victim's mother, Devi, said, "...May the criminals be sentenced to death...I appeal to the public of Uttarakhand to keep on supporting us and come to the Kotdwar court to boost our morale"

Ankita Bhandari, a resident of Pauri district, used to work in Vanantra Resort of Rishikesh. It is alleged that the resort owner, Pulkit Arya and his associates, Saurabh Bhaskar and Ankit, had murdered Ankita by pushing her into the barrage.

The body of Ankita Bhandari was recovered from the Chilla canal in Rishikesh on 24 September. She was reported missing for at least six days before the officials found her body. An SIT headed by Deputy Inspector General of Police P Renuka Devi was initially probing the case.

The first hearing of the case started on 30 January, 2023, in the ADJ Court in Kotdwar. After the SIT investigation, a 500-page chargesheet was filed in the court by the prosecution regarding this murder. After the charges were framed against the three accused of this sensational murder, Vanantra Resort owner Pulkit Arya, his employee Saurabh Bhaskar and Ankit Gupta, the testimony of the prosecution started from 28 March, 2023.

In the hearing that lasted for about two years and eight months, 47 witnesses, including the investigator, were examined in the court on behalf of the prosecution. However, the SIT had made 97 witnesses in this case, out of which only 47 important witnesses were produced in the court.