The parents of Ankita Bhandari — a 19-year-old whose death at an Uttarakhand resort near Rishikesh in 2022 remains the centre of their push for accountability — said they would intensify that effort after Delhi Police detained them during an early-morning gathering at India Gate on Thursday.
The victim's father set out a 24-hour deadline for authorities to reverse Dushyant Kumar Gautam's appointment to the Sikkim governorship, stating that a failure to act on the demand would result in protests across the country. The family has also sought a meeting with President Droupadi Murmu to put forward their concerns about the case, including questions that remain open regarding the reported role of a "VIP" in their daughter's killing.
Following his release, the victim's father told reporters that the family intended to continue its demonstrations until action was taken on Dushyant Gautam's appointment, adding that the government had been given 24 hours to cancel it. He warned that protests across the country would follow if the government did not meet the stated demand, according to a report from a news channel.
The victim's father told reporters that the family had submitted a request for an audience with President Murmu, hoping to convey their concerns and to seek justice for their daughter, adding that an appeal to arrange the meeting had already been placed. He said that being moved away from the protest site would not bring the matter to a close, and that the family would remain in Delhi as they considered their next steps.
In a quoted statement, he called for Gautam's removal from the governorship while the investigation remained active, adding that the identity of the VVIP at the centre of the matter had yet to be disclosed. He further stated that the CBI inquiry, once concluded, would bring all relevant details into the open.
A letter from Rahul Gandhi, who holds the position of Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, reached President Murmu calling on her to put Gautam's appointment on hold pending the conclusion of the Central Bureau of Investigation's inquiry into the matter. In the letter, Gandhi expressed concern that the constitutional protections attached to the governor's office could stand in the way of criminal proceedings against Gautam for as long as he holds the position, adding that an inquiry with no viable path to prosecution amounts to little more than an inquiry in name only.
On 12 October, Gautam — who had previously served as the BJP's in-charge for Uttarakhand — received a gubernatorial appointment to Sikkim from President Murmu. Gautam's name has featured in claims tied to an alleged high-profile connection within the homicide investigation. No proof has been attached to the accusations, and the identity of the VIP — along with what part that person may have played — has yet to be established.
On Wednesday evening, a demonstration at India Gate was set in motion by the victim's parents. Among those who gathered were Rahul Gandhi, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, general secretary KC Venugopal, and a number of additional Congress figures.
Shortly before dawn on Thursday, officers from Delhi Police took into custody the victim's parents, activist Yogita Bhayana, and a number of Congress party members. A group of individuals was escorted to Tilak Nagar police station. Footage shared across social media platforms captured bystanders attempting to obstruct the vehicle transporting those held in custody, as party members took to the streets in response to the detentions. Both parents of the victim were subsequently released.
When reporters asked about the presence of Congress politicians at the protest, the victim's father told a television channel that his family had extended no invitation to any of them. "Upon learning that a demonstration was under way, they arrived to offer their solidarity," he said. He also told reporters that the couple had visited Rahul Gandhi at his Delhi home on a prior occasion, at which Gandhi conveyed his support for their pursuit of justice.
Rekha Arya, who holds the Women and Child Welfare portfolio in Uttarakhand, said the Congress party was using a sensitive matter for political purposes. Noting that the pursuit of accountability for the victim's family carried weight for people throughout Uttarakhand, she added that the matter also bore on the standing and respect of women in the state. Arya characterised the use of that sensitive matter for political ends as an unfortunate course of action.
Arya further argued that any party genuinely committed to the family's cause would ground its efforts in verified facts, concrete evidence, and adherence to the legal process, rather than in electoral calculation, noting that invoking a victim's name can serve political ends as readily as it serves justice.
Ankita Bhandari, 19, was employed at an Uttarakhand resort when she died; her body was recovered from a canal in 2022, and murder proceedings arising from those circumstances are now before the courts. According to the account put forward, a high-ranking individual had pressed her for "special service," a request she declined to fulfil. At the time, the property was under the ownership of a BJP leader's son. Questions about who holds the designation of VIP in the case, along with the broader allegations attached to it, remain under examination by investigators.
