Uttarakhand Court Convicts Resort Owner, Two Others in Receptionist’s Murder

Dehradun: A court in Kotdwar, Uttarakhand, has found resort owner Pulkit Arya and two associates, Saurabh Bhaskar and Ankit Gupta, guilty of murdering 19-year-old receptionist Ankita Bhandari in 2022. The verdict, delivered on Friday, marks a significant development in a case that sparked widespread public outrage across the state.

Ankita Bhandari, employed at Vanantra Resort in Rishikesh, was reported missing on September 18, 2022. Her body was discovered six days later in the Chilla canal. Investigations revealed that Pulkit Arya, the son of former BJP leader Vinod Arya, along with Bhaskar and Gupta, pushed Bhandari into the canal following a dispute. Reports indicate that Bhandari had resisted pressure to provide “special services” to resort guests, a factor that fueled public anger and intensified scrutiny of the case.

The prosecution presented a 500-page charge sheet, and the court examined 47 of the 97 listed witnesses during the nearly two-year trial. The trio was convicted under sections 302 (murder), 120B (criminal conspiracy), and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence) of the Indian Penal Code. The court has yet to announce the sentencing, which is expected to draw significant attention given the case’s high profile.

Pulkit Arya’s father, Vinod Arya, a former minister of state in the Trivendra Singh Rawat government, was expelled from the BJP following the murder. The case has been closely followed by media outlets, including ANI, which reported the victim’s mother’s appeal for the death penalty for the accused prior to the verdict. She urged the public to gather at the Kotdwar court to support the family’s quest for justice.
The case continues to resonate in Uttarakhand, where it has raised broader concerns about safety and exploitation in the hospitality industry.