Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi and Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra meet the parents of Ankita Bhandari (Img: Pinterest)
New Delhi: The parents of Ankita Bhandari were detained by Delhi Police during an overnight protest near India Gate in the early hours of Thursday, October 15. Several Congress leaders and other demonstrators were also taken into custody, triggering criticism from opposition leaders who accused the police of manhandling protesters demanding justice in the 2022 murder case. The parents were released at around 5 am, according to reports.
The protest was organised against the appointment of BJP leader Dushyant Kumar Gautam as Sikkim Governor. Ankita’s family has demanded that the appointment be put on hold until the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) completes its probe into the alleged VIP angle in the case.
The police action took place at around 4 am, after the family had staged a sit-in near India Gate. Congress leaders, including Pawan Khera, Supriya Shrinate and Indian Youth Congress president Uday Bhanu Chib, were among those detained, according to media reports.
Congress leaders condemned the detentions and alleged that the protesters were manhandled. They argued that the family was seeking answers about the case and should be allowed to press its demands peacefully.
Following the police action, Ankita’s mother reportedly warned that she would begin a hunger strike at home if the authorities did not allow the family to continue its protest. Her father, Virendra Singh Bhandari, also issued an ultimatum, asking the government to reconsider Gautam’s appointment until the ongoing investigation is completed.
The family’s central demand is that the alleged VIP angle be investigated fully before the appointment proceeds. The allegations surrounding that angle remain distinct from the criminal convictions already secured in Ankita’s murder case.
On Wednesday evening, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra met Ankita’s parents at the protest site. Priyanka Gandhi was seen comforting Ankita’s mother, while Congress leaders expressed support for the family’s demand for further investigation.
The participation of senior Congress leaders brought renewed political attention to the case and the controversy surrounding the proposed appointment.
Ankita Bhandari, a 19-year-old receptionist at Vanantra Resort in Uttarakhand, was murdered in September 2022. Her body was recovered from the Chilla Canal several days later.
Resort owner Pulkit Arya and two employees were convicted in the case and sentenced to life imprisonment in May 2025. The latest protest centres on the family’s demand for a separate, thorough examination of the alleged VIP angle and its objection to Dushyant Kumar Gautam’s appointment as Sikkim Governor.
