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Solved case · 2022
The short answer
Ankita Bhandari, a 19-year-old receptionist, was killed in September 2022 at the Vanantra Resort near Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, after resisting pressure to provide services to a guest. Three men, including the resort owner's son, were convicted of her murder in May 2025.
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Ankita Bhandari, born 11 November 2003 in Dobh-Srikot village, Pauri, Uttarakhand, took her first job as a receptionist at the Vanantra Resort in Ganga-Bhogpur, Rishikesh, on 28 August 2022, after financial difficulties forced her to drop out of a hotel management course in Dehradun. She lodged at the resort with permission from owner Pulkit Arya, son of senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Vinod Arya. She had reportedly told a friend she was being pressured to provide "special services" to an anonymous VIP for ₹10,000.
On 18 September 2022, Bhandari stopped responding to calls from her family and friends. According to the three men later convicted, Pulkit Arya had a heated exchange with Bhandari, after which he, assistant resort manager Ankit Gupta, and resort manager Saurabh Bhaskar took her to another location; an altercation followed and the men pushed her into the Chilla canal. A hotel staff witness stated Bhandari was sexually assaulted at the resort that day.
Bhandari's father tried to file a missing-person report at three separate police stations over the following 12 hours, but officers declined to register an FIR, citing jurisdiction, despite Zero FIR policy allowing filing regardless of jurisdiction in urgent cases. Revenue police officer Vaibhav Pratap, informed of the disappearance by Arya on 19 September, went on leave without acting. Only after Bhandari's father contacted state authorities and media did the case transfer to regular police on 22 September. Bhandari's body was recovered from the Chilla canal barrage by the State Disaster Response Force on 24 September 2022.
On 23 September, before the body was found, the room Bhandari had lived in at the resort was demolished on the orders of local BJP MLA Renu Bisht, then serving as sub-divisional magistrate; a further fire broke out at the sealed premises on 24 September. A JCB driver later testified in court that he carried out the demolition on Bisht's instructions. The family alleged the demolition destroyed evidence and objected to the state-ordered postmortem, conducted by AIIMS Rishikesh, which found injuries suggestive of blunt force trauma and drowning as the cause of death.
The three men confessed to killing Bhandari during police interrogation after arrest by the Laxman Jhula police and a subsequently formed special investigative team (SIT). In December 2022, police filed a 500-page charge sheet. In March 2023, Arya was additionally charged with molestation and immoral trafficking, while Bhaskar and Gupta were charged with murder and evidence-hiding.
On 30 May 2025, an Additional District and Sessions Judge Court in Kotdwar, presided over by Judge Reena Negi, convicted Pulkit Arya, Saurabh Bhaskar, and Ankit Gupta of murder under Indian Penal Code Sections 302, 354, and 120B, following testimony from 47 witnesses. Sentencing remained pending as of the verdict date. Separately, an independent journalist who had petitioned for a CBI investigation was arrested in March 2024 under SC/ST Act provisions following a complaint against him.
15 dated entries · 2003–2025
Ankita Bhandari is born in Dobh-Srikot, Pauri, Uttarakhand.
Bhandari begins work as a receptionist at Vanantra Resort, Rishikesh.
Bhandari is moved to a downstairs room at the resort, per her chats.
Bhandari is last in contact with family; according to the convicted men, she is taken from the resort and pushed into the Chilla canal following an altercation.
Pulkit Arya reports Bhandari's disappearance to revenue police officer Vaibhav Pratap, who goes on leave without acting.
Case is transferred from revenue police to regular police after intervention by state authorities and media.
Bhandari's former room at the resort is demolished on the orders of MLA Renu Bisht.
A fire breaks out at the sealed resort premises; Bhandari's body is recovered from the Chilla canal barrage by the State Disaster Response Force.
Bhandari's last rites are performed at NIT ghat, Srinagar.
Police file a 500-page charge sheet against the three accused.
Pulkit Arya is additionally charged with molestation and immoral trafficking; Bhaskar and Gupta charged with murder and hiding evidence.
Parents and social workers allege Bhandari was raped by Bhaskar before her murder.
JCB driver Deepak testifies in court that he demolished the resort on MLA Renu Bisht's instructions.
Journalist Ashutosh Negi, who had sought a CBI probe, is arrested by Uttarakhand Police under SC/ST Act provisions.
A Kotdwar district court convicts Pulkit Arya, Saurabh Bhaskar, and Ankit Gupta of murder; sentencing pending.
5 named in this file
Victims first. Every legal label is set from public records and court outcomes, not from the prose.
19-year-old receptionist killed at Vanantra Resort, Rishikesh, in September 2022.[3]
Assistant resort manager; convicted of murder, assault on modesty, and criminal conspiracy on 30 May 2025.[3]
Owner of Vanantra Resort; convicted of murder (IPC 302), assault on modesty (354), and criminal conspiracy (120B) on 30 May 2025.[3]
Resort manager; convicted of murder, assault on modesty, and criminal conspiracy on 30 May 2025.[3]
Judge who delivered the 30 May 2025 conviction verdict at the Kotdwar district court.[3]
From the record
3 cited
Coverage is not a source: every fact in this file rests on the records below.
Pressindianexpress.comAccessed Jul 7, 2026
Presstimesofindia.indiatimes.comAccessed Jul 7, 2026
EncyclopedicWikipediaAccessed Jul 7, 2026
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