Death in a resort: Ankita Bhandari, the girl whose dreams were cut short

Over a month ago, 19-year-old Ankita Bhandari left her home in a Pauri village to land a job that she hoped would change her life. Until, one day, she went missing. As her death hits the headlines, AVANEESH MISHRA tells the story of a dream cut short.

The Uttarakhand resort is now at the centre of a sensational murder that hit the headlines a couple of weeks ago while casting a light on how business, politics and ambition can cross paths, sometimes to dangerous consequences.

On the night of September 18, Ankita Bhandari, a 19-year-old receptionist at Vanantra Resort was killed allegedly by three persons, including her employer Pulkit Arya, 35, son of now expelled BJP leader Vinod Arya. Police said Pulkit had allegedly killed Ankita after she resisted his orders to provide “special services” to some of the guests at the resort.

With the murder resulting in massive protests across the state, the authorities swung into action — three of the accused, Pulkit and his associates Saurabh Bhaskar and Ankit Gupta, were taken into custody and the district administration demolished a section of the resort, which sparked a controversy amid allegations that it was a bid to “destroy” crucial evidence. Following Pulkit’s arrest, the Uttarakhand BJP expelled his father Vinod and elder brother Ankit from the party.

Now, weeks later, away from the cameras and hordes of media personnel who descended on this resort following news of Ankita’s death, the Chilla canal, into which Pulkit allegedly pushed Ankita, flows quietly, its gurgling waters standing witness to the events that ended in tragedy on September 18.

At a two-storeyed structure with moss-covered stairs leading up to the first floor, Ankita’s father Virendra Bhandari is flooded with memories of his daughter — the day she was born, the little “Goddess Lakshmi” whom he named Ankita but called “Sakshi”; the day he last saw her as he dropped her off as she left for her job at the Rishikesh resort.

https://indianexpress.com/article/india/death-in-uttarakhand-resort-rishikesh-8198080/

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