A court in Uttarakhand on Friday sentenced Pulkit Arya, son of a former BJP leader, and two others to life imprisonment in the 2022 high-profile murder case of Ankita Bhandari, an employee of a Rishikesh-based resort.
The two others who have been sentenced are Saurabh Bhaskar and Ankit Gupta.
The additional district and Sessions judge court in Kotdwar found the accused guilty under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 302 (murder), 201 (destruction of evidence), 120B (criminal conspiracy), and 354A (sexual harassment), along with provisions of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, according to reports.
Arya is son of Vinod Arya, now suspended BJP leader.
Ankita, a resident of Pauri, worked as a receptionist at Rishikesh’s Vanantra Resort.
It is alleged that Arya, owner of the resort, along with Bhaskar and Gupta, pushed Ankita into a barrage and murdered her.
After Anikta was reported missing for at least six days before the police recovered her body from Rishikesh’s Chilla canal on September 24, 2022.
Initially a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by deputy inspector general of police P Renuka Devi looked into the case.
Former employees had reportedly told the investigators that Arya and Gupta used to bring women to the resort and abuse the staff, including women staffers.
One of the women even claimed that she too was assaulted.
A 500-page chargesheet was filed in the court.
After charges were framed against Arya, Bhaskar, and Gupta, the court began hearing the prosecution’s testimony on March 28, 2023.
The hearing lasted for around two years and eight months, and 47 witnesses, including the investigator, were examined in court by the prosecution. The SIT had listed 97 witnesses in the case, but only 47 important ones were produced before the court.
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