Ankita Bhandari's parents demanded Dushyant Kumar Gautam's removal as Sikkim governor. They warned of nationwide protests while seeking a Supreme Court-monitored CBI investigation.
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Newdelhi,Oct 15, 2026 21:58 IST
The mother of Ankita Bhandari, who was murdered in Uttarakhand in 2022, said she feared her daughter would not get justice after Dushyant Kumar Gautam was appointed the governor of Sikkim, news agency Press Trust of India reported.
Ankita's family has demanded that Gautam's appointment be put on hold until the ongoing CBI investigation into the case is completed. The family has alleged that he was linked to the so-called "VIP angle" in the case, an accusation Gautam has denied.
Addressing a press conference on Thursday, Ankita's father said his wife fell ill after hearing about the appointment. "Our daughter will not get justice," her mother said after learning about it.
Her father gave the Centre 24 hours to cancel Gautam's appointment and warned of a nationwide agitation if the demand was not met. "We will sit on a protest within 24 hours if the government does not remove Gautam from the post of Sikkim governor," he said.
He said the family had received support from people across the country and urged them to stand by it until Ankita gets justice. He also demanded that the CBI investigation into his daughter's case be conducted under the supervision of the Supreme Court.
Ankita's mother said the family had been unable to live peacefully since her death. "We are unable to live peacefully thinking about our daughter. How many tears can I shed? Whenever I open my eyes, I see her," she said.
She said the family had not celebrated festivals like other people since losing Ankita.
Activist Yogita Bhayana, who was present with the family, told PTI that Ankita's parents did not want to associate their protest with any political party and had not invited anyone to join them. However, those who wished to support the family were welcome, she said.
"We did not have to protest yesterday either. The parents had come here to speak to the press and did not know where to go, so we sat at India Gate," Bhayana said.
She said Delhi Police had been supportive and had not used force against the family. When some political leaders joined them, the police asked the group to leave because India Gate was not a designated protest site, she added.
"The victim's parents were also handled very calmly by police personnel, who assisted them to the bus," Bhayana said, urging people in Sikkim to support the family's demand for justice.
Ankita's parents were released around 5 am on Thursday, hours after they were detained while protesting near India Gate against Gautam's appointment.
Gautam has denied the allegations against him and initiated defamation proceedings against those making them. A former BJP national general secretary who had served as the party's in-charge for Uttarakhand, he was appointed the governor of Sikkim on Monday.
Ankita, 19, worked as a receptionist at the Vanantra Resort in Rishikesh. She was killed on September 18, 2022, and her body was recovered from the Chilla canal four days later.
Resort owner Pulkit Arya, the son of former BJP leader Vinod Arya, and two accomplices were convicted in the case and sentenced to life imprisonment.
The case drew political attention over allegations that an unidentified VIP was linked to the crime. Ankita's family and activists have sought an investigation into this aspect of the case, with Gautam's name being raised in connection with the allegations.
The family has now demanded that Gautam be removed as Sikkim governor and that the CBI investigation be conducted under Supreme Court supervision, warning of a wider protest if its demands are not met.
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