Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami
NEW DELHI: Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Tuesday said he would meet the parents of Ankita Bhandari amid renewed protests seeking justice for the 19-year-old receptionist, whose death in September 2022 had triggered widespread outrage.“As the chief servant of the state, I will speak with her parents. After that, we will take forward whatever they desire for their daughter’s justice in a manner consistent with the law,” Dhami said at a press conference. He added that the Uttarakhand government would not back down from any kind of investigation, as protests continue across the state demanding a CBI probe into the case.“We are ready for any kind of probe. Ankita Bhandari is like our own daughter, and ensuring justice for her has been our highest priority. With this same commitment, strict action has been taken against the criminals, who are now serving life imprisonment,” the BJP leader stated. In May last year, a court convicted Pulkit Arya, the son of now-expelled party leader Vinod Arya, for Bhandari’s murder. Pulkit Arya, who owned the Vanantra Resort where she worked, was sentenced to life imprisonment along with two of his associates.However, Bhandari’s parents have demanded the death penalty for the convicts. Meanwhile, Dhami also addressed a purported audio recording, the emergence of which sparked the fresh wave of demonstrations.“One name was mentioned through an audio… Is someone trying to vitiate the atmosphere in the state and looking for political ground here? There are other ways to do politics,” the chief minister remarked.The audio purportedly named a “VIP” whom Bhandari had refused to “serve,” prompting Arya and his associates to murder her.Uttarakhand Police have denied any involvement of a “VIP” in the case.