Uttarakhand Resort Murder Case

Nanavati murder case, the Tandoor murder, the child killers (Renuka Shinde & Seema Gavit), the Sheena Bora murder case, and so many more, India has been witnessing bizarre and horrific events of murder since old times. Similarly, if a politician or his family member commits a crime later concealed with the help of someone in power so, nowadays, situations like these are extremely typical in India. At the very least, those granted the power to lead this country must not abuse that authority. In a recent incident, our country has again seen a heinous crime where an accused who is politically powerful near about escaped from his crime, however, the case came into the limelight, sparking a ray of hope that one-day justice will be served. At the same time, questions popped up in our minds are; whether Indian criminal laws are stringent enough to completely end these crimes, what is the punishment of murder prescribed by our criminal law and more. So, let's discuss all these in this article.

"This article will discuss the Uttarakhand Murder case, which recently got hyped in the news." Let us start with the article. 

What happened in Ankita Bhandari's murder case?

Ankita Bhandari, is a 19-year-old girl who worked as a receptionist in a resort named Vanantara Resort in Pauri district's Yamkeshwar block, owned by Haridwar BJP leader Vinod Arya's son Pulkit Arya. Ankita was found missing by her parents on 19th September 2022. It is alleged that Pulkit Arya killed Ankita because she denied providing sexual favours to the guests. She had a conversation with her friend, sharing every detail in the chat.

She told her friend that she was insecure because she was pressured by Pulkit to enter into prostitution. He also forcibly tried to kiss her. It is alleged by the Police that Pulkit, Ankit Gupta, and Saurabh Bhaskar took Ankita to Rishikesh and while returning Ankita and Pulkit entered into an argument, and he pushed her into the canal. It has been alleged by the Police that because Ankita threatened Pulkit to expose him and the reality of the resort, Pulkit killed her. He hatched an elaborate plan to throw off this Police trail. He asked the cook to prepare meals for four people and took the food to Ankita’s room so that no suspicion could be made. The next morning, they all acted to find Ankita and lodged a missing complaint of her to the Police.

• Pulkit, Saurabh Bhaskar, and Ankit Gupta were arrested in the case as the main accused. Ankita’s parents refused to conduct her last rites until they got the postmortem details, but the government had already cremated her body in Srinagar.
• The preliminary report stated the cause behind the death is “asphyxia consequent upon antemortem drowning” and suggested “injuries on the body due to blunt force trauma before death”. The final report hasn’t been declared yet. 
• The resort property recently got demolished by the authorities due to illegalities. Various questions have been raised due to this demolition. It is being alleged that the action “might have erased crucial evidence in the case”.
• The whole Uttarakhand public has started the protests demanding justice for Ankita. They are calling for the accused to be executed. Women have made it clear that they don't want any more Ankitas in their vicinity. This time, their cries for justice are very audible.

Murder under IPC

Murder is defined under Section 300 of the IPC. According to this Act, culpable homicide is considered murder if:

• The act is committed with the intention to cause death.
• The act is done with the intention of causing such bodily injury that the offender has knowledge that it would sufficiently (not likely as in the case of culpable homicide) result in death.
• The person has the knowledge that his act is dangerous and would cause death or bodily injury but still commits the act, which would amount to murder.

Punishment- Whoever commits murder shall be punished with death or imprisonment for life and shall also be liable to a fine. To know the difference between murder and culpable homicide, along with other provisions on IPC, enrol on our course

Other incidents where Political Power won over Justice

1. Tandoor murder case 

Sushil Sharma (Tandoor murderer), a congress youth leader, killed his wife Naina Sahni and tried to dispose of her body in a restaurant. The body was put into a tandoor to burn. Later, Sushil was not found guilty.

2. Manu Sharma case 

In 1999, Manu Sharma who was the son of former Union Minister Vinod Sharma asked for liquor at 2 am whereas Jessica Lal refused same saying that the party was over which in turn cost her her life. 

3. Shilpi Gautam case  

At first, it was declared that the incident was a double suicide but we all know the reality. Shilpi and Gautam were murdered and put into a car (nude). It is alleged that Shilpi was raped. Sadhu Yadav, brother-in-law of Lalu Yadav was suspected but he refused to cooperate with the investigation, and later after 4 years, the case was closed, declaring it all to be a double suicide. 

Conclusion 

Ankita Bhandari's WhatsApp conversations have come to light in her murder case, according to SIT lead DIG PR Devi. They are additionally being looked into. To quickly determine the cause of the issue, efforts are being made. Every aspect of the case is being thoroughly investigated.

The police had already checked the area and all of the locations where the body had been found. From the scene, all pertinent information was gathered. The investigation is moving forward based on the evidence. According to Renuka Devi, the case would be heard in a fast-track court. Unlike the other cases, let us see if this case would also be dismissed with disappointment or will this case be the next step toward justice.