Ankita Bhandari murder: Uttarakhand BJP leader Vinod Arya, son Ankit Arya expelled from party

Dehradun (Uttarakhand) [India], September 24 (ANI): The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday expelled Vinod Arya from the primary membership of the party after his son Pulkit Arya was named as prime accused in the murder of one 19-year old Ankita Bhandari.

The party has also expelled Ankit Arya, the brother of Pulkit Arya, Meanwhile, the state government has also relieved Ankit Arya, brother of the main accused Pulkit Arya from the post of Deputy Chairman of the Uttarakhand Other Backward Classes Commission.
The expulsions were done after the State Disaster Relief Force recovered the body of Ankita Bhandari, who had been reported missing for the last few days, from Chilla canal in Rishikesh.
The administration and forces had been searching for the body after the accused admitted to pushing Ankita into the canal following an altercation.
Uttarakhand Police on Friday arrested three people including Pulkit Arya, on charges of murder of Ankita, who was employed as a receptionist at a resort in Rishikesh. Police said that the three arrested accused, including the manager of the Vanatara Resort owned by Pulkit Arya, confessed to having pushed Ankita into a canal after an altercation and she had drowned.

"During probe, it was found that she had left from the resort with three people, and didn't return. So, there were three suspects - Pulkit, Ankit and Bhaskar. We arrested them and produced before court yesterday. They were sent to remand and jailed," SSP Pauri Garhwal, Yaswant Singh told ANI.
On Friday, Uttarakhand government bulldozed the Vanatara resorts-- owned by the accused-- where Bhandari used to work as a receptionist on the orders of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami.
CM Dhami announced the setting up of an SIT, led by DIG police P Renuka Devi, to conduct a speedy probe into the killing. The chief minister also directed district magistrates to take action against all state resorts with illegal constructions.
Meanwhile angry locals set fire to the resort owned by Pulkit Arya. (ANI)