Guwahati: A 19-year-old girl who was reported missing a few days ago, was found dead in the Chilla canal near Rishikesh on Saturday.
Reportedly, the missing girl is identified as Ankita Bhandari who is a receptionist.
According to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been assembled to look into the situation.
“The body of daughter Ankita was recovered this morning. My heart is deeply pained by this heartbreaking incident,” Dhami tweeted on Saturday.
“In order to ensure the harshest punishment for the culprits, an SIT has been formed under the leadership of Deputy Inspector General of Police P.Renuka Devi ji and ordered an in-depth investigation of this serious matter,” Dhami wrote.
The new development follows the arrest on Friday of three people, including Pulkit Arya, the son of former BJP minister Vinod Arya, who admitted to pushing Ankita into the canal during an incident.
Additional Superintendent of Police Shekhar Suyal said today “The deceased’s brother and father were here and they identified the body. The body found at the barrage is of Ankita Bhandari.”
“The search operation was going on from 7 am, we took out the body of a woman, her relatives came here and identified it to be the body of Ankita Bhandari. The body has been taken to AIIMS in Rishikesh,” said a State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) official.
While talking to national media, Chief Minister Dhami said, “Strictest action will be taken against all the culprits, regarding this, we have formed SIT under the leadership of DIG P Renuka Devi, which will get to the bottom of the whole matter, investigate it and work to bring the culprits to justice. The perpetrators will not be spared.”
Authorities in Uttarakhand bulldozed the Vanatra Resort, owned by Pulkit, on Friday when Ankita Bhandari was a receptionist there.
District magistrates have been instructed to take enforcement action against any resorts in Uttarakhand that have erroneous constructions, according to CM Dhami.
The police car that was transporting the suspect was attacked yesterday.