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Sikkim BJP backs Dushyant Gautam as Governor, says Ankita Bhandari probe must not be politicised

The state unit expressed solidarity with the murdered receptionist's family a day after CBI officers met her parents and promised a fair inquiry.

From the editorial desk · GangtokPublished
Gangtok, Sikkim (file photo)
Gangtok, Sikkim (file photo)Photo: Kailas98 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Key points

  1. The Sikkim BJP backed Dushyant Kumar Gautam's appointment as the state's Governor.
  2. It said the Ankita Bhandari inquiry should go on independently, without a political colour.
  3. CBI officers met Ankita's parents on Friday and assured them of a fair probe.

The Sikkim unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday backed the appointment of Dushyant Kumar Gautam as Governor of the state, and said the inquiry into the 2022 murder of Uttarakhand receptionist Ankita Bhandari should be allowed to proceed independently.

In a statement issued in Gangtok, the party said the investigation should not be given a partisan or political colour and called for respect for the rule of law and the judicial process.

Opposition parties have alleged that Gautam, a senior BJP leader, is the unnamed “VIP” whom the 19-year-old’s family and activists have long linked to the case. The allegations are unproven. Gautam has denied them and has started defamation proceedings against those making them.

The state BJP said it was aware of the latest developments in the case. On Friday, senior officers of the Central Bureau of Investigation, which is now investigating, met Ankita’s parents and assured them of a fair probe.

“We express our solidarity with Ankita Bhandari’s family and acknowledge their continuing struggle for truth and justice,” the statement said. “The concerns of parents who have lost their child must be addressed with empathy, dignity and seriousness.”

Ankita’s parents staged a sit-in near India Gate on Wednesday, joined by Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, asking that Gautam’s appointment be held back until the CBI completes its inquiry. Ankita was killed in September 2022 at a resort near Rishikesh, where she worked; its owner and two staff members were sentenced to life imprisonment in May 2025.