The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday served actress Urmila Sanawar a notice directing her to appear in Dehradun on October 23 to give her consent for a proposed narco-analysis and polygraph test in connection with the 2022 murder of Ankita Bhandari, according to ANI.
A CBI team visited Sanawar’s residence in Saharanpur after questioning her for around four hours on October 18. The notice seeks to establish whether she is willing to undergo the tests voluntarily, without coercion or undue influence.
Speaking to ANI, Sanawar said the notice was linked to an audio clip that went viral in connection with the case. She said she had agreed to undergo the tests after sharing the information she had about the case with investigators.
Sanawar welcomed the renewed pace of the investigation but questioned why it had taken so long to gather momentum. She said the probe had remained on the back burner for nine months and suggested that protests by Bhandari’s parents and pressure from the Opposition had prompted the CBI to accelerate its inquiry.
“If every daughter gets justice like this, and if the justice process had moved this swiftly from the very beginning, then perhaps Ankita Bhandari’s parents would not have had to sit in protest outside India Gate,” she told ANI.
The investigation has gained renewed attention amid a controversy over the alleged involvement of a “VIP” in Bhandari’s murder. The issue resurfaced following the appointment of former Uttarakhand BJP in-charge Dushyant Gautam as the Governor of Sikkim.
Earlier this month, a four-member CBI team visited Sanawar’s residence in connection with the case. On Saturday, investigators also questioned former Uttarakhand BJP MLA Suresh Rathore.
Speaking to reporters in Haridwar, Rathore said he had cooperated with the investigation and provided investigators with information relevant to the case.
On Friday, Bhandari’s parents met senior officials at the CBI headquarters and shared information about various aspects of the case.
Bhandari, who worked as a receptionist at a resort near Rishikesh in Uttarakhand, was murdered in September 2022.
(With inputs from ANI)
