NEW DELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday questioned journalist Ashutosh Negi, who had sought a federal probe into the 2022 murder of 19-year-old resort receptionist Ankita Bhandari in Uttarakhand, officials said.
Negi, editor of Uttarakhand-based outlet Jago Uttarakhand, was summoned to the agency’s headquarters in New Delhi as it investigates the alleged role of an unidentified “VIP” in the murder. The summons stated that “there are reasonable grounds to question you to ascertain facts and circumstances from you.”
Negi called the summons a harassment. He was among the first to approach the Uttarakhand High Court seeking a CBI probe, but his plea was rejected. He was arrested by Uttarakhand Police in March 2024 over his reporting on the police investigation and later granted bail, the Hindustan Times reported.
Bhandari, who worked as a receptionist at Vanantra Resort in Pauri district, went missing on September 18, 2022. Her body was recovered days later, triggering protests across the state. On May 30, 2025, a court in Kotdwar convicted resort owner Pulkit Arya and two employees, Saurabh Bhaskar and Ankit Gupta, of her murder and sentenced them to life imprisonment.
Her parents continued to demand a fresh investigation. The demand gained momentum after an actress who claims to be the wife of a former legislator circulated audio and video clips allegedly indicating the involvement of a “VIP”.
Bhandari’s parents had also sought a CBI probe. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami recommended an investigation by the agency, which registered a case against unknown persons in February.
“Materials are circulating on social media, including audio and video and others, alleging that certain unknown individuals, referred to as ‘VIP’, were involved in a crime related to the Ankita Bhandari murder case,” the CBI’s First Information Report (FIR) said.
“Although the perpetrators involved in the murder have been convicted, it is being alleged on social media and other platforms that certain evidence in the case was concealed or destroyed,” the FIR added.
