New Delhi [India], October 15 : Delhi Police on Thursday morning detained Ankita Bhandari's parents and several opposition leaders during a sit-in protest at India Gate. 
Following the detention, Congress leaders Pawan Khera, Jothimani and Imran Pratapgarhi staged a protest inside the police station.

Bhandari's parents were later released from Tilak Marg Police Station.
Later, the family of Ankita Bhandari made a fresh appeal for justice while raising concerns over the appointment of BJP leader Dushyant Kumar Gautam as Governor of Sikkim.
Speaking to ANI after an early-morning police action in the national capital, Ankita's parents demanded that the gubernatorial appointment be kept on hold pending a thorough investigation into the unresolved allegations surrounding the case.
Ankita's father expressed deep concern over the recent political appointment and issued an ultimatum to the authorities.
"Our main issue is that the name of Dushyant Kumar Gautam has come up, and the government has appointed him as the Governor of Sikkim," he said, warning that "If our concerns are not addressed within 24 hours, the people of Uttarakhand will come out onto the streets."

The family demanded the immediate public disclosure of location details and call records for both Ajay Kumar and Dushyant Kumar spanning September 18–19, 2022.
Appealing for continued support from citizens across the country, Ankita’s mother emphasised the broader implications of their fight.
"I just want justice for my daughter, and the appointment of the person who has been made Governor should be put on hold. Just as you supported me and my daughter Ankita earlier, I request you to continue standing with me. This fight is not just for my daughter; it is a fight for everyone's daughters," said her mother.

Meanwhile, several Opposition leaders criticised the detention.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge hit out at the Union Government, terming the detention the "pinnacle of the Modi government's cowardice and insensitivity."
Taking to X, Kharge slammed the government, stating that while the parents pleading for justice were taken into custody, a BJP "VIP" was rewarded with a gubernatorial post.
"The pinnacle of the Modi government's cowardice and insensitivity! The parents of Ankita Bhandari, who are pleading for justice, are taken into custody, while a BJP 'VIP' is rewarded with the Governor's post! This oppression by those in power is not a sign of the government's strength, but rather proof of its attempt to flee from questions," Kharge posted on X.
Calling the police action utterly shameful, the Congress chief asserted that his party will not back down from the fight.
"Such treatment of parents who have already lost their daughter is utterly shameful and reprehensible. The Congress Party will continue to fight to ensure justice for daughter Ankita," he added.
Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, joined the chorus, alleging Bhandari's parents were taken into custody while peacefully demanding that Dushyant Gautam not be appointed Governor of Sikkim.
He said the fight for justice would neither be silenced nor stopped and asserted that the Congress would continue to stand with the family until they received justice.
In a post on X, Rahul Gandhi said the Congress would continue to stand with the family until they received justice.
“4 AM in the morning. While the world was asleep, Ankita Bhandari's parents were taken into custody. Their crime? They were sitting quietly at India Gate—with heavy shoulders, without any commotion, and simply demanding that Dushyant Gautam should not be made the Governor of Sikkim until the CBI investigation is complete," Rahul Gandhi said.
He added, "Yesterday, Priyanka and I met these parents. Even before the results of that investigation came in, the appointment was rushed, and the parents asking questions were picked up in the dead of night. This is the hallmark of this government: silence the voices of the victims, remove those who ask questions. But the fight for justice will neither be silenced nor stopped. The Congress stands with Ankita Bhandari's family, and will continue to stand—until they get justice.”
Gandhi also urged President Droupadi Murmu to reconsider the appointment of Dushyant Kumar Gautam as the Governor of Sikkim until the investigation into the case is complete. 
In a post on X, Gandhi alleged that the question of the identity of the VIP linked to the case remained unanswered even four years after the incident, citing what he described as the slow pace of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe.
“Madam President, Ankita Bhandari, aged 19, refused to compromise her dignity for a VIP, which led to her murder. Even four years later, due to the CBI's sluggish investigation, the question remains: who was that VIP?” Gandhi wrote.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor questioned whether the Government has “so completely abandoned its duty of accountability that it now relies on detention to silence those who demand it,” as he reacted to the detention of Ankita Bhandari’s parents.
In a post shared on X, Tharoor said peaceful protesters and grieving parents should not be treated as threats, asserting that the right to protest was a constitutional right that could not depend on the government's approval.
"Has the Government so completely abandoned its duty of accountability that it now relies on detention to silence those who demand it? At Jantar Mantar, young citizens exercising their democratic right to peaceful protest, even while waving the national Tricolour, find themselves in judicial custody. At India Gate, the grieving parents of Ankita Bhandari, seeking justice for their daughter, are detained at 4 in the morning, alongside Congress workers who stood in solidarity with them," Tharoor said.
"A protester is not an offender. A grieving parent is not a threat. The distinction should not need explaining to those entrusted with governing," he added.
Questioning the action against the demonstrators, the Congress MP asked, "What threat to public order do peaceful protesters pose? What purpose is served by subjecting bereaved parents, already enduring an unimaginable tragedy, to such indignity?"
Congress MP Pawan Khera alleged that the police action reflected a deterioration in democratic freedoms.
“This is brutality. You can see democracy coming to an end at India Gate. It is ending at 4 am,” Khera said.
Hitting out at newly appointed Sikkim Governor Dushyant Gautam, he further alleged that those protesting against the accused were being detained while the person facing allegations could be appointed to a constitutional post.
Khera said, "Barbarity is happening in this country. The one who has been accused will become the governor, and Ankita's parents will go to jail? We are protesting against rapists, so we will go to jail, and the one who has been accused of rape will become the governor—this is democracy."
Meanwhile, Congress leaders and workers, including former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat, Congress Management Committee Chairman Harak Singh Rawat and Election Campaign Committee Chairman Pritam Singh gathered outside Lok Bhavan in Dehradun and raised slogans over the Ankita Bhandari case.
Police detained Harish Rawat, who said that there was no intention of a protest but they were there to submit a memorandum to the officials at the Lok Bhavan over the appointment of BJP leader Dushyant Gautam as the Sikkim Governor.

"Whereas we had no plans for any kind of protest; the only intention was to submit a memorandum. And the memorandum is very clear that Dushyant Kumar is under the scanner, and the people of Uttarakhand seriously suspect whether he is the VIP [involved]—is he the same VIP? Until the CBI finds another VIP, Dushyant Kumar will remain guilty in the eyes of the people of Uttarakhand, and appointing him as Governor," he told reporters.
Uttarakhand Additional Director General of Police (Crime and Law & Order) V Murugesan briefed the media on the investigation and judicial proceedings in the Ankita Bhandari murder case at Police Headquarters in Dehradun and said the Uttarakhand government took the necessary steps to ensure an expedited trial and effective prosecution in the case. 
He said that based on the substantial evidence collected by the SIT and effective arguments by the prosecution, the Additional District and Sessions Court in Kotdwar convicted all three accused — Pulkit Arya, Saurabh Bhaskar and Ankit Gupta — on May 30, 2025, and sentenced them to rigorous imprisonment for life.
Ankita was murdered on September 18, 2022, and her body was recovered from the Chilla Canal on September 24, 2022.