JCB driver tells court he was called twice for demolition at resort on same night
Ankita Bhandari case
Kotdwar, Dec 24: A court hearing the Ankita Bhandari murder case was told by a JCB driver that he was called twice on September 23, 2022, to raze parts of the Vanantra Resort which was operated by the main accused, lawyers said here.
The first time the demolition was carried out under the then sub-divisional magistrate and later on the direction of current Yamkeshwar MLA Renu Bisht, he claimed.
The statement by the witness, Deepak, is significant as there were allegations from various quarters about the destruction of evidence by the overnight razing of parts of the resort at Bhogpur in Pauri district.
While recording his statement before Additional District and Sessions Judge Reena Negi here on Friday, Deepak said he used to drive the JCB of Satyendra Singh Rawat and on his direction, he had gone to Vanantra Resort on September 23, 2022.
He claimed that on the instructions of the SDM and in the presence of other officials, he razed the gate and the boundary wall of the resort, and then left for Haridwar.
Deepak claimed that when he reached Shivmurti in Haridwar, the personal assistant of Yamkeshwar MLA Renu Bisht called him and asked him to reach the resort with the JCB.
The driver told the the court that when he reached the resort again in the JCB, MLA Bisht was present there and on the lawmaker's instructions he broke the walls and windows of two rooms. He claimed that the MLA had made him stay in an adjacent room in the resort that night.
Ankita Bhandari, 19, who worked as a receptionist at the Vanantra resort, was killed allegedly by the resort operator Pulkit Arya, who is the son of Vinod Arya, and two employees. Her body was recovered from the Chila canal in Rishikesh.
The BJP had expelled Vinod Arya from the party after the incident sparked protests.
Apart from Deepak, the prosecution also presented two policemen, Ravindra Singh and Rajveer Singh, posted at Laxman Jhula police station on the day of the incident, as witnesses.
Advocates of Ankita's family, Ajay Pant and Narendra Gosai, said that till now 33 people have given their testimonies in the case.
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the case has produced 97 witnesses.
The next hearing of the case will be on January 5.
All three accused are lodged in Pauri jail.
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Noida airport to begin ops next month with IndiGo flights to Lucknow, Bengaluru
Noida (PTI): IndiGo on Thursday announced that it will start commercial flight operations from the Noida International Airport in Jewar from June 15, becoming the launch carrier for the greenfield airport in western Uttar Pradesh.
The first day flights will be to and fro Lucknow and Bengaluru, the airline said in a statement.
Noida International Airport was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 28.
IndiGo said it will be the first carrier to start commercial services from the airport, the third in the National Capital Region (NCR).
According to the airline, inaugural flights on June 15 will operate on the Lucknow-Noida-Bengaluru-Noida-Lucknow sector.
As per the announced schedule, flight 6E 2278 will depart from Lucknow at 7.05 am and arrive in Noida at 8.05 am before departing for Bengaluru at 8.35 am and landing there at 11.05 am.
The return flight, 6E 2279, will leave Bengaluru at 3.45 pm and reach Noida at 6.20 pm before departing for Lucknow at 6.55 pm and arriving there at 8 pm.
IndiGo said it will gradually introduce direct flights connecting Noida International Airport to more than 16 destinations across the country, including metro cities such as Bengaluru and Hyderabad, besides tier-2 and tier-3 cities like Amritsar, Chandigarh, Dharamsala, Jaipur, Lucknow, Navi Mumbai, Pantnagar and Srinagar.
The airline said bookings for the flights are being opened in phases through its website, mobile application and authorised travel partners.
Aloke Singh, Chief Strategy Officer of IndiGo, said the airline was pleased to announce the launch of operations from Noida International Airport.
"Strategically positioned on the Yamuna Expressway, Noida International Airport will be the new gateway for western Uttar Pradesh alongside the NCR. As we continue to expand our operations, we remain committed to delivering affordable, on-time and hassle-free travel experiences," Singh said.
IndiGo said the airport is expected to emerge as a major domestic aviation hub and will strengthen connectivity between Delhi-NCR and western Uttar Pradesh through integrated road and rail infrastructure.
