By Arun Pratap Singh
Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 18 Jun: Former BJP MLA Suresh Rathore, who was arrested in connection with a case relating to alleged objectionable social media posts linked to the Ankita Bhandari murder case, has been granted bail by the CJM court in Dehradun. Chief Judicial Magistrate Ravi Prakash ordered his release on furnishing a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh along with two sureties of the like amount.
It may be recalled that a case had been registered against Rathore at Dalanwala police station under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Information Technology Act. The Police had subsequently added Section 308(6) of the BNS to the case on June 14, 2026, following which he was arrested and produced before the court.
During the hearing on the bail application, the defence counsel argued that Rathore has been cooperating with the investigation and had earlier also been released after being served a notice under Section 35(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). The defence lawyer further contended that most of the offences invoked in the case are bailable in nature.
On the other hand, the prosecution lawyers opposed the bail plea, maintaining that the investigation is still in progress and that serious allegations have been levelled against the accused. However, after hearing arguments from both sides and examining the police records, the court observed that, considering the facts and circumstances of the case, it would be appropriate to grant bail to the accused.
In its order, the court noted that Rathore has been cooperating with the investigation and that the additional section incorporated into the case is also of a bailable nature. Accordingly, the court allowed the bail application and directed his release subject to the prescribed conditions.
It may also be recalled that accusations against Rathore are related indirectly to the Ankita Bhandari murder case, in which criminal complaints were registered against Rathore and actress Urmila Sanawar at Dalanwala, Nehru Colony, Bahadrabad and Jhabreda police stations in Dehradun and Haridwar districts. The complaints were lodged following the circulation of several audio and video clips on social media allegedly shared by Rathore and Sanawar. In these video and audio clips, Rathore and Sanawar had alleged involvement of two senior BJP leaders namely Dushyant Gautam and Ajaey Kumar referring to them as the VIPs in the case. Following this, Gautam and Kumar had filed cases of criminal defamation against Rathore and Urmila Sanawar.
According to the police, the audio and video recordings contained remarks that were allegedly objectionable and damaging to the reputation of several BJP leaders in Uttarakhand. The emergence of these clips triggered a major political controversy in the state and brought the Ankita Bhandari murder case, which had largely receded from public discourse, back into the spotlight.
The controversy intensified as the audio and video clips allegedly referred to a ‘VIP’, leading to widespread speculation and renewed public protests across the state. Demonstrations were held in several places, with demands for disclosure of the identity of the alleged VIP and calls for greater transparency in the investigation. The issue dominated political discourse, with leaders of both the BJP and Congress exchanging allegations and counter-allegations.
As public pressure mounted, CM Pushkar Singh Dhami met Ankita Bhandari’s parents and subsequently announced on 9 January, 2026 that the state government would recommend a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the case.
A complaint was lodged on 5 January, this year by BJP leader in charge of the party affairs in Uttarakhand, Dushyant Kumar Gautam at Dalanwala police station. In the complaint, it was alleged that audio and video clips relating to the Ankita Bhandari case were being circulated on social media by Rathore and Sanawar and that these clips were being used to deliberately malign him and other BJP leaders while attempting to implicate them in a false and conspiratorial manner. Following the complaint, multiple FIRs were registered against Rathore and Sanawar at various police stations in Dehradun and Haridwar.
Acting in one of the cases relating to allegations levelled against the BJP state in-charge, a joint team of Dalanwala police and the Special Operations Group took Rathore into custody from the Bhagwanpur-Buggawala area on June 14. After questioning, he was formally arrested and produced before the court, which remanded him to 14 days of judicial custody.
The matter has also reached the Uttarakhand High Court at Nainital. Recently, the High Court quashed two of the four FIRs registered against Rathore while permitting the investigation to continue in the remaining two cases. Police action subsequently proceeded in relation to those two FIRs. It may also be reminded that Rathore had earlier been expelled from the BJP and has frequently remained in the public eye because of controversial statements. The circulation of the alleged audio and video conversations involving Rathore and Urmila Sanawar had once again thrust the Ankita Bhandari case into the centre of political and public debate across Uttarakhand.
