Uttarakhand BJP sidelines state in-charge Dushyant Gautam after his name surfaces in Ankita Bhandari murder case

The Uttarakhand BJP has begun keeping its Uttarakhand state in-charge Dushyant Gautam away from organisational events after his name surfaced in the Ankita Bhandari murder case, which could become a poll issue in 2027. This became evident on Saturday when Gautam was conspicuously absent from the party’s core committee meeting in Dehradun, chaired by former BJP national president JP Nadda.

The state leadership has sidelined Dushyant Gautam to the extent that his picture and name were not allowed on posters and hoardings put up by party workers across the town and along roads. His picture was missing even from minor publicity material lining the stretch between Dehradun and Jolly Grant Airport.

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Although party leaders remained tight-lipped on queries regarding the absence of Gautam from the meeting, some of them informed that the state in-charge had lost relevance in the state, particularly after his name appeared in the 2023 Ankita Bhandari murder case. They added that Gautam’s presence at organisational functions in Uttarakhand could even prove costly for the party in the assembly polls.

A party leader, who is also a state organisation office-bearer, said on condition of anonymity that the state in-charge and general secretary, Dushyant Gautam, was unlikely to visit Dehradun again in his present role. He noted that Gautam’s name had surfaced in the 2023 murder case of Ankita Bhandari, which has since become an emotional issue across the state. “The entire state wants to know why Gautam’s name was mentioned by a woman in this case. This could turn into an election issue in the 2027 assembly polls. It is only a matter of time before Gautam is removed as the BJP’s state in-charge of Uttarakhand,” the leader said.

When asked about the reason for Gautam’s absence from the BJP core committee meeting, state party chief and Rajya Sabha member Mahendra Bhatt said the state in-charge could not attend as a major organisational reshuffle was expected under the newly appointed national president Nitin Nabin. He added that the national leadership was engaged in forming a new executive body and making fresh organisational appointments. Bhatt said Saturday’s core committee meeting primarily focused on the party’s upcoming activities in the run-up to the 2027 Uttarakhand assembly elections.

Announcing the state BJP’s action plan for the coming days, Bhatt said that the party would work hard to strengthen it at the booth level. “We will hold programmes and intensive organisational activities at the booth level after the SIR process is completed in the state. This will help the party win the assembly election for the third consecutive time in 2027.