HALDWANI — Uttarakhand Police on Friday arrested four men, including an Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad student leader, within six hours of a complaint alleging the rape of a 16-year-old girl at a hotel in Haldwani.
Swift police action followed a midnight distress call. The victim’s family filed a formal complaint at the Mukhani police station in Nainital district late Thursday night, stating that four men threatened the minor, forced her into a commercial hotel in Mukhani, and subjected her to a brutal sexual assault. Investigators registered a case under relevant criminal provisions and mobilized search units before dawn.
The manhunt closed rapidly. Acting on instructions from Nainital Senior Superintendent of Police Manjunath T C, an operational team led by Mukhani Station House Officer Sushil Joshi tracked and apprehended all four suspects by Friday afternoon.
Police identified the primary accused as Dheeraj Bisht, who ran for the post of student union president as an ABVP candidate earlier this year at Haldwani’s Motiram Baburam Government Post Graduate College. The three other arrested men were identified as Nitin Pal, Ansh Khatri, and Himanshu Goni. Police confirmed that all four suspects belong to the city's notorious network known locally as the ITI Gang.
The crack team struck fast. Raids across potential hideouts yielded the four suspects before they could slip past district borders.
Law enforcement officials placed the four accused under formal detention, with remand proceedings initiated to facilitate forensic evaluation and custodial questioning. Authorities have guarded the identity of the 16-year-old complainant under statutory protections governing crimes against children.
The police maintain a zero-tolerance policy toward anyone committing crimes against minors and women. Strict legal action will be taken against the accused in such cases.
Manjunath T C, Senior Superintendent of Police, Nainital
The arrest records reflect immediate custody parameters across the four suspects:
| Case Parameter | Official Status |
|---|---|
| Incident Location | Hotel in Mukhani, Haldwani, Nainital District |
| Incident Timeline | Thursday night |
| Time to Apprehension | Within 6 hours of formal complaint |
| Primary Accused | Dheeraj Bisht (MBPG College ABVP presidential candidate) |
| Co-Accused | Nitin Pal, Ansh Khatri, Himanshu Goni |
| Gang Affiliation | ITI Gang |
Police officials stated that the suspects will appear before a local judicial magistrate for formal custody remand as medical examinations and forensic site documentation at the Mukhani hotel conclude.
| Supervising Officers |
| SSP Manjunath T C, SHO Sushil Joshi |