UKD’s Firebrand Leader Ashutosh Negi Expelled For 6 Years After Raising Ankita Bhandari Case
Sunil Negi / Dehradun, 29 August 2026
The former central vice president of Uttarakhand Kranti Dal (UKD), known for being vociferous and extremely outspoken, who had raised the issue of the brutal Ankita Bhandari murder case from day one, has been expelled from the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal for six years for alleged anti-party activities.
Prior to his expulsion, Ashutosh Negi had already been stripped of the post of central vice president of the party.
Negi was a claimant for the party ticket from Raipur Assembly constituency in Dehradun and had a tiff with another senior leader of UKD, Rohit Dhyani, ex-Air Force personnel. Rohit Dhyani later joined the BJP in a glittering function, welcomed by Uttarakhand BJP chief and Rajya Sabha MP Mahendra Bhatt.
The immediate trigger for the action against Negi was a statement in which, without naming Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, Negi had said that he was of Nepali origin. This led to an FIR against Ashutosh Negi. Former UKD chief Kashi Singh Airy raised strong objection to Negi’s remarks and cast aspersions against him.
In retaliation, Ashutosh Negi accused Kashi Singh Airy and other senior UKD leaders of being on the payroll of the BJP and working at its behest to weaken the regional party.
This infuriated the national leadership and he was removed from the party, which his supporters call undemocratic.
Despite the controversy, it is a hard fact that Ashutosh Negi had added new enthusiasm, vigour and vitality to the UKD, reviving the almost dormant regional party and helping youths join it in large numbers, especially from the Garhwal region. He had taken the Ankita Bhandari case to every village, court and social media platform.
It may be recalled that Ashutosh Negi had also earlier contested the parliamentary election from Pauri Garhwal parliamentary constituency.
