New Delhi: What initially appeared to be a tragic trekking accident near Pune has now turned into a sensational murder investigation, with the police accusing the victim’s fiancée of conspiring with her lover to push him down a 400-ft gorge.
The Pune Police has arrested Siya Goyal (20) and Chetan Chaudhary (22). They have been booked under sections 103 (murder) and 61 (criminal conspiracy) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Siya was set to marry Ketan Agrawal, a businessman from a prominent family that deals in construction. He had a Master’s in Entrepreneurial Leadership and a Bachelor’s in Supply Chain Management from Symbiosis, and a postgraduate from Babson College, USA. Both family had begun extensive wedding preparations.
On 18 June, Ketan, a resident of Pune’s Gahunje, died after falling nearly 400-feet into a gorge at the Lohagad Fort. Siya told the police that he slipped while taking photographs due to strong winds.
Police said that they initially treated it as an accidental death. They now suspect that Siya had tried to kill him in the same manner four days ago before the incident, but failed.
Investigators are probing possible motives, including financial disputes. Ketan’s family have said that they suspect foul play as he was a skilled trekker.
Superintendent of Police Sandip Singh Gill said at a press conference Tuesday: “There were multiple inconsistencies…surrounding the death that prompted a deeper investigation.”
The ‘admission’
Siya and Chetan were taken into custody after police examined their call records and locations. “They admitted to killing Ketan by pushing him from a cliff on the fort,” a police officer said, on condition of anonymity.
What sparked the police’s suspicion was CCTV footage that showed a person—who they suspect to be Chetan—climbing the fort the same day, wearing a hoodie despite the heat.
After taking the statements of families and friends, investigators discovered that Siya was in a relationship with Chetan Chaudhary, who too comes from a business family.
Police alleged that Siya did not want to marry Ketan, and saw him as an obstacle in her relationship with Chetan, and therefore, the two conspired to kill him. According to SP Gill, quoted earlier, it was Siya who persuaded Ketan to visit the Lohagad Fort, a popular trekking destination, that day.
Moreover, a few weeks before the incident, Siya and Ketan missed their prewedding photoshoot in Bali because Siya allegedly hid her fiancé’s passport as part of the conspiracy, police claimed.
Siya, investigators have alleged, took Ketan to the same fort on 14 June as well, hoping to push him to his death. The attempt failed.
SP Gill said the murder FIR was lodged by Lonavala rural police on the basis of a complaint lodged by Ketan’s father Vishal Agarwal.
Investigators are now focusing on the sequence of events, gathering forensic evidence and probing whether any other individuals were involved in the alleged conspiracy.
A grieving family
Ketan’s family members told ThePrint that Siya’s family was aware of her relationship with Chetan, “but pushed for this marriage”.
“The family, including Siya’s brother, her mother, and her aunt did know about this relationship. However, they knew this was a much better family for Siya to marry into. Had they allowed her to marry as per her wish, my son would have been alive,” Vishal Agarwal, Ketan’s father, told ThePrint.
He said his family had known the Goyals for more than 35 years, and had never seen any behaviour that was suspicious.
“But her family would interfere a lot in their relationship. I don’t know why she had to kill my son? She could have just said no? Or spoken to us…” Vishal said.
On the police’s theory that Siya had tried to push Ketan at the same fort just days earlier, he said: “My son had never suspected any foul play. On 14 June, when my son almost fell, she screamed and said there was a snake. She then hugged him, and my son assumed there was nothing wrong…if only we knew…”
(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)
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