New Delhi: It was 22-year-old Chetan Chaudhary’s “insecurity” over an upcoming pre-wedding trip to Bali that his girlfriend, Siya Goyal was planning to go on with her fiance, Ketan Agarwal; and a planned birthday getaway to Mahabaleshwar that served as the immediate trigger for the murder of Ketan, the Pune Police have found. This will be key evidence for its chargesheet.
The initial plan was to merely injure Ketan, which would result in the wedding being postponed. But this plan changed as Chetan became more insecure, and Chetan and Siya decided to push him off a cliff at the Lohagarh Fort in Pune in June.
The two accused—Siya Goyal, 20, and Chetan Chaudhary, 22—are both residents of Pune. They were arrested on 23 June, and have since been in judicial custody.
As the Pune Police prepare to file a comprehensive charge sheet in the high-profile Ketan Agrawal murder case, the investigation reveals a calculated plot, fueled by insecurity, infidelity, and a desperate bid to cancel an unwanted wedding. The chargesheet will contain exhaustive digital, physical, and testimonial evidence collected across the planning stage, the execution, and the post-murder cover-up.
Police recreated the crime scene at Lohagad Fort with both accused separately, and analysed digital evidence, and gathered statements from family members and friends. “Crucial CCTV footage from the fort entrance has played a key role in establishing the presence and coordination of all individuals involved,” an officer said.
The case has been widely reported, which involved Ketan, the son of a prominent business family in the construction sector, who studied at Symbiosis and Babson College, USA, and had returned to grow his father’s business, and to marry Siya, the daughter of family friends.
How insecurity fuelled Ketan’s murder
Police investigation found that Siya and Chetan’s relationship began around October last year. “That is when the two connected around Diwali and subsequently traveled together to destinations like Goa and Rajasthan,” a Pune Police officer told ThePrint.
Although Siya got engaged to Ketan in February, she continued her relationship with Chetan.
“After the engagement, there was a brief 1.5-month pause in communication, but the two began chatting via messaging apps and phone calls later,” the officer said, citing the investigation. The officer told ThePrint that the two would secretly meet and maintain continuous contact until they decided that “removing Ketan permanently was their only resort. She did not want to look at any alternatives”.
Earlier, police had told ThePrint that most of the chats were deleted by the two accused. However, the police have managed to recovered most of them, and found details of the murder plan.
“During interrogation, we found that Siya had material aspirations and felt Ketan’s wealthy background could fulfill them. However, her emotional attachment was towards Chetan,” the officer said.
By then, both families had began extensive wedding preparations, including investing in an expensive wedding location in Rajasthan. “As the wedding date drew close, Chetan became increasingly insecure about Ketan’s presence in Siya’s life,” the officer said.
The officer said investigation found that Siya did inform her brother that she did not wish to proceed with the marriage, “but no action was taken by her family”.
“Siya feared speaking up, she knew it would trigger a family backlash and it was about honour, she chose not to pursue any conversation with Ketan to end the relationship,” he said.
Siya and Ketan were supposed to leave for Bali for a pre-wedding photoshoot, and a subsequent birthday getaway in Mahabaleshwar.
“These two planned trips triggered insecurities in Chetan, and he warned Siya that if she did go to Bali and Mahabaleshwar, their relationship would be over,” the officer said. This key point is a major part of the charge sheet, he added.
By April, the duo began actively discussing ways to eliminate Ketan, viewing him as a “third person” standing between them, the officer said.
“Initially, their focus was on finding local goons or causing non-fatal bodily harm so that Siya could claim he was physically disabled and refuse the marriage. They involved Ritesh Hange, the third arrested accused in the case,” the officer explained.
While Hange wasn’t present at the crime scene, the police said, he has been arrested for his alleged role in hatching the conspiracy. “The entire plan was driven by Chetan’s refusal to let Siya go to Bali or Mahabaleshwar; the strategy shifted from injury to murder.”
Ketan had taken Siya to Lohagarh Fort. That is where the accused realised that the spot could be used for the murder. “They decided, if they pushed him down a steep cliff, nobody would suspect them.”
Chats key evidence in charge sheet
The officer said that the primary foundation of the police chargesheet rests on recovered chats between Siya and Chetan.
Digital forensic analysis found multiple messages where the accused discussed every stage of the crime, from initial research on methods to execute the killing, to coordinating on the day of the incident.
“The interrogations revealed that the two actively consumed crime movies, podcasts, and books to study how criminals have evaded conviction. They were psychologically prepared that nobody would suspect them, if it was shown as an accident.”
The officer said, on 31 May, Siya and Ketan went to the fort. She told Chetan about the fort, and how the murder could he committed. She then pestered Ketan to go to the fort with her again on 4 June. However, Ketan’s family refused, because the Bali trip was coming up two days later.
Finally, on 6 June, “Siya deliberately destroyed Ketan’s passport while they stopped at an Expressway food court in Khalapur on their way from Pune to Mumbai Airport. This forced them to cancel their 6 June flight to Bali,” the officer said.
After this, they eventually went to Lohagad Fort on 14 June. “Siya then attempted to push Ketan off the cliff. When Ketan didn’t fall, Siya panicked. She screamed that she had seen a snake, and hugged Ketan to deflect suspicion,” the officer said, pointing out another key part of the evidence.
Then Chetan stepped in. “He knew there needed to be one more person to commit the crime. Finally, on 18 June, it was executed,” the officer said.
Ketan was pushed off the cliff, and Siya called the police and alerted them about the “accidental” death. But Ketan’s family members told the police they suspected foul play.
CCTV footage, 33° temperature and a hoodie
The officer said that after the murder, Siya claimed that Ketan fell off the cliff while taking photographs. Siya also posted Ketan’s photo on Instagram with emotional captions, including on her birthday on 19 June.
Police officers found critical clues in the CCTV footage of the fort. “This key evidence will be part of the chargesheet, and it points the presence of Chetan at the crime scene, because he was captured on camera wearing a hoodie over his head and external headphones in 33°C to 34°C heat. This was suspicious.”
The officer further said that Chetan bought entry tickets from the exit side to move quickly and was observed communicating with Siya via sign language on the fort steps.
Further, the officer said, to conceal his location and create an alibi, Chetan left his personal phone at his shop and carried a domestic help’s mobile device to the fort.
Pune Police arrested the three under BNS Section 103 (murder) and Section 61 (criminal conspiracy) in the case registered at the Lonavala Rural police station.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
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