Pune, June 27 (IANS) The investigation into the murder of Pune realtor Ketan Agarwal took a fresh turn after police questioned Sahil Goyal, brother of prime accused Siya Goyal, for nearly 10 hours. During the interrogation, Sahil reportedly told investigators that the family would have cancelled the marriage had Siya expressed any unwillingness to marry Ketan.

According to police officials, Sahil appeared before investigators on Friday morning and was allowed to leave only late in the evening after being extensively questioned. Officers sought details about Siya’s relationship with co-accused Chetan Chaudhary and verified several aspects of the case.

“If Siya had said she didn’t like Ketan, we would have stopped the wedding,” Sahil reportedly told the police.

An official from the Lonavala Rural Police Station confirmed the questioning, saying Sahil had been summoned in the morning and released after several hours of interrogation.

Police allege that Ketan Agarwal was murdered on June 18 at Lohagad Fort after being pushed off a cliff by his fiancée, Siya Goyal, 20, and her alleged lover, Chetan Chaudhary, 22. Investigators suspect the duo had conspired to eliminate Ketan because Siya allegedly no longer wanted to go ahead with their marriage, which was scheduled for November.

Ketan, who served as Director and Chief Marketing Officer of his family’s real estate firm, Success Group, initially appeared to have died in a trekking accident. However, investigators later concluded that the death was the result of a planned conspiracy.

The case was first registered as an accidental death after Siya claimed Ketan had slipped while trekking. The investigation took a different direction after police examined CCTV footage from the ticket counter at Lohagad Fort. The footage allegedly showed a man wearing a hoodie and shorts walking a short distance behind the couple despite the day’s temperature being around 33 degrees Celsius.

In one clip, Siya was allegedly seen looking back while the hooded man suddenly sat down. Police later identified the individual as Chetan Chaudhary.

Investigators further claim that Siya had repeatedly persuaded Ketan to visit Lohagad Fort in the weeks leading up to the incident. The couple reportedly visited the fort on May 31, and she again suggested another trip on June 4, which was reportedly prevented by Ketan’s mother. Police also allege that on June 14, Siya attempted to push Ketan from the cliff, but he managed to save himself by grabbing a bush. When questioned, she allegedly claimed there had been a snake nearby.

Meanwhile, Siya’s mother has maintained that her daughter was not keen to visit Lohagad Fort on the day of the incident. She claimed that during a video call on the evening of June 17, Ketan and his mother persuaded Siya to accompany him despite her saying she had a family function the next day and wanted to rest.

Siya’s father also rejected reports suggesting an extravagant wedding budget. He confirmed that the wedding was scheduled to take place in Udaipur in November and said the family had reserved 70 rooms at a hotel where the tariff was very high. According to him, the overall wedding expenditure was expected to remain below Rs 3 crore.

On the other hand, Ketan Agarwal’s father, Vishal Agarwal, dismissed speculation that his son’s use of a toupee could have played any role in the alleged crime.

“Ketan had a small patch of hair loss due to medical reasons, but this was clearly communicated well before the marriage was finalised,” he said.

“If she had any issues, she could have just said ‘no’. It would have been very easy for Siya to simply call off the wedding if that was an issue for her,” he added.

The case has attracted significant attention across Maharashtra as Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis recently met Ketan’s father in Pune and assured the family of full support during the legal proceedings.

Responding to the family’s request, the Maharashtra government has agreed to conduct the trial in a fast-track court and has appointed senior advocate Ujjwal Nikam as the special public prosecutor in the case.

Describing the incident as deeply disturbing, Fadnavis said it highlighted a larger social concern.

“It is an extremely shocking and incomprehensible incident. As a society, we need to reflect on why educated young men and women from good families develop such criminal intent and a desire for revenge. This is not merely a criminal issue; it also has a social angle,” he said.

–IANS

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