Pune:
A woman and her lover accused in the Pune Fort murder case initially discussed hurting her fiancé to postpone their upcoming wedding, but soon realized the plan was “risky” and decided to kill him, police said.
Siya Goyal, 20, and her 22-year-old lover Chetan Chaudhary allegedly pushed her 26-year-old fiancé Ketan Agarwal into a gorge from Lohagad Fort near Pune on June 18. Siya and Ketan, both from Pune, got engaged in February and were due to tie the knot in a grand ceremony in Jaipur in November.
After the incident, she told his family that he slipped while crossing. However, police investigations into the case later uncovered the alleged conspiracy behind the murder, and both were arrested on June 23.
“Goyal did not want to run away as she did not want to bring disrepute to her family or embarrass the Agarwal family. They (Goyal and Chaudhary) initially looked for ways to prevent the marriage,” news agency PTI quoted a police officer as saying on Tuesday.
Goyal and Chaudhary discussed the idea of injuring Agarwal in some accident so that the wedding would be postponed, but the idea was rejected, he said.
“Their initial plan was to only injure him (Agarwal) and make it look like an accident,” the officer said.
The urgency to implement the plan has increased ahead of Goyal and Agarwal’s planned trip to Bali, Indonesia in June.
“Goyal and Agarwal were supposed to spend eight days together in Bali after flying out on June 6. When they (Goyal and Chaudhary) realized that the idea of somehow harming Agarwal was not feasible, they decided to implement the plan themselves.
“They were afraid that if Agarwal survived and found out about their plot, he would expose them. That’s when they allegedly decided to eliminate him,” the officer said.
Siya Goyal, the lover, watched Suspense Films before Ketan Agarwal’s murder
The officer said the conspiracy unfolded over several weeks and was preceded by extensive online searches, intelligence visits and repeated discussions between the accused duo.
To portray Agarwal’s death as an accident, they also allegedly watched suspense films and browsed the Internet before deciding that pushing him off the cliff was the best option, the officer said.
The second phase of planning involved searching for suitable locations, which led to them exploring several high-altitude locations including Tiger Point in Lonavala and Visapur Fort. They exchanged photographs before completing the Lohagad Fort near Pune to carry out the assassination plan, he said.
They focused on finding a place where no evidence could be found after the murder, he said.
“The accused explored several places, including Tiger Point, Visapur Fort and several other forts in the region, before settling on Lohagad Fort. They exchanged photographs of these places and assessed which place best suited their goal of making the death appear accidental without leaving any evidence,” the official said.
Investigators said the duo conspired to kill Agarwal as he proved to be an obstacle in their relationship.
The officer said the duo was worried about the prospects of their relationship after Goyal married Agarwal.
Goyal and Chaudhary also allegedly researched various methods of murder and searched online for ways to avoid detection.
“They are suspected of watching suspense films, conducting internet searches and discussing various methods before deciding that pushing the victim off a cliff would most closely resemble an accident,” the official said.
According to investigators, Goyal had already visited Lohagad Fort along with Agarwal on May 31.
“The visit appears to have been a reconnaissance visit. The main purpose was to identify a suitable location from where the victim could be pushed out. If the opportunity had arisen that day, she might have tried to kill him. Chaudhary deliberately stayed away during this visit to minimize the risk,” the officer said.
Police suspect that Goyal located the fort during this visit and then tried to convince Agarwal to visit the fort again on June 3.
“His family did not approve of the trip as the couple were due to travel to Bali soon. Investigators believe that the accused were determined to disrupt the trip by any means necessary,” the officer said.
The investigation revealed that Goyal allegedly stole Agarwal’s passport during a trip to Mumbai, resulting in the cancellation of the foreign trip.
Police also suspect that Goyal made a failed attempt to kill him at Lohagad Fort on June 14.
“She allegedly pushed him off the cliff, but he managed to hold on to a bush and survived. She immediately stated that she pushed him to save him from the snake, thereby deflecting suspicion,” the officer said.
Goyal and Chaudhary are currently in judicial custody.