As the investigation into the death of businessman Ketan Vishal Agarwal continues, the father of one of the main accused, Chetan Chaudhary, on Wednesday maintained that his son is innocent and has been falsely implicated in the case.
Chetan is the alleged lover of Siya Goyal, Agarwal’s fiancée, who was murdered in a planned and premeditated manner in Lohagad Fort on June 18.
Speaking to ANI, Chetan’s father Babulal Chaudhary insisted that his son had no role in pushing Agarwal off the cliff and claimed that he was falsely implicated in the case.
Also Read: Ketan Agarwal’s death appears to be accidental, until one mistake exposes the plot to kill his fiancée
“He has been falsely accused and he has nothing to do with this matter. He clearly told us that he did not push the boy and was standing far back. It was the girl standing there when the boy fell. I don’t know whether she pushed him or not, but Chetan stated that he was standing a little back,” Babulal said.
He added that neither he nor his wife were aware of any such situation and Chetan only informed them that he was going to attend a meeting.
He added: “He did not inform me in advance. He only mentioned that he had a meeting and was heading to it. He told his mother about that in the morning, and he told me the same. He did not give me any other details before he left after speaking with his mother.”
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Babulal further said that he had neither heard nor seen Sia before her name surfaced in connection with the case.
He said: “We have never seen the girl in question and know nothing about her at all. In fact, I did not know her name, Sia, until yesterday. I had never seen her before.”
Babulal added that the police assured him that the case was related to fraud and that Chetan would be released soon.
“The police told us that this was a minor issue and was actually a case of fraud. They assured us that they would release the child to us within two hours…”
Also Read: Who is Ketan Agarwal, the Pune businessman who was killed by his fiancée Siya Goyal and her lover?
“The media shows a one-sided narrative,” says Chetan’s uncle.
Chetan’s uncle, Adiram Chaudhary, also maintained his innocence and accused the media of presenting a biased narrative, according to ANI.
“Chetan is completely innocent in this matter. The media is exaggerating this matter and showing a one-sided view on Instagram, but Chetan is not involved in this. Chetan is a sportsman and a very honest person. There has not been a single complaint against him from anyone in the market,” he told ANI.
He added that the family was not aware of Chetan’s relationship with Siya, and said that during the short period they were allowed to meet him, Chetan maintained that he was falsely implicated.
Also Read: Siya’s constant phone use, Chetan mentioned: Pune man’s father recalls ‘ignored red flags’ about his fiancée
Adiram added: “Our family members did not know anything about Chetan’s relationship with that girl, and we had no idea at all. We even had the opportunity to meet him for a minute, and he told us while crying that he was falsely involved in this matter.”
Despite the family’s claim, Pune police have detained Siya (20) and Chetan (22) on charges of murder and conspiracy under Sections 103 and 61 (2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Act. The two were arrested and sent to police custody for seven days on Tuesday.
How the incident unfolded
On June 18, Sia and Ketan went to Lohagad Fort as part of the celebration of the former’s birthday, which was on June 19. According to the police, Sia and her alleged lover, Chetan, pushed Ketan off the cliff, leading to his death.
Sia initially told police that Ketan slipped while taking photos near the fort and fell into the valley. However, investigators re-examined the case after his parents expressed doubts, arguing that Ketan was an experienced traveler and unlikely to have fallen from this place.
During the investigation, a breakthrough was made through CCTV footage that allegedly showed Chetan wearing a hoodie with a hood tied over his head and headphones on a hot morning when temperatures were around 33 degrees Celsius.
“When we checked the temperature on June 18, it was 33 degrees Celsius that morning. While checking CCTV footage from the hillsides, we noticed a person wearing a jacket with his hood up and also wearing headphones. This raised suspicions as such clothing was unusual considering the weather conditions,” Tayadi told HT.
Police said these details helped them narrow down the list of suspects and link Chaudhry to the scene.
Not the first time
Investigators claim that this was not the first time Goyal had tried to kill Agarwal.
Four days before the incident, the couple visited Lohagad Fort, where Siya allegedly tried to push him off a cliff after she allegedly spotted a snake, police said. Ketan reportedly managed to save himself by clinging to a bush.
The Bali trip she missed
Investigators also revealed another incident that raised suspicions.
Ketan and Sia were scheduled to fly to Bali for a pre-wedding photoshoot, but the flight was canceled at the Mumbai airport after Ketan’s passport went missing.
Ketan’s family alleged that Siya may have taken the passport during his stopover in Lonavala, leading to the flight being cancelled.
2000 phone calls
The police also found that Sia and Chetan were in regular contact for the past six months. According to investigators, the two exchanged nearly 2,000 phone calls during that period, according to PTI.
The police further claimed that they had met at a cafe before the incident and discussed how and where an “accident” could have occurred in Lohagad Fort.
