From first meeting at a Diwali party to now being co-accused in an alleged murder case that has shocked the entire country, the story of Sia Goyal and Chetan Chaudhary – accused of murdering a 25-year-old businessman from Pune in Maharashtra – is beyond comprehension for many.
Sia Goyal is accused of killing her fiancé Ketan Agarwal with the help of Chetan Chaudhary, believed to be her boyfriend, by pushing him off a cliff during a trip to Lohagad Fort near Lonavala on June 18 – an incident that was earlier reported as an accidental death but then took a turn when police interrogation raised suspicions.
As investigations continue to learn more about the motives behind the alleged murder, police investigations and accounts of the victim’s family members have so far indicated that Siya Goyal was reluctant to marry Ketan Agarwal.
Ketan Agarwal was a director in his family’s company, Success Group, one of the largest warehouse developers in Maharashtra. He returned to Pune in 2023 after earning his master’s degree from the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business at Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, to join the family business.
In February this year, he got engaged to Siya Goyal, 20, with his uncle acting as matchmaker. Goyal also belongs to a wealthy business family in Pune. However, Agarwal’s family was unknown to her, and she was in a relationship with Chetan Chaudhary, 22, whose family runs a business in the same commercial area where Goyal’s father lives.
Agarwal and Goyal were scheduled to get married in November this year, with hotels already booked in Udaipur for the wedding.
How did the accused Siya and Chetan meet
The first breakthrough came when investigators began to question the circumstances surrounding Ketan’s fall on June 18. His family has raised doubts about the accidental death theory, pointing out that Ketan was an experienced traveler and familiar with the terrain of Lohagad Fort, HT reported earlier.
An accidental death report was initially registered, but investigators began examining CCTV footage and movements of people around the fort on the day of the incident.
The search led police to a suspicious person who was arrested near the foothills of Lohagad, a man wearing a hoodie despite the hot weather.
The earlier report quoted Dinesh Tayadi of Lonavala Rural Police as saying, “When we checked the temperature on June 18, the temperature was 33 degrees Celsius that morning. While checking CCTV footage from the hillsides, we noticed a person wearing a jacket with his head covered and also wearing headphones. This raises suspicions as such clothing was unusual considering the weather conditions.”
During custodial interrogation, Sia told police that she was unhappy with her engagement with Ketan Agarwal, HT had earlier reported. According to the Pune Rural Police, Sia allegedly told Ketan that she did not wish to continue the relationship and urged him not to go ahead with the planned marriage. However, she claimed that Ketan continued to pursue the relationship and remained committed to the wedding preparations despite her objections.
Police are currently verifying these allegations as part of their ongoing investigation into the case.
Police suspect that amid reluctance to marry early, Sia developed a close relationship with co-accused Chetan Chaudhary, whom she allegedly met at a Diwali party last year, news agency ANI reported. Investigators allege that the two have been in regular contact for the past few months and were allegedly discussing plans against Ketan Agrawal.
According to police sources quoted by the news agency, interrogation of the accused and analysis of digital and circumstantial evidence indicate that Sia wanted more time for herself and was reluctant to go ahead with the proposed marriage despite pressure from her family.
“It appears that the accused was not mentally prepared for marriage and was under pressure from her family to accept the offer,” a senior police official was quoted as saying, adding that investigators were examining multiple angles, including the motive and the alleged plot.
Sia and Chetan have been booked for murder and conspiracy under Sections 103 and 61 (2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and have been remanded in custody.
The investigation also concluded that this was Siya’s second attempt to kill Ketan, who survived the first alleged murder attempt four days before his death. The failed attempt also reportedly happened during the Lohagad trip, the couple’s first, when Sia allegedly pushed Ketan and claimed it was to save him from a snake.
More than 2000 calls between Siya and Chetan
The investigation into Ketan Agarwal’s murder also led to the police examining the call detail records (CDRs) of Siya Goyal and Chetan Chaudhary. According to the Pune Rural Police, the records revealed the extent of contact between the two and helped investigators unravel their alleged secret relationship, HT reported earlier.
A senior police officer involved in the investigation, as stated in the report, said that from January 1 to June 18, Siya and Chetan spoke on the phone 2,004 times. The investigation also revealed that the duo spent a total of 238 hours talking to each other over a period of approximately six months.
“After analyzing the CDR data between the accused, we noticed that there were more than 2,004 calls between them, with an average of 8-10 calls per day,” said Dinesh Tayadi, senior police inspector of Lonavla Rural Police Station and investigating officer in the case.
Babulal Chaudhary, father of Chetan Chaudhary, refuted the allegations against his son and claimed that he has been implicated in the case.
“Chetan told me that he was staying away from them in the fort. He was framed by so-called rich people. Sia and Chetan were good friends and to save herself, she framed my son,” he was quoted as saying by HT.
