Ketan Aggarwal Murder Case; lover and Fiancée arrested

Synopsis

Ketan Agarwal, 25, died in an accident in which he fell from Lohagad fort in Pune while working as a real estate director. A trekking accident, as the police first suspected, was upgraded to premeditated murder after investigators determined inconsistencies among the witnesses. His fiancé Siya Goyal and another man Chetan Chaudhary, who was alleged to be her boyfriend, were arrested on June 23. Earlier, the Chief Minister of Maharashtra had directed the commencement of the fast-track trial and had appointed veteran prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam in the case.

A fatal Birthday Trek!

The two couples, Ketan Agarwal and Siya Goyal are known to have tied the knot earlier this year in 2026 and were supposed to get married in November in Rajasthan, where the families were reported to have invested a whopping ₹5 crore. Ketan was allegedly deceived into entering Lohagad Fort on June 18th as they were marking Siya's birthday.

He came back home not alive

The case came to light when a real estate director Ketan, 25, from Gahunje in Pune died after falling off the fort. The police initially reported the incident as being an accidental fall; according to police, Siya said Ketan was slipping in a photo shoot near the edge of the fort. But there were discrepancies in the evidence on the witnesses and technical side that led the police to further investigate.

The Alleged Conspiracy

An investigation by police showed that the alleged conspiracy had been discussed at a meeting between Siya and Chetan on June 17, a day before Agarwal's death. The two were seen entering the café at the same time as the woman was seen at 4.35 pm, and leaving an hour later at 5.30 pm, according to CCTV footage.

Officials also claimed that Siya had prepared for the attack by watching videos on Lohagad Fort on YouTube and told Chetan about its location.

In the course of questioning, Siya and Chetan had tried to shift the blame on to one another, something a police official said is often the case when co-accused are questioned. Siya later acknowledged that he had hatched the conspiracy and Chetan was also involved in the plotting, the official told PTI.

It is alleged that Ketan was taken to an isolated place at the fort where Chaudhary had already taken his place, and was pushed into the gorge. Accused were remanded to police custody on June 23 and pending till June 29.

Family Reactions

Siya's parents, who both spoke out publicly, said the harshest would be the punishment if their daughter was found guilty. Pooja Goyal, her mother, told reporters: "If my daughter is found guilty, then she should be thrown from the same place where Ketan was thrown.

In the meanwhile, Ketan's father, Vishal Agarwal met with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis at Pune. He urged that the accused receive the death penalty, and was assured that the case would be fast-tracked. An SIT has been constituted to help the investigation.

The State Orders Fast-Track Proceedings

Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis then ordered the formation of a fast-track court in this case and named one of the most prominent public prosecutors in the state, Ujjwal Nikam, to run the case.

Understandably, Ketan's uncle, Vijay Agarwal, told the reporters that the former was "26 years old, well-educated and had listened to his parents and he had agreed to an arranged marriage and was killed, I can only believe in our country's law.