Pune fort murder: Police intensify probe, question accused’s kin
Questioning comes as investigators examine deleted phone data and the victim’s family secures fast-track trial with Ujwal Nikam as public prosecutor
Police on Saturday questioned the parents and brother of Siya Goyal, one of the accused in the murder of Pune-based realtor Ketan Agarwal, as the investigation into the high-profile case gathered pace.
Siya's parents, Pravin and Puja Goyal, along with her brother Sahil, appeared before the Lonavala Rural Police after being summoned to record their statements. Sahil had already been questioned for more than 10 hours on Friday before being allowed to leave.
A senior police officer said the family members had been called to assist with the ongoing investigation. Siya's father had earlier been briefly hospitalised following her arrest earlier this week.
Siya, 20, and her alleged partner, Chetan Chaudhary, 22, have been accused of murdering 25-year-old Ketan Agarwal by allegedly pushing him off a cliff at Lohagad Fort in Pune district's Maval taluka on June 18.
According to investigators, Agarwal and Siya were due to marry in November, but she allegedly did not want to go ahead with the wedding. Police claim she and Chaudhary conspired to kill him.
The investigation has also revealed that the two accused allegedly erased their phone conversations and cleared their recycle bins before and after the incident. Their mobile phones have been sent for forensic examination to recover the deleted data.
Police further allege that the pair met at a café on the day of the incident to finalise the plan, including identifying the location at Lohagad Fort where Agarwal would allegedly be pushed. Investigators claim Chaudhary had encouraged Siya to eliminate her fiancé.
Meanwhile, the victim's father, Vishal Agarwal, met Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday. Following the meeting, the state government agreed to prosecute the case in a fast-track court and appointed senior advocate Ujjwal Nikam as the special public prosecutor.
A candlelight vigil in memory of Ketan Agarwal has also been organised at the Belmondo Housing Society in Gahunje, where he lived.
With IANS inputs