What was initially dismissed as a tragic trekking accident at Lohagad Fort near Pune has unraveled into a chilling, calculated murder plot. The investigation into the death of Ketan Agarwal, the young director of a prominent real estate firm, took a dramatic turn after an unusual wardrobe choice caught the eye of the police: a man wearing a thick hoodie in scorching 33-degree Celsius heat.
Ketan was engaged to Siya Goyal, a bakery owner, in February 2026, with a lavish destination wedding planned for November. However, Siya was secretly involved in a relationship with Chetan Babulal Choudhary, a dry fruit businessman since November 2025; viewing Ketan as an obstacle, the duo spent seven months plotting his elimination, exchanging over 2,004 phone calls reaching to a total of 238 hours.
Their plans were meticulous and repetitive. First, Siya allegedly hid Ketan’s passport at the airport to sabotage their pre-wedding photoshoot in Bali which Ketan’s father had reported to the police as suspicious upon inquiry. Then, on June 14, she attempted to push him during a visit to Lohagad Fort, but when Ketan managed to save himself by grabbing a cliff-side bush, Siya covered her tracks by screaming about a fake snake and hugging him.
On June 18, the duo tried again at the same fort, only this time successfully pushing Ketan into a deep gorge. However, their execution left clues behind. CCTV footage captured Siya and Ketan walking together, closely shadowed by a man in shorts, a headset, and a heavy hoodie despite the intense summer heat. Suspicion deepened when cameras showed the hooded man immediately ducking down the moment Siya glanced back at him.
Knowing Ketan’s history as an outdoor person with experience in trekking, it was unbelievable that he had died from a fall, and after his family filed an official report the police used technical analysis to link Siya and Chetan’s call histories and matched social media profiles to identify the hooded man.
Furthermore, Siya’s lack of grief following her fiancé’s death raised flags for both investigators and Ketan’s family; his sister had noticed that Siya’s responses felt off although after it was public Siya shared an emotional story on Instagram captioned, “You left me on my birthday. You left when we were so close to getting married. I still can’t understand why you did this to me. I had dreams, questions I’ll never get answers to. Why did you leave me when I loved you so much? Rest in peace.”
Siya Goyal and Chetan Choudhary have been arrested on charges of murder and criminal conspiracy, exposing a grim reality hidden beneath romantic social media posts and grand wedding plans.
This article is written by Hannah Judith Johnson, a student of Tezpur Central University, interning with Deccan Chronicle.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: deccanchronicle.com
