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MUMBAI: Six years after NRI doctor Asha Goel was murdered on Malabar Hill, the probe seems to be moving in the right direction.
The Bangalore Forensic Science laboratory (BFSL) recently sent a report of the lie-detection test done on prime accused and Praveen Vatsa, a domestic help working with relatives.
The case dates back to August 2003, when the Canada-based Asha arrived in Mumbai to visit her brothers over a property dispute. The family has huge properties worth crores in south Mumbai. She had three brothers, Subhash (also settled in Canada), Suresh and Shekhar Agarwal (who was settled in the US). It was said that Asha was trying to broker peace between her brothers. But on August 23, 2003, a day before she was to leave for Canada, she was found murdered at Sudhakar (a building on Malabar Hill). She was stabbed several times and her flat was ransacked to make it appear like a robbery.
Vatsa used to work at co-accused Narendra Goel's residence (Narendra was the brother-in-law of one of the three Agarwal brothers). A probe revealed that Narendra, too, had lied to cops when he said he was in Delhi the day Asha was murdered; he produced an Air India ticket supporting his claim but, during a narco test in 2007, he revealed that it was Vatsa who had travelled to Delhi as Narendra Goel.
Cops have now issued a red-corner notice through Interpol against Subhash Agarwal; he is in Canada and cops are seeking his extradition.
The confidential report of the lie-detection test conducted on Vatsa was submitted to the Crime Branch recently. She was asked eight questions and joint commissioner of police (crime) Rakesh Maria confirmed that all the answers given by Vatsa were false. He said he was now awaiting the court's nod to conduct Vatsa's narco-analysis and brain-mapping.
Officials said Vatsa had filed an objection in the court against the police plea for the tests and the matter was likely to come up for hearing next week.
Another brother accused in the case, Suresh, died in 2006. Pradeep Parab, Pawankumar Goenka, Manohar Shinde, Narendra Goel and Vatsa have been arrested in this case so far.
THE QUESTIONS
TOI has got access to five of the eight questions that Vatsa was asked and her answers
* Does Narendra Goel, brother-in-law of Suresh Agarwal, calls you Vatsa?
Answer: No.
* Did you come to Mumbai from Delhi in August 2003?
A: No.
* On August 22, 2003, a day prior to the murder, did you come to city by a flight?
A: No.
* Did you travel by flight from Mumbai to Delhi on Narendra Goel's ticket?
A: No.
* Did you talk to Narendra Goel on the day of murder?
A: No.