Fresh twist in Ketan Agarwal murder case as Siya Goyal's lawyer slaps ₹10 crore defamation notice on brother
A fresh legal confrontation has emerged in the alleged murder case of Pune-based businessman Ketan Agarwal, with accused Siya Goyal's lawyer, Ashotush Srivastava, issuing a
A fresh legal confrontation has emerged in the alleged murder case of Pune-based businessman Ketan Agarwal, with accused Siya Goyal's lawyer, Ashotush Srivastava, issuing a ₹10 crore defamation notice to her brother, Sahil Goyal, over statements disputing his appointment as her legal representative. Speaking to news agency PTI, Srivastava accused Sahil Goyal of making "completely false" claims regarding his representation of Siya Goyal and said the matter amounted to defamation. "We have sent a ₹10 crore defamation notice to Sahil Goyal. We did this because we heard a statement from him where he is stating completely false facts, lying, and attempting to mislead the public. As far as the accused, Siya Goyal, is concerned, she has signed and authorised all necessary legal documents in every proper manner, and those documents, including the Vakalatnama have already been filed in court. She has granted us the legal authority for her High Court representation as well, which we will oversee moving forward," Srivastava said. He further maintained that neither he nor his legal team had any association with Sahil Goyal and criticised him for making statements about the matter. "We have absolutely nothing to do with Sahil Goyal. We haven't spoken to him, had no communication with him on any subject, and exchanged no emails. Hence, a statement of this nature from him is highly irresponsible, defamatory, and constitutes an outright attack on the legal fraternity.
As an accused, Siya Goyal has every legal right to retain a lawyer. Even if she wishes to change her counsel at any point, there is a formal legal procedure for that, which strictly requires a No Objection Certificate (NOC). Sahil Goyal must issue an apology for his statement, because we do not represent him, and he holds absolutely no authority to give false statements," he added. The dispute centres on who is legally authorised to represent Siya Goyal, one of the accused in the Ketan Agarwal murder case. According to Srivastava, all documents appointing him as her counsel have already been accepted by the court. Speaking to IANS, he said the authorisation forms are already part of the judicial record. "It is already on record. I had mentioned this earlier as well, and I am saying it again today that it has already been filed and is on record," he said while referring to the court's acceptance of his authorisation to appear for the accused. Explaining the basis of the ₹10 crore legal notice, Srivastava said any individual has the legal right to seek redress if their reputation is allegedly harmed by false statements. "A legal notice is the right of any person if they feel their reputation has been wrongly damaged, false rumours have been spread, or attempts have been made to tarnish their image. We believe this is clearly a case of defamation, which is why we have sent the notice.
The BriefWire