Dr. Asha Goel's Murder: Hearing Of Trial Delayed Again, Canadian Family Makes 89th Trip to India

New Delhi : The trial against the gruesome murder of the Canadian national Dr. Asha Goel at Malabar Hills in Mumbai in 2003 has once again been delayed. The court has set 18th January as the next hearing.

On Monday, Asha Goel's son Sanjay Goel, along with his father Dr. Sadan Goel, came to India for the 89th time in the last 16 years seeking justice for Dr. Asha Goel's killing. 

Speaking to media, Son Sanjay said, "Today we were here for the hearing of eleven separate pre-trial motions and petitions from the defense. The Indian judiciary gives voice not only to the victims but also to the accused but unfortunately, that process gets abused. One of the pleadings from the defense was laughable. It said one of the officers of the Mumbai Crime Unit traveled to Canada and compromised forensic and scientific evidence in Ontario. Mr. Sanjay burst out laughing at this point and later apologized to the judge mentioning that's It wasn't his intention to disrespect the court but the defense pleading was laughable. We have been destroyed with this delayed justice."

He further said that this delay is nothing short of monumental. "When we consider that the police have scientific evidence and confession, it makes no sense the trial is still awaited. My dad is in 80s but he is still here hoping for justice."

Talking about his mother Dr. Asha Goel, Sanjay said, "She came to Canada when she was 21 or 22. At that time, to the best of my knowledge, she was the youngest Obstetrician in Canadian history. She helped deliver more than 10,000 children. It's a great loss for not only us but the community at Orangeville in Canada."

Son Sanjay alleged that the Canadian government didn't help the cause despite his mother's legacy in Orangeville. 

Backgrounder

In August 2003, she was stabbed to death in a property dispute at Malabar Hills Flat in Mumbai. Dr. Asha Goeal, 40, an obstetrician and gynecologist who worked in Saskatchewan was murdered amid a bitter dispute over the inheritance of $ 10 million (about 70 million) that pitted her against her brothers. Her son says that she wanted to restore peace between her brothers and was brutally killed in cold blood in 2003. 

According to a report published on a Canada-based news portal, only days after she confronted one brother, her battered body was found in his apartment in Mumbai. Since then, her husband, son, and son-in-law have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in a two-year fight to bring her killers to justice. Yet the justice has not been served as even the trial has not started in the Mumbai High Court. 

According to court documents in 2006, police allege that Subhash Agrawal, 56, was part of a conspiracy to kill his sister Asha Goel. Subhash resides in Canada and terms this accusation as a smear campaign against him. 

Subhash challenged the accusations in Mumbai High Court in 2006 saying that he is the target of a vindictive smear campaign and that there is "not even a whisper" of evidence against him.

Crime Branch Role and Chronology

According to Mumbai Crime Branch senior investigator Jaywald Hargude, the three were questioned and pointed to Suresh as the mastermind.

In December 2006, police filed charge sheets -- a summary of evidence and a recommendation of charges to Indian court -- against Mr. Parab and the three he named.

In those charge sheets and in subsequent court filings, police also accused Subhash of conspiring with the men and declared he is a wanted man.

"The investigation in this case clearly points towards the existence of a criminal conspiracy which was essentially hatched by none other than the deceased's own brothers," Mr. Hargude wrote in a court filing. The motive that shattered the powerful, wealthy Indian family? A quarrel over the inheritance, he wrote. 

Now, yet after the 89th trip to India, the victim family is wandering for justice. 

Who's who

Dr. Asha Goel: A Canadian Obstetrician found brutally murdered in her brother's apartment in India.

Her immediate family:

Dr. Sadan Goel: Orangeville, Ont., doctor and husband of Dr. Asha Goel.

Sanjay Goel: Vancouver businessman and son of Dr. Asha Goel.

The brothers that contested Dr. Asha Goel's father's $5-million estate:

Suresh Agrawal: Mumbai businessman accused posthumously of conspiracy to murder Dr. Asha Goel.

Subhash Agrawal: Ottawa resident and Canadian citizen accused in court by Indian police of conspiracy to murder Dr. Asha Goel.

Shekhar Agrawal: Los Angeles resident who sued Subhash and Suresh Agrawal over their father's $5-million inheritance.

The investigator in 2006:

Jaywald Hargude: Mumbai Crime Branch inspector .

Police have recommended charges against:

Pradeep Parab: Employee of Suresh.

Narendra Goel: Son-in-law of Suresh.

Manohar Shinde: Manager of one of Suresh's properties.

Pawankumar Goenka: Subhash's key property manager in India.