Meet Ujjwal Nikam: Prosecutor behind Ajmal Kasab’s trial, now handling Ketan Agarwal’s murder case | Today’s news

The Maharashtra government has appointed senior advocate and Rajya Sabha MP Ujjwal Nikam as the special public prosecutor in the Ketan Agarwal murder case. Nikam said on Friday that he accepted responsibility on the request of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and the victim’s family.

Nikam told ANI that he received a call from Fadnavis this afternoon, who informed him that the Agarwal family had met him and sought his appointment in the case. He added that the Chief Minister also termed the matter as a challenge for Maharashtra and asked him to take responsibility, to which he agreed.

“The entire nation has been shocked by this murder. I received a call from Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis this afternoon. He informed me that the Agarwal family had met him and asked me to be appointed as a special public prosecutor in this case. The chief minister told me that this is a challenge for Maharashtra and he also requested that I be appointed as a special public prosecutor.

Ujjwala Nikam Career, Notable Cases and Charges

Ujjwal Nikam is a public prosecutor who has handled many high-profile cases in the past. He was instrumental in the legal battles surrounding the 1993 Mumbai blasts and the 2008 Mumbai train attacks.

He began his career as a district attorney in Jalgaon before becoming a prosecutor in high-stakes criminal and terrorism trials. He eventually became Maharashtra’s most popular lawyer. In a 30-year career, he reportedly secured 628 life sentences and 37 death sentences.

Nikam’s first major national case was the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts trial, the Bar and Bench said. Subsequently, he handled the murder case of T-Series founder Gulshan Kumar and the killing of BJP leader Pramod Mahajan.

However, it was his role as special prosecutor in the trial of Ajmal Kasab – the sole surviving accused in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks – that made him a household name.

Other notable cases in his career include the Khairlanji Dalit massacre, the Shakti Mills gang-rape, the Kopardi rape and murder case and the 2010 German bakery blast in Pune.

Ujjwal Nikam was also appointed by the Maharashtra government as the public prosecutor in the 1995 murder case of builder Pradip Jain in which convicted gangster Abu Salem was involved.

In 2024, Nikam briefly entered politics, contesting the Lok Sabha elections as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from Mumbai North Central.

He was subsequently reappointed as a special prosecutor in several cases, which he withdrew during the election period.

In July 2025, President Droupadi Murmu nominated him to the Rajya Sabha in recognition of his contribution to law and justice.

Nikam’s fees

According to a Caravan magazine report published in 2025, Nikam, as an independent lawyer, is hired on a case-by-case basis. Last year he was paid approx ₹40,000 for an effective look, incl ₹10,000 as consultancy fees and ₹5000 as accommodation.

For most of his career, he has been provided round-the-clock security service costing millions of rupees annually.

Ketan’s murder: On the latest case of Ujjwal Nikam

Nikam’s latest case relates to the death of 25-year-old real estate agent Ketan Agarwal near Lohagad Fort near Lonavla.

Police said Ketan died on June 18 after falling into a 350-feet deep valley during a trek to the fort with his fiancee Siya Goyal and other friends.

The case was initially registered as accidental death, but was later converted into a case of murder in which Siya and her lover Chetan Chaudhary are accused.

According to the police, Goyal and Agarwal were supposed to get married in November, but she did not want to marry him. Siya and Chetan allegedly hatched a plot to eliminate Ketan and executed the plan.

Goyal and Chaudhary were arrested on June 23 and produced before a magistrate in Wadgaon Maval, who sent them to police custody for seven days. They are currently in custody until June 29.

Goyal is represented by advocate Aashuutosh Srivastava, an alumnus of Pune University and Symbiosis Institute of Management Studies (SIBM), Pune.

In 2006, he established his own law firm AA Associates, Advocates & Legal Advisors in Pune and is a member of the New Delhi High Court Bar.

Chaudhary is represented by advocate Ram Shahane.