On 14 April 2004, Class VIII of Saraswati Vidya Niketan School in New Delhi had planned to go on an educational tour of the Aravalli hills. It is a regular visit, part of the annual Science and Nature Studies program. The atmosphere was normal that day, no one would have imagined that this day would leave a deep shadow for an entire generation of the school.
Among the students was Priya Mehta, a 14-year-old quiet, responsible and intelligent schoolgirl. He always made a habit of writing down all his notes in a red-dotted diary and never forgetting them at home.
The trip started without any problems. Teachers divided the students into two groups, so they could walk up the hill via different paths and eventually meet at the main area. Priya joins the group, led by young teacher Miss Reena, who has only been at school for two years.
Along the way, near a small pond and slippery cliff, Rina told the students to stop and regroup the group. It was then that they realized that a student was missing.
—”Has anyone seen Priya?” — he asked, trying to stay calm.
There was no answer. Some speculated that he might have moved out, some speculated that he might have been worried in his diary about some plants or flowers. Less than 10 minutes had passed, but Rina’s heart was beating strongly.
The first search lasted about half an hour. There were voices, teachers ran in different directions, and classmates were crying. When they could not be found, the school administration notified the nearest police. By noon, officers, dogs and volunteers at the scene were engaged in the search. But no clue was found—no bag, no red-dotted diary, no fresh trail by the lake. It was as if the earth had swallowed him.
Helicopters flew over the next few days and the mountain search team scanned every trail, every trench. Priya’s parents came out on TV and demanded information. Media pressure mounted, and police began investigating all possibilities: accident, voluntary escape, kidnapping. But none of the possibilities are a perfect fit. There was no reason for Priya to flee, or any sign of mental pressure. Dangerous areas are far away from the group. There was no evidence of kidnapping.
A week later, Priya’s name made headlines all over the country. Speculation and rumors spread, sometimes impractical and fantastical. But as time went on, the issue cooled. New headlines, new controversies and other events led to Priya’s disappearance. The matter remained “unresolved”.
But twenty years later, in 2024, an unexpected phone call started all over again.
On October 3, 2023, retired inspector Ajay Malhotra received a call from his former police colleague. They worked together on several cases, including Priya Mehta’s case in 2003 – a case that was always a personal setback for Malhotra. His friend, Ravi, seems tense and almost unbelievable.
—”Ajay, I’m getting something… You won’t believe it. This is relevant to the case of Priya Mehta. ”
Malhotra feels like twenty years have passed at the same time. Listening to the phone, his hand trembled slightly. Ravi explained that a climber had found a diary with red dots, hidden in an old, torn plastic bag and in a secluded area, also hidden under a rock, about five kilometres from the trail where Priya went missing. It was mistaken for a climbing garbage and given to the police, but as soon as she opened the diary, the agents immediately recognized the name and handwriting written on the first page: Priya M.
The diary was slightly damaged, but there were plenty of notes to read—dates, pictures of plants, brief thoughts… And an unfinished line became the first hint of further mystery:
“I shouldn’t go with him alone…”
It was an explosion. A mystery that was never included in the original investigation.
Malhotra approached the Aravalis with fear in his heart. The fact that the diary was found was not included in the 2003 discovery site means that it is clear: someone was keeping a watch there. Either someone kept a diary there years later, or Priya herself made it to the place. Both possibilities are terrifying.
While examining the diary, Malhotra noticed something that others had missed: small marks on the last few pages, as if he were squeezing while writing on a hard, rough surface. This is a sign that he is not writing in the open forest, but in a closed or temporary area. The last few pages also showed changes in pen pressure, which is a sign of stress and fear.
To move forward, Ajay Malhotra had to reconstruct the final activities of the day. He met teachers and students who still live nearby. Many have formed their own families; For some, just hearing Priya’s name was an emotional rollercoaster. One person in particular, Karan Sharma, Priya’s classmate and one of the last to see her, provided unexpected information.
—”That morning, Priya got into an argument with someone… I don’t know if I’ll say this or not, but he’s not a student. He’s an adult. A member of the park staff. ”
The name comes from poverty: Ravindra Pathak, a forest guard posted to the area in 2003. He wasn’t considered a suspect, as he seemed to have a strong motive: he said he had been monitoring the remote part of the park all day.
What if that excuse is wrong?
Malhotra discovers Ravindra Pathak, who now lives alone on the edge of a small village. When the former inspector arrived at his door, the forest guards looked uncomfortable and tense, as if they had been waiting for this meeting for years.
—”Why is this case coming back now?” — he said in a low voice, averting Malhotra’s gaze.
The former inspector knew there was more. A lot.
And the red-dotted diary is just the first clue.
The meeting was planned for a few days, when Ravindra Pathak finally agreed to talk on his own. Her face was wrinkled, her eyes were tired—she looked like she was constantly under stress. They were called to a small enclosed picnic shed, off-season. There, without witnesses, negotiations began.
—”You know why I’m here,” — Malhotra said, placing the red-dotted diary on the table.
The reader sees this as evidence of the past.
—”I thought it couldn’t be found…” — he said calmly—”I didn’t leave him there.” ”
The former inspector said: He did not deny that he had a diary. Cautiously, Malhotra asked him to recall the entire incident on April 14, 2003. At first, the reader repeated the official version. But within a few minutes his stern response began to crumble.
Finally he took a deep breath.
—”Okay… I’ll tell you.” Me: I didn’t mean to hurt anyone. ”
He had seen Priya this morning. He walked a short distance from the group, to take pictures of the flowers near the lake. He approached and warned that the area could be dangerous. According to the reader, Priya panicked, slipped and fell down the slope. Her head hit a rock and she lost consciousness.
—”I could have asked for help,” — he said in a broken voice — “but I froze. I thought people would say it was my fault. I picked him up and looked for a mobile signal, but the place was completely deserted. Then I panicked. ”
Instead of taking her to the teachers right away, they took Priya to an abandoned barn of old hunters three kilometres away, so she could rest and think about what to do. But the situation is getting worse. Priya was in a state of despair, confused and unable to stand. The reader gave him water, tried to calm him down, but he didn’t know how to deal with the wounds. At that time, Priya wrote in her diary that she wanted to go back to her classroom.
—”I… I was scared. It’s very scary. By the end of the night, the girl was getting worse. And in the evening… Her breathing stopped. ”
Malhotra listened silently, without any reaction. Her mind was constantly skeptical: Was she telling the truth or was it just the most convenient story? He asked why he didn’t report the incident.
—”I was scared. I buried her body near the hut and did the best I could. Delete the diary… Or so I thought. It found something a few years later. ”
“Otherwise?” — tanong ni Malhotra.
—”I don’t know. But… I never went there again. ”
By recording this confession, Malhotra secretly approached the police. Two days later, the mountaineering team investigates by taking the reader to the right place. They found bone fragments, pieces of cloth and an old water bottle. A DNA test confirmed an important fact: it was Priya Mehta’s remains.
This issue has become a media frenzy. Twenty years later, the truth has come out. There was no kidnapping, no premeditated murder, no secret conspiracy. There was just a series of human error, fear, fear and neglect. Ravindra Pathak was arrested on charges of negligent murder and concealment of evidence. Priya’s family, on the other hand, thanked Malhotra for not giving up on the search for the truth.
In January 2024, before the trial began, Malhotra visited Aravalli Hills for the last time. He was carrying a copy of the restored red-dotted diary. He put it on the rock and left it quietly. The mountain air seemed to whisper a story of crime, fear, and silence that had been buried for twenty years.
The truth has finally been revealed.