TNR News Network
Dharamshala: What began as a romantic trip of a newlywed Indore couple ended in horror when 30-year-old Raja Raghuvanshi from Indore was allegedly *murdered during his honeymoon in Meghalaya.
In a chilling twist, the state police have revealed that Raja’s wife Sonam allegedly orchestrated the *killing by hiring three men to eliminate him.
Meghalaya Director General of Police (DGP) I Nongrang told the media that Sonam surrendered at the Nandganj police station in Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh, over the weekend. Three of her accomplices — two arrested from Indore and one from Uttar Pradesh — were caught in overnight raids led by the Special Investigation Team (SIT).
The couple had reached Meghalaya on May 20, just days after their wedding on May 11. They were last seen together on May 23 in the Sohra area, also known as Cherrapunji. A tourist guide in Mawlakhiat, Albert Pde, reported seeing them with three unidentified men that morning as they trekked the steep 3,000-step path from Nongriat to Mawlakhiat.
A major breakthrough in the case came on June 2 when Raghuvanshi’s body was recovered from a deep gorge near Weisawdong Falls. His gold ring and neck chain were missing, raising immediate suspicions of foul play. Nearby, investigators found a bloodstained machete and, days later, a raincoat believed to belong to the couple in Mawkma village, located along the route between Sohrarim and the gorge.
The DGP confirmed that all three men arrested had admitted during interrogation that Sonam had paid them to kill her husband. “The operation is still underway to nab at least one more suspect believed to be involved,” she added.
Reacting to the development, Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma lauded the swift progress made by the state police. “Within a week, the Meghalaya Police has made a significant breakthrough in the Raja murder case. Three assailants from Madhya Pradesh arrested, the woman has surrendered and efforts continue to trace the remaining accused. Well done!” he wrote on social media platform X.
Meanwhile, the family of the deceased has demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the case.
