In a shocking twist to the murder of Indore resident Raja Raghuvanshi in Meghalaya, an eyewitness has claimed that one of the accused, now under arrest, was present at Raghuvanshi’s funeral in Indore.
According to Lakshman Singh Rathore, one of the arrested individuals, Raj Singh Kushwaha, had driven a vehicle transporting people to the funeral. “When Raja’s body arrived, Sonam’s family from Govind Nagar Kharcha had arranged four to five vehicles for attendees. I was in a car driven by Kushwaha, though we didn’t speak. I only realised this after seeing his photo in the news,” Rathore said on Monday (June 10, 2025).
The case took a dramatic turn when Raja’s wife, Sonam Raghuvanshi (24), was arrested by Meghalaya Police along with three alleged accomplices: Akash Rajput (19), Vishal Singh Chauhan (22), and Raj Singh Kushwaha (21). Sonam is accused of masterminding her husband’s murder while on their honeymoon.
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On Monday, Sonam surrendered to police in Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh. She was taken into custody from ‘Kashi Dhaba’ on the Varanasi-Ghazipur road after reportedly asking an employee to borrow a phone to contact her parents in Indore—an act that helped Madhya Pradesh Police trace her location.
Following her detention, she was presented before a local court for transit remand and is expected to be taken to Meghalaya by police. She was also sent to Sadar Hospital for a medical check-up and later placed at a women’s one-stop centre offering legal and medical support.
Ghazipur SP Iraz Raja confirmed her arrest and custody transfer to the Meghalaya Police team around 6:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, Akash Rajput was arrested the previous night from Chauki village in Lalitpur district, Uttar Pradesh. According to SP Md Mustaque, Meghalaya Police is currently questioning him, and further legal steps will be taken by the concerned state authorities.
Earlier, Meghalaya DGP Ms. Nongrang had confirmed that one suspect was detained in Uttar Pradesh and two others were held in Indore by a special investigation team.
Raja and Sonam had married on May 11 and left for their honeymoon in Meghalaya on May 20. They were last seen on May 22 in Mawlakhiat village, having rented a scooter for sightseeing. The scooter was later found abandoned on May 24 near a café along the Shillong-Sohra road, prompting a search operation.
Raja Raghuvanshi’s body was discovered in a gorge near the Weisawdong waterfalls on June 2. Sonam had reportedly been missing since then.
Sonam’s brother, Govind, who travelled from Meghalaya to Ghazipur, told reporters, “If she is guilty, she should be hanged. We will accept whatever decision the government takes.” He added that he had not spoken to her and had been searching alongside police for 17 days.
So far, five people have been arrested in connection with the case.
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