Sonam Raghuvanshi allegedly intended to pass off her husband Raja Raghuvanshi’s murder as a robbery gone wrong in Meghalaya and was planning on living as a widow for some time before trying to convince her family to let her marry Raj Kushwaha, the alleged mastermind of the honeymoon murder, investigators have told The Indian Express.
The Special Investigation Team probing the murder of Raja, an Indore resident who ran a transport business, first grew suspicious of Sonam when they heard her audio call to her mother-in-law, informing her about a fast that she undertook for her husband’s health.
When the SIT tracked down the owner of the hotel where the couple stayed, they found this was a lie and that she had eaten there. This revelation raised suspicions, and when the Meghalaya police decided to mount technical surveillance on Sonam, they found that she was in constant touch with Kushwaha, police said.
Superintendent of Police, East Khasi Hills, Vivek Syiem told The Indian Express, “We found that she had consumed food. We also found that she was in touch with the main accused, Raj Kushwaha. The plan was to pass this off as a robbery gone wrong.”
Raja and Sonam were reported missing last month during their honeymoon in Meghalaya. Earlier this month, Raja’s body was found, and the search for Sonam was stepped up. On Sunday night, police arrested Kushwaha for allegedly orchestrating Raja’s murder with Sonam’s help. Once he was caught, Sonam surrendered at a police station in Uttar Pradesh.
Investigators in Meghalaya police told The Indian Express that Sonam allegedly left her home with jewellery and also asked her husband to carry expensive jewellery to pass this off as a robbery gone wrong.
Syiem said, “This is what our investigation has found. The couple had not booked return flight tickets. They had initially made plans to visit a temple in Guwahati. Then they chose to visit Meghalaya, and this very spot must have been chosen to commit the crime since a tourist recently went missing here and his body was found in the gorge after he suffered a fall. We are still investigating why the Meghalaya trip was planned.”
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In April, the body of a Hungarian tourist, who had been missing since March 29 after checking into a Shillong hotel, was found on a steep slope in the East Khasi Hills district.
The assailants tasked with killing Raja tracked the couple down using the location information allegedly shared by Sonam. They had purchased a dao (machete) in Guwahati, using which they inflicted two head injuries on Raja and dumped his body in the gorge, investigators said.
Later, a tour guide from Mawlakhiat, Albert Pde, shared crucial inputs with the police, revealing that he had seen the couple accompanied by three male tourists as they were climbing over 3,000 steps from Nongriat to Mawlakhiat around 10 am on May 23.
Following the murder, Sonam left Meghalaya. Syiem said, “She must have used a train to escape; that is under investigation. She was monitoring the news. She managed to survive on her own all these days from the money that her husband had taken for their honeymoon. When we arrested Raj Kushwaha from Indore, she gave up her plans and surrendered in UP.”
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Police are now waiting for Sonam to arrive in Shillong, where she will be questioned along with the other accused. The police are probing financial transactions that took place during the time to see if a payment was made for the contract killing.
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