Four Arrested in Meghalaya Honeymoon Murder Confess; Claim Sonam Watched Killing
Four men accused of murdering Indore businessman Raja Raghuvanshi during his honeymoon in Meghalaya have confessed, according to ACP Poonam Chand Yadav of the Indore Crime Branch. The accused stated that Raja’s wife, Sonam, was present at the crime scene and “watched her husband die.”
The accused—Vishal (alias Vicky Thakur), Akash Rajput, Anand Kurmi, and Raj Kushwaha—admitted to carrying out the killing and disposing of Raja’s body in a deep gorge near Wei Sawdong Falls. Vishal delivered the fatal blow, the ACP confirmed.
To execute their plan, three of the accused journeyed from Indore to Meghalaya via multiple train transfers. Raj Kushwaha, alleged to be Sonam’s lover, remained in Indore and supposedly financed their travel with Rs 40,000–50,000.
It remains unclear whether Sonam stayed in Meghalaya after the killing or left earlier; Meghalaya Police are still investigating her movements.
Raja and Sonam had married on May 10 and left for a honeymoon in Meghalaya days later. They went missing on May 23, and Raja’s decomposed body was discovered on June 2 in a gorge near Cherrapunji. The autopsy revealed multiple sharp injuries, including two deep head wounds.
Senior police sources confirm that during interrogation, the accused specifically stated Sonam witnessed the murder. Investigators are now treating her as the prime conspirator. Earlier intelligence revealed she had allegedly funded Rs 20 lakh to hire hitmen, a figure later revised to Rs 14 lakh.
Following the arrests, public outrage surged. A video showed one accused being slapped at Indore airport by an unidentified man, underscoring widespread public anger.
Raja’s father demanded the death penalty for all those involved. “Raja deserves justice… they should be hanged, if possible,” his mother told reporters.
Sonam surrendered at a highway dhaba in Ghazipur on June 9, with her father claiming she had been abducted and called for a CBI investigation. He dismissed police accounts as fabricated.
Meghalaya MP Conrad Sangma praised local police: “We did not leave anything to chance,” as the investigation progressed.
The revelation that Sonam may have actively witnessed the murder marks a chilling escalation in this case. Meghalaya police are preparing for detailed questioning, while judges in Meghalaya and Indore review transit custody and chart next legal moves.
