The newlywed couple, Raja Raghuvanshi and his wife Sonam, visited some areas during their honeymoon in Meghalaya before they went missing on May 23.
NDTV, June 10, 2025, New Delhi: The ‘missing’ wife of Indore man – Raja Raghuvanshi, who was found dead in Meghalaya during their honeymoon, has been arrested in connection with the alleged murder of her husband, officials said on Monday. According to the police, the wife, Sonam, allegedly orchestrated the murder by hiring contract killers.
Officials said they found Sonam in an unconscious state on Saturday night at a ‘dhaba’ in Ghazipur. She was taken to the Ghazipur Medical College for treatment, where she surrendered before the police, and was subsequently arrested.
Meghalaya Director General of Police (DGP) Idashisha Nongrang said that they arrested three other accused in overnight raids. While one person was found in Uttar Pradesh, the other two were arrested from Indore. The accused have told the police that they were hired by Sonam to kill her husband.
Police are questioning the accused and investigating further, officials said.
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma congratulated the police for cracking the case.
“Within 7 days, a major breakthrough has been achieved by the #meghalayapolice in the Raja murder case…3 assailants who are from Madhya Pradesh have been arrested, female has surrendered and operation still on to catch 1 more assailant…well done,” he said in a post on X.
The newlywed couple, Raja Raghuvanshi and his wife Sonam, were visiting Cherrapunjee in the East Khasi Hills for their honeymoon when they went missing on May 23. The couple arrived in Nongriat a day earlier and were last spotted checking out of Balaji Homestay. A scooter that they had rented was found abandoned at Sohrarim a day after they went missing.
10 days later, the Indore-based businessman’s body was found dead inside a deep gorge below the Weisawdong Parking Lot at Riat Arliang. A machete suspected to have been used to murder him was also recovered from near the spot. The search was on for his missing wife.
On Saturday, a tourist guide in Meghalaya had claimed that he had seen the couple with three men on the day they went missing. According to the guide at Mawlakhiat, five of them were climbing over 3,000 steps from Nongriat to Mawlakhiat around 10 am on May 23. He said he recognised the couple as he had offered his services to them on May 22 to climb down to Nongriat, but they had politely refused and hired another guide.
ANI, Imphal : Meghalaya Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) (Crime) Rajesh Dandotiya on Tuesday shared information on the Raja Raghuvanshi murder case and stated that four accused have been arrested in the case so far.
The four accused are Sonam Raghuvanshi, Akash Rajput, Vishal Singh Chauhan and Raj Singh Kushwaha. The DCP said all four will be taken to Shillong following the completion of transit remand formalities today.
DCP Dandotiya said, “All four accused are currently in the Indore Police Commissionerate. The Shillong police interrogated them. The transit remand of the three accused was taken yesterday. Today, the fourth accused has been arrested. Shillong police will take all four accused with them today after taking transit remand.” “We have information on the four accused so far. Indore police has constantly coordinated with the Shillong police since day one,” he added.
According to the police, Sonam Rahuvanshi and Raj Kushwaha are the prime accused. The Meghalaya police brought Sonam Raghuvanshi to Phulwari Sharif police station in Bihar’s Patna after receiving her three-day transit remand. On Monday, the Meghalaya Police got the transit remand of the three accused in Indore’s Raja Raghuvanshi murder case. This comes after the victim, Raja Raghuvanshi, was allegedly killed during a honeymoon trip in Meghalaya by contract killers reportedly hired by his wife, Sonam Raghuvanshi.
A senior Uttar Pradesh police official said Sonam was found near a dhaba on the Varanasi-Ghazipur main road. Afterwards, the UP police kept her at the Sakhi One Stop Centre in Ghazipur. After the arrival of the Meghalaya Police, she was taken to the District Hospital for a medical examination.
Earlier, Meghalaya Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong confirmed the arrest of four individuals in connection with the murder of Raja Raghuvanshi. Addressing the media on June 9, shortly after Sonam Raghvanshi surrendered to the police, Tynsong stated that the authorities are still searching for one remaining suspect.
He informed that Sonam voluntarily turned herself in, and all those apprehended would be brought to Shillong for further investigation. The Meghalaya Special Investigation Team (SIT) Chief Herbert Pyniaid Kharkongor said that, according to the post-mortem report, the deceased Raja Raghuvanshi sustained two head injuries.
Raja Raghuvanshi and his wife, Sonam, both residents of Madhya Pradesh’s Indore, had gone missing during their honeymoon in the northeastern state of Meghalaya. Raja Raghuvanshi’s body was later recovered in Meghalaya.
NDTV, Guwahati/Shillong: The 12 hours that a couple from Madhya Pradesh’s Indore spent at Nongriat village in Meghalaya’s East Khasi Hills during their visit to the popular double-decker living root bridge have now been accounted for, according to investigators who spoke with the locals and took their statements.
Newly wed couple Raja Raghuvanshi and his wife Sonam visited some areas during their honeymoon in Meghalaya before they went missing on May 23. While Raja Raghuvanshi’s body was found in a gorge on June 2, a search is still on for his wife.
Teams from the police and even the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are searching for Sonam, whose family said they believe she must have been kidnapped and have not lost hope of finding her.
The couple checked into a guesthouse in Meghalaya’s capital Shillong on May 21. The next day they hired a scooty and rode to the popular tourist hotspot Sohra (Cherrapunji). After reaching Mawlakhiat village in East Khasi Hills, they kept the scooty at a parking spot run by the local community for tourists, and hired a local guide to trek to a homestay at Nongriat village in the same district.
The guide who took them on the trek to Nongriat from Mawlakhiat said it takes nearly three hours and involves descending some 3,000 steps.
“The couple called us on May 22; it was late, around 3.30 pm, but I did not refuse and decided to guide them to Nongriat. After dropping them at Shipara Homestay, we left,” the guide Bhakupar Wanshai said, adding another guide, Albert Pde, also accompanied them.
“We offered our service for the next day (May 23), but they [the couple] refused, saying they know the route,” Mr Wanshai said.
Mr Wanshai in his police statement said Sonam did most of the talking with them in English.
The couple and the two guides reached Shipara Homestay at Nongriat village at 5.30 pm, the woman who runs the homestay said.
“On May 22, two guests came to stay here (Shipara Homestay). They came along with guides. I can’t recall the exact time… but I think it was around 5 pm. When they arrived here, I showed them the room, and they agreed to stay. While we were sitting here, they asked about the room tariff and fees for the guide, and when to clear the payment, to which I said, ‘today’,” the homestay owner Sianti Sohkhlet said.
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She said the couple declined the guide’s service for the next day.
“I took the money and asked them to sign in the register, and showed them their room. They checked in and left to see the living root bridges after locking the room. They returned after a while. It was already dark. We prepared food and took it to their room. They had dinner and retired for the night,” Ms Sohkhlet said.
Shipara Homestay is located close to the double-decker living root bridge in Nongriat.
“The next morning, I woke up around 5.30 am. The couple said they would check out early, so I asked if they would like to have breakfast. They refused, saying it was too early and they were not hungry,” the homestay owner said.
“They paid for the food [dinner] and signed out from the register. I asked if they would remember the way, and they said they would, pointing at the stairs before leaving,” Ms Sohkhlet said.
The couple left the homestay at 6 am on May 23.
The last person who saw the couple was the guide Albert Pde. During questioning by the state police, he said he saw the couple at 10 am climbing the 3,000 steps towards Mawlakhiat village along with three men who he believed to be tourists.
The couple went missing after that.
