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The Meghalaya Police’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) filed a 790-page chargesheet on Saturday, 6 September 2025, in the high-profile Raja Raghuvanshi murder case. The chargesheet formally accused his wife, Sonam Raghuvanshi, her lover, Raj Kushwaha, and three others of plotting and executing the killing. The chargesheet, submitted to the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Sohra Sub-Division Court, names five accused — Sonam, Raj, Akash Rajput, Anand Kurmi, and Vishal Singh Chauhan. All of them are currently in judicial custody. Police charged them under Section 103(1) for murder, Section 238(a) for destruction of evidence, and Section 61(2) for criminal conspiracy of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

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The case involves Indore businessman Raja Raghuvanshi, whose shocking death earlier this year gripped the nation. It began as a missing persons investigation when newlyweds Raja and Sonam, both from Indore, Madhya Pradesh, were reported missing on 26 May 2025 during their honeymoon in Meghalaya. Raja, a 29-year-old businessman, and Sonam, 24, had married on 11 May 2025. The couple traveled to Shillong on 21 May and later went to Sohra. On 23 May, just hours after checking out of a homestay in Nongriat village, they disappeared.

Police launched a massive search operation involving Sohra Police, SOT, NDRF, SDRF, trekking groups, and local villagers. On 2 June, authorities recovered Raja’s body from a deep gorge at Arliang Riat Kunongrim near Wei Sawdong Falls, Sohra, with two sharp injuries on his head. Sonam resurfaced on 8 June near a roadside dhaba on the Varanasi–Ghazipur highway and later surrendered at the Nandganj police station in Uttar Pradesh.

The SIT investigation revealed that Sonam had been in a long-term relationship with Raj Kushwaha, who previously worked as an accountant in her family’s furniture business. Police alleged that Sonam and Raj conspired with Akash, Vishal, and Anand to murder Raja during the honeymoon trip. Investigators said Vishal Singh Chauhan struck Raja with a machete (“dao”), while Sonam was present at the scene and fled when Raja began to bleed. The three hired assailants then dumped the body in the gorge. Police later recovered the murder weapon, blood-stained clothing, Sonam’s mangalsutra and toe ring, CCTV footage, and eyewitness testimonies linking the accused to the crime.

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Police arrested Akash, Vishal, and Anand from Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, while Raj was arrested later. On 11 June, Sonam allegedly confessed to killing her husband. Her brother, Govind, announced that the family had cut all ties with her and pledged support to Raja’s grieving family in their pursuit of justice.

Alongside the chargesheet, the SIT submitted substantial material evidence and enclosures. East Khasi Hills Superintendent of Police Vivek Syiem confirmed that police will file a supplementary chargesheet against three additional accused — property dealer Silome James, building owner Lokendra Tomar, and security guard Balbir Ahirbar — once forensic reports are received. These three, earlier arrested for destruction and concealment of evidence, are currently out on bail.

The chargesheet concludes that Sonam, Raj, and their accomplices lured Raja to Sohra under the pretext of a honeymoon and carried out the murder as part of a criminal conspiracy. [Rh/VP]

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