Meghalaya murder: Accused wife produced in Ghazipur court for transit remand

The Hindu

2 days ago

An Indore-based woman accused of hiring men to get her husband killed while on honeymoon in Meghalaya surrendered before Uttar Pradesh Police in Ghazipur on Monday (June 9, 2025), while another accused man was arrested from Lalitpur district, police said.
Sonam Raghuvanshi (24), who has been accused of orchestrating the murder of her husband Raja Raghuvanshi, was produced before a local court in Ghazipur on Monday night for transit remand permission, following which she was expected to be taken into custody by a Meghalaya Police team that reached here in the evening.
The court proceedings continued till late in the night.
Earlier in the day, Meghalaya DGP I. Nongrang said Raja Raghuvanshi, an Indore-based transport businessman whose body was found a week back in Meghalaya, was allegedly killed by men hired by his wife Ms. Sonam.
Apart from Ms. Sonam, police have arrested three men— Akash Rajput from Lalitpur and two others from Indore— in connection with the case.
A total of five persons have been arrested in the case so far.
Meanwhile, one of the persons arrested had taken people to the latter's funeral here, an eyewitness said on Monday.
'When Raja's body arrived here, Ms. Sonam's family, whose home is in Govind Nagar Kharcha area, had arranged four-five vehicles for people to attend the funeral. One of the other accused, Raj Singh Kushwaha was driving the four-wheeler in which I went, though we did not talk. Only after seeing his photograph in the media post his arrest, I recollected this episode,' said Lakshman Singh Rathore.
Raja Raghuvanshi and his wife had gone missing while vacationing at Sohra in Meghalaya's East Khasi Hills district on May 23.
Raghuvanshi's body was found in a gorge near the Weisawdong waterfalls on June 2. Ms. Sonam (24) had gone missing since then.
Ghazipur SP Iraz Raja said Ms. Sonam was arrested from 'Kashi Dhaba' on the Varanasi-Ghazipur main road. She was sent to the Sadar Hospital for treatment and then kept at a one-stop centre, which provides assistance to women in distress, including medical and legal aid.
A dhaba employee told reporters that Ms. Sonam had asked for a phone to call her parents in Indore, which led to the Madhya Pradesh Police tracing her location.
Later, Uttar Pradesh Police was contacted, leading to her arrest.
At around 6:30 p.m. on Monday, a team of Meghalaya Police took Ms. Sonam into custody from the one-stop centre.
Although she was apprehended from the eatery, police said Ms. Sonam surrendered before the Nandganj police station in Ghazipur district.
Earlier in the day, Govind, Ms. Sonam's brother, reached Ghazipur from Meghalaya.
"If she is guilty, she should be hanged. Whatever the government decides, we will accept it," he told reporters.
Asked if he had spoken to Ms. Sonam, Mr. Govind said, "I don't know anything as of now. I have no idea. I have not met her. I have not slept for 17 days... I was searching for her with the police in Meghalaya." Akash Rajput was arrested from Chauki village in Uttar Pradesh's Lalitpur district on Sunday (June 8, 2025) night, SP Md Mustaque said.
"Meghalaya Police is interrogating Mr. Rajput. Further legal action will be taken by the concerned State police," the SP said.
Earlier, Meghalaya DGP Ms. Nongrang said one person was picked up from Uttar Pradesh in connection with Raja Raghuvanshi's death while two others were nabbed from Indore by a special investigation team.
After their marriage on May 11, the Raghuvanshi couple left for Meghalaya on May 20 for their honeymoon. They reached Mawlakhiat village on May 22 on a rented scooter. On May 24, the scooter was found abandoned outside a cafe along the Shillong-Sohra road, following which a search for them was launched.