In a case that has gripped the nation, Indore-based Raja Raghuvanshi was brutally murdered during his honeymoon in Meghalaya, allegedly orchestrated by his wife Sonam, her lover Raj Kushwaha, and three hired killers. Meghalaya Police, through a meticulous operation titled Operation Honeymoon, have arrested all five accused and pieced together a disturbing timeline of events.
According to Shillong Police, Sonam was present at the murder scene and explicitly instructed the killers to “hit him (Raja)”. The three hitmen had arrived in Shillong on May 22, a day before Raja was killed. His body was discovered on June 2 in a gorge in East Khasi Hills.
Operation Honeymoon: Digital Footprints, Blood-Stained Clues and Arrests Across States
Soon after the body was recovered, Sonam went missing. However, by June 3–4, Meghalaya Police had developed leads strongly implicating her, prompting the launch of Operation Honeymoon on June 7.
CCTV footage showed Sonam speaking with the killers about 10 km from the crime scene. A crucial twist came when a social media post from Raja’s account after his death read, “Saat janmon ka saath (Together for seven lifetimes)”, which investigators believe was posted by Sonam to mislead people.
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On May 25, Sonam travelled from Shillong to Indore via Siliguri, meeting her alleged lover Raj Kushwaha and staying in a rented room. She was later transported to Ghazipur in Uttar Pradesh via Varanasi, where she was eventually detained at a roadside dhaba.
Key evidence emerged during the probe. The murder weapon was bought near Guwahati railway station, and Sonam’s raincoat, stained with blood, was found at the crime scene. Police also recovered a broken mobile screen and a jacket belonging to Akash Kumri, one of the accused, who was arrested in Madhya Pradesh’s Bina district.
ALSO READ: From murder spot to Ghazipur: How Sonam Raghuvanshi escaped from Meghalaya and emerged in UP
Among the hitmen, Vishal was the first to attack, and Anand was still wearing the same clothes he wore during the crime at the time of his arrest. Police confirmed that Sonam had handed over her raincoat to Akash after the murder, which he carelessly discarded near the crime scene, providing a vital link in the investigation.
Cross-State Manhunt and Arrests Conclude a Grisly Plot
A day after launching Operation Honeymoon, a 20-member police team from Meghalaya travelled to Madhya Pradesh, where all three contract killers belonged. On Monday, all five accused — Sonam, Raj, Akash, Vishal, and Anand — were arrested, bringing a key breakthrough to a chilling story of betrayal, deceit, and murder.
The absence of honeymoon pictures on social media, a suspicious post from Raja’s account, and the blood-stained items left behind all contributed to solving one of India’s most sensational murder cases in recent memory.
