The bizarre disappearance of 24-year-old Sonam Raghuvanshi after the murder of her husband in Meghalaya has taken a dramatic turn, with police now alleging that she staged her own vanishing act and reunited with her alleged lover in Indore before embarking on a calculated journey to Uttar Pradesh to mislead investigators.
According to Madhya Pradesh police, Sonam returned to Indore between May 25 and 27—just days after her husband Raja Raghuvanshi was found hacked to death near a gorge by Wei Sawdong Falls.
The couple had gone to Meghalaya on a sudden honeymoon, where Sonam vanished on May 23. Her reappearance nearly 2,000 km away, dazed and incoherent at a roadside dhaba in eastern Uttar Pradesh’s Ghazipur on June 9, deepened the mystery.
“She was never abducted as she claimed,” said additional DCP (Crime Branch) Rajesh Dandotiya. “We have information that Sonam reached Indore by train and stayed in a rented room in Dewas Gate. Raj Kushwaha, her co-accused, met her there. He later arranged a taxi to UP.”
“The route was chosen to misguide investigators,” said a senior Uttar Pradesh police officer.
At the Ghazipur One-Stop Centre, staff described her demeanour as oddly unaffected. “She looked nothing like a bride. No grief, no mention of husband. Just fatigue and sleepiness,” said a woman officer.
During her 15-hour stay, she reportedly slept for seven hours, refused medical checks, and repeatedly said, “Mujhe kuch yaad nahi hai.”
On May 16, they reportedly spoke for hours. The next day, Raj allegedly met three of his friends—Akash Rajput, Vishal Singh Chauhan, and Anand Kurmi—at a restaurant in Indore, where the killing was plotted.
The three men travelled to Shillong on May 21 using a rented car, allegedly tracking the couple’s movements through live locations sent by Sonam. “They tried to push him off a cliff first, but it didn’t work out,” said an Indore police officer. “Instead, they used a machete bought in Guwahati and hacked Raja to death in a remote area, as Sonam watched.”
Phone records and messages now in police possession reportedly contradict Sonam’s claims of memory loss or captivity. Her silence during questioning and carefully charted movements post-murder point to a deliberate cover-up, say investigators.
“She was trying to mislead the sleuths,” a senior UP official said.
(With inputs from ToI)
According to Madhya Pradesh police, Sonam returned to Indore between May 25 and 27—just days after her husband Raja Raghuvanshi was found hacked to death near a gorge by Wei Sawdong Falls.
The couple had gone to Meghalaya on a sudden honeymoon, where Sonam vanished on May 23. Her reappearance nearly 2,000 km away, dazed and incoherent at a roadside dhaba in eastern Uttar Pradesh’s Ghazipur on June 9, deepened the mystery.
“She was never abducted as she claimed,” said additional DCP (Crime Branch) Rajesh Dandotiya. “We have information that Sonam reached Indore by train and stayed in a rented room in Dewas Gate. Raj Kushwaha, her co-accused, met her there. He later arranged a taxi to UP.”
‘A tale of amnesia’ unravels
Police say the 15-day gap between the murder and her resurfacing was part of a calculated strategy. She was tracked travelling on a Guwahati–Patna train, dodging air travel deliberately to evade surveillance.“The route was chosen to misguide investigators,” said a senior Uttar Pradesh police officer.
At the Ghazipur One-Stop Centre, staff described her demeanour as oddly unaffected. “She looked nothing like a bride. No grief, no mention of husband. Just fatigue and sleepiness,” said a woman officer.
During her 15-hour stay, she reportedly slept for seven hours, refused medical checks, and repeatedly said, “Mujhe kuch yaad nahi hai.”
Murder conspiracy began six days after wedding
Indore police believe the murder was planned on May 17, just six days after the wedding. Sonam had returned to her parental home on May 15 and reconnected with her alleged lover, Raj Kushwaha.On May 16, they reportedly spoke for hours. The next day, Raj allegedly met three of his friends—Akash Rajput, Vishal Singh Chauhan, and Anand Kurmi—at a restaurant in Indore, where the killing was plotted.
The three men travelled to Shillong on May 21 using a rented car, allegedly tracking the couple’s movements through live locations sent by Sonam. “They tried to push him off a cliff first, but it didn’t work out,” said an Indore police officer. “Instead, they used a machete bought in Guwahati and hacked Raja to death in a remote area, as Sonam watched.”
Phone records and messages now in police possession reportedly contradict Sonam’s claims of memory loss or captivity. Her silence during questioning and carefully charted movements post-murder point to a deliberate cover-up, say investigators.
“She was trying to mislead the sleuths,” a senior UP official said.
(With inputs from ToI)
