Three other accused sent to 14 days’ judicial custody
Shillong, June 19: With new facts emerging every day in the Raja Raghuvanshi murder case, two prime accused – Raja’s wife Sonam and her alleged lover Raj Kushwaha – were further remanded in police custody for two more days while the court granted 14-day judicial custody for three other accused – Vishal Singh Chauhan, Akash Rajput, and Anand Kurmi.
All the five accused in the sensational murder, which took place during the couple’s so-called honeymoon trip to Sohra on June 23, were produced before the Sessions Court in Shillong on Thursday after expiry of their 8 days of police custody.
“Sonam and Raj were again sent to two days police custody and others – Anand, Akash and Vishal – were sent to 14 days judicial custody,” public prosecutor T Chanda told reporters outside the court.
Meanwhile, the SIT entrusted with the investigation completed reconstruction of the crime scene at Sohra and also recovered a second machete, suspected to be used in the murder, from near Wei Sawdong Falls. The first machete was found near Raja’s body on June 2.
On the other hand, a team of Meghalaya Police visited Sonam’s parental house at Indore and interrogated her family, particularly her brother Govind Raghuvanshi, on Wednesday. The police team also visited Govind’s office and the family-owned plywood factory as part of the probe.
The investigation has since expanded to multiple locations, including Varanasi, where Sonam reportedly travelled under suspicious circumstances. Police have also taken statement of Ujala Yadav, a resident to Ghazipur, who claimed to have seen Sonam at the Varanasi bus terminal accompanied by two unidentified men and later sat beside her on a Gorakhpur-bound bus.
The investigation gained momentum on June 8–9, when four men — Raj Kushwaha, Vishal Singh Chauhan, Akash Rajput, and Anand Kurmi — were arrested from various locations across Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. Sonam surrendered on June 9 at Nandganj police station in Ghazipur. All five accused were brought to Shillong on June 11 and initially remanded to eight days of police custody.
