‘3 failed attempts’: How Sonam planned Raja’s murder; 5 named in chargesheet

NEW DELHI: Before Indore-based businessman Raja Raghuvanshi was allegedly murdered during his honeymoon in Meghalaya, police say his wife Sonam and her lover Raj Kushwaha had already made three failed attempts to kill him. The fourth attempt, carried out with the help of Kushwaha’s associates, succeeded in Sohra on May 23, just two days after the couple arrived in the state.A 790-page chargesheet has been filed by Meghalaya Police, detailing how the plan was carried out step by step.Raja, 29, arrived in Meghalaya with Sonam on May 21 and the couple travelled to Sohra via Shillong. Police say the conspiracy was already in motion, with Kushwaha coordinating with his friends Aakash Singh Rajput, Vishal Singh Chauhan and Anand Kurmi to execute the killing. Investigators told PTI that the accused attempted to kill Raja on three separate occasions before finally succeeding in Sohra on May 23. The couple was reported missing on 26 May, triggering a statewide search. On June 2, Raja’s body was recovered from a deep gorge near the Wei Sawdong falls in Sohra.Police said Sonam, who was in a relationship with Kushwaha, lured Raja to the location where he was allegedly murdered by Kushwaha’s associates in her presence. After days on the run, Sonam eventually surrendered to police in Uttar Pradesh, while the others were arrested separately. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) even reconstructed the crime scene in Sohra in the presence of the accused.The chargesheet, filed before the Judicial Magistrate First Class in Sohra, names Sonam, Kushwaha, and their three accomplices under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for murder, conspiracy, and destruction of evidence. Three more individuals: Lokendra Tomar, Balla Ahirwar and Shilom James, were charged with helping destroy evidence, PTI reported.Raja’s brother Vipin Raghuvanshi has demanded the death penalty for Sonam and the others. Speaking to ANI, he said: “Sonam and all the others accused should face severe punishment. I demand that they all get a death sentence.” He also accused Sonam’s brother Govind of betraying the family by continuing to support her from jail despite initially claiming he had severed ties.