Almost after one year, Sonam Raghuvanshi, prime accused in Madhya Pradesh’s high-profile Raja Raghuvanshi murder case, has been granted bail by the court in Shillong, Meghalaya. Sonam Raghuvanshi had been lodged in Shillong jail for several months on charges of murdering her husband, Raja Raghuvanshi. The court has now granted her bail. For Raja’s family, who have been fighting a battle to secure justice for him, Sonam Raghuvanshi’s release on the bail comes as a major setback. Bail petitions rejected three times previously, Sonam Raghuvanshi has been incarcerated in Shillong Jail for several months on charges related to the murder of her husband, Raja Raghuvanshi. She had previously filed bail applications in court on three separate occasions. However, each time she faced a setback as the court rejected her applications. This stood in contrast to the earlier proceedings, wherein the court had already granted bail to Lokendra Singh Tomar, the guard Balbir Ahirwar, and Shilom James, individuals who had assisted Sonam Raghuvanshi in the murder of Raja Raghuvanshi.

 

However, the court has now approved Sonam’s latest bail petition and granted her release. Meanwhile, her alleged lover, Raj Kushwah, who acted as Sonam Raghuvanshi’s accomplice in the murder of Raja Raghuvanshi, remains in jail. Her husband Raja Raghuvanshi was murdered during honeymoon. Raja, a transport businessman from Indore, married Sonam on May 11. On May 20, the couple departed for Meghalaya for their honeymoon. Raja and his wife, Sonam, went missing on May 23, just a few hours after checking out of a homestay in Nongriat village, located in Sohra (Cherrapunji) within Meghalaya’s East Khasi Hills district. On May 24, the family lost all contact with Raja and Sonam. The search for both individuals began on May 27, and during the search operation, Raja’s body was discovered in a gorge on June 2.

 

On June 3, Raja’s post-mortem report revealed that he had been murdered using a tool Dove- a typically used for felling trees. As Sonam remained missing, the search for her continued; however, on June 9, Sonam Raghuvanshi was located by the police at a roadside eatery in Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh. The Shillong Police arrested Sonam and subjected her to interrogation, during which she confessed to murdering Raja in collusion with her lover, Raj Kushwaha, and other accomplices. The police subsequently arrested eight accused individuals, including Sonam. According to police investigations, Sonam Raghuvanshi was allegedly involved in an illicit relationship with Raj Kushwaha. The two are believed to have conspired to murder Raja, using the honeymoon as a cover to execute their plan. Police said that Raja was allegedly killed by Akash Singh Rajput, Vishal Singh Chauhan and Anand Kurmi in Sonam’s presence. In total, eight individuals were arrested in connection with the case.