The Conspiracy: The Murder of Raja Raghuvanshi:
After several failed attempts, Sonam picked May 23, 2025, as the day to assassinate Raja Raghuvanshi. That morning, Raja set off on a hike with Sonam, unaware of the conspiracy surrounding him. Along the way, they encountered a YouTuber with an active camera. Coincidentally, right before the murder, the camera captured photos of Sonam, Raja, and the would-be killers together. Let's dive into the dramatic story from the planning stage of Raja's murder to its aftermath.
In the area of Nohkalikai Falls, Cherrapunji, YouTuber Dev Singh was passing by at precisely 9:45 AM on May 23. He was there to explore Meghalaya's famous double-decker root bridge and his camera was continuously recording. Later, while reviewing the footage, Dev Singh was shocked to observe that he had inadvertently captured Raja Raghuvanshi and Sonam together on film. This footage turned out to be Raja’s last living video, for within three to three and a half hours, Raja was murdered.
A careful review of the video reveals a figure descending slowly, as two individuals advance uphill—the girl leading, armed with a stick to aid her climb, bag in one hand. She wore a white shirt paired with black trousers, with a small shoulder bag dangling from her neck. Behind her walked a young man in a white vest and black pants, balancing a couple of water bottles. Both were clearly filmed by Dev Singh's camera, which caught their movements as they crossed paths.
The leading girl was Sonam, with Raja following her. As Dev Singh descended, they ascended—traversing more than 3,000 steps. By approximately 1:30 PM that same day, they reached the summit, a tourist spot bejeweled with a selfie point, rimmed by tall railings overhanging sheer cliffs. Here, Raja was murdered.
Source: aajtak
Sonam had pre-informed the three assassins about arriving at this location. They lay in wait at the precise spot where a fatigued Raja ventured towards the restroom. Immediately then, they assaulted him. Sonam watched in proximity as her new husband was slain. Raja, in his final moments, realized it was no one but his bride of 12 days who had plotted to end his life.
As per the plan, Raja’s corpse was to be cast into the ravine. But the high railing complicated the task of lifting the body over. Sonam stepped in to help the killers dispose of the body over the edge. Following the act, Sonam and the assassins trekked a short distance to their scooters to make a getaway. Sonam drove one of the scooters herself, carrying one of the killers along.
Leaving the crime scene, they exited Meghalaya that same evening. Sonam donned a burqa and took a taxi to Guwahati, then traveled by bus to Siliguri, followed by another bus ride to Patna. From Patna, she journeyed to Ara by bus and then took a train to reach Lucknow. From Lucknow, she continued to Indore via bus, arriving there on May 25.
Thus, two days post-murder, Sonam reached Indore and hid in a rented room in the city's Devasa Gate area. During her stay, news of Raja Raghuvanshi’s disappearance had not yet hit the media. It was only after her brothers-in-law went to Meghalaya on May 26 and filed a missing persons report that media attention heightened. Raja's body was eventually found on June 2 during a search operation, reigniting wider media coverage.
Source: aajtak
With the discovery of Raja’s body, the missing person case transformed into a murder investigation. A large-scale search for Sonam was launched. Prayers and hopes for her safe return echoed across Indore while Sonam remained in hiding.
Sonam intended to bide her time in Indore for 15-20 days, planning to reemerge near Meghalaya under fictitious circumstances of abduction and drug obsession to explain her disappearance. However, this plan unraveled quickly as Meghalaya police swiftly cracked the case, tracing the murder trail back to the killers.
On June 8, a joint operation between Indore and Meghalaya police led to the arrest of the first assassin, Akash. The police, in civilian clothes, discreetly apprehended him. News of Akash’s capture reached Raj Kushwaha shortly after, prompting him to alert Sonam, who too grew alarmed. At this juncture, the plan changed; Sonam was to reach Ghazipur instead of continuing to Siliguri. She was advised to contact her family once safe in Ghazipur.
Subsequently, Sonam journeyed to Varanasi, flanked by two boys who vanished mid-trip. In Varanasi, she boarded another bus to Ghazipur. On this essential bus ride, a passenger named Ujala from Lucknow noticed Sonam and approached her with travel inquiries. Unbeknownst to Sonam, Ujala disembarked before her.
Source: aajtak
Upon reaching Ghazipur around 2 AM, Sonam borrowed a phone from a roadside café and contacted her brother. Her arrest soon ensued thereafter. By morning, Ujala had learned of Sonam's Ghazipur arrest via social media, using a phone number from Raja’s wedding card to relay her eyewitness account to Raja’s brother, Sachin Raghuvanshi.
Ujala remains a critical witness, having spotted Sonam with two young men in Varanasi. Although the identity of these men remains unknown, it continues to trouble Raja's still-grieving family.
Sonam is now back in Meghalaya, facing court-ordered police custody along with the other accused, amid shocking revelations emerging from intense interrogations. As of February 2024, detectives learned of Sonam’s systematic planning which began as soon as her marriage was arranged. She never wanted to wed Raja yet feared her refusal would adversely affect her heart-stricken father.
Thus, she sought ways to sabotage the marriage. In collaboration with Raj, her initial plan didn’t include murder. The idea was to abandon her scooter by a river in Indore, leaving her belongings behind to suggest she had drowned. However, with inadequate river water levels, the attempt failed to pan out.
Source: aajtak
Then Sonam and Raj conjured another perilous plot involving setting her scooter ablaze in a secluded alley, leaving behind a falsely identified, burnt, unrecognizable female corpse. However, executing this sinister strategy required a willing victim matching Sonam's physique—a search that bore no fruit and thus foiled again.
With the marriage looming, Sonam’s mobility was constrained by traditional rituals. A final meeting with Raj on the first of May culminated in the ultimate lethal conspiracy to eradicate Raja on their honeymoon narrative. On May 20, the couple flew to Guwahati, already trailed by the assassins. An attempt on Raja’s life in Guwahati that day faltered due to the city’s bustling activity, prompting Sonam to pivot plans to Meghalaya.
Arriving in Meghalaya on May 21, followed closely by their murderous trio, a rash of failed attempts courted with hindered circumstances rippled through the 21st and 22nd. Persistently flanked by misfortune, May 23 marked the final successful plot where Sonam orchestrated Raja’s tragic demise.
