Sonam Raghuvanshi was in love with Raj Kushwaha and had warned her family of “consequences” if she was pressured to marry Raja Raghuvanshi, who was brutally murdered days after he married the woman, police sources said.
In his statement, Raja’s elder brother Vipin said Sonam had told her mother about her affair with Raj, who was an employee at the family’s business, but her mother objected to the relationship.
“Vipin said Sonam had already informed her mother about her affair with Raj. She said she did not want to marry Raja. Her mother, however, objected to the relationship (with Raj) and persuaded her to marry within the society,” one of the sources said.
“Vipin alleged that Sonam agreed to compromise and marry Raja but warned of consequences. She said ‘you will see what I do to that person. You all will have to bear the consequences’. No one thought she would kill Raja,” the source added.
The details of Vipin’s purported statement to the police surfaced at a time when Raja’s murder by Sonam, Raj and three of his accomplices have sent shockwaves across the country. Sonam and Raja were on their honeymoon to Meghalaya when the crime took place.
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The case initially began as that of a “missing couple”, after Raja and Sonam could not be traced in the northeastern state, but took a tragic turn and revealed a shocking betrayal. Raj was later identified as the prime conspirator in the case.
Vipin alleged that Sonam stayed in a hotel room with Raj after the murder. He later sent her to her hometown in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore, where she stayed for two days.
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Twenty-four-year-old Sonam and 29-year-old Raja from Indore got married on May 11. According to the police, the wedding took place despite Sonam’s relationship with Raj, who worked as an accountant at the furniture sheet unit owned by her family. Sonam used to look after the family business.
After their wedding in Indore, Raja and Sonam travelled to Meghalaya for honeymoon. They disappeared on May 23, hours after checking out of a homestay at Nongriat village, 20 km from where Raja’s body was found on June 2.
Raja was killed by Sonam, who went “missing” after the murder, the police said. She had allegedly hired killers to get rid of her husband as she wanted to be with her lover.
On Sunday night, Sonam surfaced in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghazipur where she surrendered at Nandganj police station. This came hours after Akash Rajput (19), Vishal Singh Chauhan (22), and Anand Kurmi were arrested from Uttar Pradesh and Indore and Sagar towns (in Madhya Pradesh). Raj, the alleged conspirator, was arrested later.
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Police sources said Sonam offered Rs 20 lakh to the accused to carry out the crime, although an official confirmation or statement is awaited. The sources earlier said the hitmen met the newly wed couple in Bengaluru, from where they took their connecting flight to the northeast.
