PATNA, June 10— Vipin Raghuvanshi, brother of the slain Raja Raghuvanshi, has raised new allegations against his sister-in-law and murder accused Sonam Raghuvanshi, calling her recent surrender to the police a “drama” and asserting that more than five individuals were involved in the conspiracy behind his brother’s killing.
“She staged her surrender. We later learned that she had arrived by bus and was accompanied by two others,” Vipin told reporters on Tuesday. “She called her brother saying someone dropped her off — then how did she not know them? She framed the whole scene.”
Raja Raghuvanshi, a resident of Indore, was found dead in Meghalaya during what was supposed to be his honeymoon. His wife Sonam and her alleged lover, Raj Kushwaha, are being treated as the prime accused in what authorities suspect was a contract killing.
Sonam was detained after being located near a roadside eatery on the Varanasi-Ghazipur highway and subsequently kept at the Sakhi One Stop Centre in Ghazipur by Uttar Pradesh Police. She was handed over to Meghalaya Police after a medical checkup and a court-approved three-day transit remand.
Meghalaya Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong confirmed Sonam’s arrest on June 9 and said the investigation is still open with one suspect yet to be found. “All accused will be taken to Shillong for further questioning,” he said.
The investigation, led by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) in Meghalaya, revealed that Raja suffered two fatal head injuries, according to SIT chief Herbert Pyniaid Kharkongor.
In a press briefing, Additional DCP Rajesh Dandotiya said, “The fourth accused, Anand, a resident of Indore, was brought here by Shillong police and presented in court. He has been sent to transit remand for seven days.”
Three others — Akash Rajput, Vishal Singh Chauhan, and Raj Kushwaha — were similarly remanded on Monday. According to police, all four accused are between 20 and 25 years of age and have no prior criminal history. “Raj was an accountant in Sonam’s office. Vishal and Anand are college students; Akash is unemployed,” the DCP said.
Vipin Raghuvanshi further accused Sonam’s mother of withholding critical information from their family. “We had no idea Sonam was involved with Raj Kushwaha before marriage. Her mother knew about it and stayed silent. If her father and brother had known, Raj would’ve been thrown out of their factory,” he claimed.
He also questioned Raj Kushwaha’s intentions, citing prolonged phone calls with Sonam during the days Raja’s body remained undiscovered. “If Raj were innocent, he wouldn’t have been speaking to her for hours,” Vipin said, adding that Sonam was found in Raj’s hometown and likely stayed at his residence.
The murder case has now led to the arrest of four people, with police suspecting that more may have been involved in orchestrating Raja’s killing. Authorities are expected to take all the accused to Shillong for continued investigation.
“We have faith in the police, but we know this goes deeper,” Vipin said. “This wasn’t just between Sonam and Raj.”
