Body of man killed during honeymoon in Meghalaya reaches Indore; kin insist on CBI probe

Indore, June 4 (PTI) The body of a 29-year-old businessman, who was found murdered days after he went missing with his wife in Meghalaya during their honeymoon trip, reached his hometown Indore on Wednesday evening.

Amid the cremation of the body, his family reiterated their demand for a CBI probe and threatened to launch a protest if it was not met. The Meghalaya police have registered a murder case and formed a special investigation team (SIT).

Officials said that Indore-based transport businessman Raja Raghuvanshi (29) and his newly-wed wife Sonam, who had gone to Meghalaya for honeymoon, went missing in the northeastern state on May 23.

They said Raja’s body was found in a deep gorge near a waterfall in Sohra area (also known as Cherrapunji) of the East Khasi Hills district on Monday (June 2), while a search for his wife is underway.

When the body reached his Indore home, the bereaved family was inconsolable. They have also hung a banner outside their Sahakar Nagar home demanding a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

“Raja’s soul calls out to the central government and the state government – I am not dead, I have been killed. CBI should conduct the inquiry,” reads the banner, also featuring wedding photos of the couple.

Those who participated in Raja’s funeral procession also shouted slogans demanding a CBI inquiry.

Raja’s elder brother Sachin Raghuvanshi told PTI, “We want a CBI inquiry as soon as possible into my brother’s murder and daughter-in-law Sonam’s disappearance. Otherwise, we will have to stage a sit-in protest.” He suspects his brother and his wife were kidnapped in Meghalaya with the intention of looting.

Sachin said, “Along with my brother's wallet, the gold chain and ring he was wearing when he went to Meghalaya for his honeymoon are also missing.” Raja’s family is involved in the transport business in Indore. He married Sonam on May 11 in the city, and the couple left for Meghalaya on May 20 for their honeymoon.

According to Meghalaya officials, Raja and Sonam went missing on May 23, just hours after leaving a guest house (homestay) in Nongriat village.

Officials said that Nongriat village is 20 km from the place where Raja’s body was found.

The couple had reached Mawlakhiyat village on a rented scooter on May 22. They parked their scooter and climbed down over 3,000 steps from the valley to see the famous ‘living roots’ bridges in Nongriat village, where they spent the night at a homestay and left the next morning, officials said.

The couple’s scooter was found abandoned outside a cafe on the road from Shillong to Sohra on May 24, following which the Meghalaya police launched a search and rescue operation. The operation was affected due to heavy rains in Sohra, officials said.

Raja’s body was found on June 2.

The Meghalaya police have recovered a bloodstained machete, which they believe was used to kill Raja, an official said on Wednesday. PTI HWP MAS NR