Photo Courtesy: India Today Group
Shillong: The Meghalaya High Court upheld the bail granted to Sonam Raghuvanshi on June 29. She remains the prime suspect in the 2025 murder of her husband, Raja Raghuvanshi. Justice W. Diengdoh rejected the state’s push to send her back behind bars.
Sonam won her initial release after a Shillong court found the police botched the paperwork. The arrest documents repeatedly cited the wrong law. Instead of noting Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for murder, police listed Section 403(1). The court refused to wave this off as a simple typo.
Police paperwork looked sloppy. Justice Diengdoh noted that forms contained irrelevant, boilerplate text. One document even identified the accused as a "deserter" from the armed forces. The state argued the errors were minor and didn't hurt her defense. Advocate General Amit Kumar insisted Sonam knew the charges, yet the judge stood firm.
The case began in May 2025. The couple vanished while on their honeymoon in Meghalaya. Workers found Raja’s body in a gorge near Weisawdong Falls days later. Police later tracked Sonam to Uttar Pradesh. Investigators claim she and associate Raj Kushwaha planned the killing before they ever arrived in the state. A massive 700-page chargesheet documents the prosecution’s theory.
The state feared Sonam might run. The court dismissed that risk, noting current bail conditions are tight enough to keep her under control. The law will handle any future violations.
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