New Delhi: The ‘boyfriend and mastermind’ Raj Kushwaha didn’t go to Shillong, but allegedly coordinated the murder of Raja Raghuvanshi over the phone from Indore. His alleged accomplices reached Meghalaya on 22 May, the day before Raja Raghuvanshi was killed, ThePrint has learnt.
According to sources in the Meghalaya Police, Sonam and Raj Kushwaha were in a relationship and had planned the murder to be carried out in Meghalaya during Sonam and Raja’s honeymoon.
“Akash Rajput, Anand Kurmi and Vishal Singh Chauhan reached Shillong on 22 May and began trailing the couple. On the day of the murder too, they were following the couple in a car. In one area in Cherrapunji, it is learnt that the three men also spoke to the victim in the presence of the woman,” a senior police officer said.
Raja’s decomposed body was found on 2 June inside a deep gorge below the parking lot for the Wei Sawdong Falls in Riat Arliang. Sonam and Raj are among the five people have been arrested in the case, so far.
It is suspected that he was killed on 23 May during the day, between 1:30-2 pm. The police have found that the couple’s phones were switched off at the time.
“We suspect that the plan was to isolate Raja. It was strategically planned to take him for a trek and then to be intercepted by the accused. All this was coordinated by Raj Kushwaha over the phone. Sonam was constantly in touch with Raj. The area is secluded, especially towards the evening, as the terrain is tricky. Tourists and even locals don’t come out of their homes after evening,” said the senior officer.
Accused followed couple
Sonam and Raja got married on 11 May and reached Shillong on 21 May around 6 pm for their honeymoon. They rented a scooter the next day and moved towards Cherrapunji and trekked to the Shipara Homestay in Nongriat village. The next day, they descended from Nongriat to Mawlakhiat. “Here too, the accused men were tailing the victim and Sonam,” another police officer said.
The arrests were followed by a technical investigation by the Meghalaya Police. CCTV footage was analysed and details of call records were scanned by the investigators.
Sources said that after the murder, Sonam, Akash Rajput, Anand Kurmi and Vishal Singh Chauhan left for Guwahati the next day and then separated, moving to different locations.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
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