Meghalaya honeymoon murder case: One of the accused gets slapped by unknown person at airport

The incident occurred while the accused was taken inside the airport by the authorities.

Sonam Raghuvanshi, the prime accused in the murder of her husband Raja Raghuvanshi, was brought to Meghalaya's Shillong on Tuesday night for further investigations by the state police.

The slapping incident occurred when the four accused reached the airport from where they will be taken to Meghalaya for procurement of further details of the case.

The four accused, who have already admitted their crime, are Anand Kurmi, Akash Rajput, and Vishal Singh Chauhan and Sonam's boyfriend Raj Kushwaha.

According to reports, after they all reach Shillong, the police are planning a reconstruction of the crime.

After initial interrogation, all the accused will be taken to the crime scene in Sohra for a detailed reconstruction of the sequence of events leading to the murder, media reports said.

Seven people have been arrested in the case so far, including Sonam's boyfriend and the three alleged killers.

Sonam was arrested in Uttar Pradesh's Ghazipur on Monday after she surrendered at a police station, claiming her husband was killed by men who were trying to rob them, and she was drugged and brought to Uttar Pradesh.

The victim, Raja Raghuvanshi, and his newly married wife, Sonam, had gone missing on May 23.

A week later, Raja's body was recovered from a gorge. A search was conducted for Sonam, who eventually turned up in Uttar Pradesh's Ghazipur a week later.

According to Meghalaya cops, Sonam was in an extramarital affair and wanted to get rid of Raja. Hence, she plotted the murder.

She planned the murder in connivance with her boyfriend, Raj, and surrendered under pressure on June 8, according to the police. Both were later arrested.

The hitmen hired by Sonam first met with the newlywed couple in Bengaluru, from where they took their connecting flight to the northeast, NDTV reported, quoting sources.

(From L to R) Sonam Raghuvanshi and Raja Raghuvanshi. Photo: Screen-grab/X

Although her lover Raj did not travel to Meghalaya, Shillong Police sources told the channel that he was involved in the planning behind the scenes and remained in touch with Sonam.

On May 23, Sonam and Raja went on a trek to a steep peak to see a waterfall, when the hitmen followed them.

At one point, Sonam pretended to be tired and started walking much behind her husband and the killers, reports said. When they reached a deserted place, Sonam allegedly asked the men to kill her husband.

The killers, however, refused to kill him, saying they were tired, as per the sources. Sonam then allegedly raised her offer to 20 lakh, they said.

On June 2, the Meghalaya Police recovered Raja's body, and a day later, they knew his wife was involved in the murder.

The Meghalaya Police has claimed that all those involved in the conspiracy to kill Raja have been arrested in the operation that they codenamed Operation Honeymoon.

Raja's family has demanded the harshest possible punishment for the accused, including his wife and her alleged accomplice.