Two of the three men accused of assisting Sonam Raghuvanshi in the murder of her husband, Raja Raghuvanshi, in Meghalaya last month have withdrawn their earlier confessions and declined to testify against themselves before the magistrate, according to police.
According to an NDTV report, Akash Rajput and Anand Kurmi remained silent before the magistrate and declined to make any statements in court, said Herbert Pyniaid Kharkongor, the Shillong City Superintendent of Police and head of the Special Investigation Team.
“We sent only two of the (five) accused to the magistrate. They did not want to make any statement. We have ample material evidence against them. We are also waiting for the FSL (Forensic Science Laboratory) report,” Mr Kharkongor said.
The Meghalaya Police had earlier claimed that all the accused had confessed to the crime. However, Kharkongor clarified that confessions made to the police are not admissible as evidence in court.
“It is their right to not make a confessional statement. But material evidence is also very important. There is no issue. We have evidence in the case,” he said.
Statements recorded under Section 180 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) are primarily meant to aid officials during investigation and cross-examination. However, only statements recorded before a magistrate under Section 183 hold legal weight in court proceedings.
In addition to Anand and Akash, Vishal Singh Chauhan also assisted Sonam Raghuvanshi and her lover, Raj Kushwaha, in murdering her newly-wed husband, Raja Raghuvanshi, during their honeymoon in Meghalaya last month.
What began as a frantic search for a missing honeymooning couple has spiraled into a chilling story of deception, betrayal, and premeditated murder spanning multiple Indian states.
Raja Raghuvanshi, 29, and Sonam Raghuvanshi, 24, both residents of Indore, were reported missing in Meghalaya after they went off the radar during their trip to the northeastern state. The couple had tied the knot on May 11, a marriage now revealed to have been clouded by hidden truths.
According to police, Sonam had been in a relationship with Raj Kushwaha, an accountant at her family’s furniture sheet business, which she was also involved in managing. Despite this ongoing affair, she went ahead with her marriage to Raja before embarking on their honeymoon.
Tragedy struck on May 23, when the couple vanished just hours after checking out of a homestay in Nongriat village. The mystery deepened until June 2, when Raja’s body was found about 20 kilometers from the homestay, marking the beginning of a murder investigation that would expose a sinister conspiracy.