Sonam posted from Raja's account after his murder, returned to Indore to meet Raj Kushwaha | Key updates

In a major revelation in the Raja Raghuvanshi murder case, it has come to light that Sonam Raghuvanshi, the prime accused and Raja's wife, attempted to mislead the police by posting from his social media account. Later, on May 25, she travelled by train from Shillong to Indore via Siliguri to meet her alleged lover, Raj Kushwaha.

Raja and Sonam were in Meghalaya for their honeymoon. The two got married on May 11 and soon left for their honeymoon on May 20 and went missing on May 23. On June 2, Raja's body was discovered in a deep gorge near a waterfall in the Sohra area (also known as Cherrapunji) of Meghalaya's East Khasi Hills district. 

Police revealed that Sonam conspired to kill her husband with the help of her alleged boyfriend, Raj Kushwaha. The duo allegedly hired contract killers to carry out the murder. Sonam, Raj Kushwaha, and three other accused have been arrested.

Here are the key developments in the case

1. Soon after the murder of her husband, Sonam Raghuvanshi, posted from Raja Raghuvanshi's account at around 2:45 am: "saat janmon ka saath hai". The message was posted in an attempt to portray that the husband was still alive. It is pertinent to mention that during the honeymoon, Sonam did not upload any photos or videos, which raised suspicion and gave police a lead. 
2. Following the murder, Sonam was captured on CCTV interacting with the three accused individuals at a location approximately 10 kilometers from the crime scene.
3. On June 25, Sonam travelled by train from Shillong to Indore via Siliguri, where she met Raj Kushwaha. She stayed at a rented house in Indore before a driver dropped her in Uttar Pradesh. She eventually reached Ghazipur via Varanasi. To avoid being traced, she destroyed her mobile phone. The weapon used in the murder was reportedly procured near the Guwahati railway station.
4. At the crime scene, a jacket belonging to Akash (one of the killers) was found, a raincoat linked to Sonam, and Raja's phone screen were recovered. Sonam had reportedly given her raincoat to Akash, which had blood stains and was discarded at the scene.
5. Vipin Raghuvanshi, brother of the deceased Raja Raghuvanshi, claimed that Sonam Raghuvanshi's mother kept information from their family and that she also knew about the alleged affair between Raj Kushwaha and her daughter, Sonam. He said that before the marriage, Sonam had told her mother, "If this marriage happens, the outcome will not be good."
6. Sonam told authorities she had been drugged and brought to Ghazipur to make it appear she was a victim. Four others were arrested following her detention, UP Police ADG (Law and Order) Amitabh Yash said during an interview with a news channel.
7. Eyewitnesses said that one of the accused, Raj Kushwaha, drove a vehicle to take people to the victim's funeral.  "When Raja's body arrived here, Sonam's family, whose home is in Govind Nagar Kharcha area, had arranged four -five vehicles for people to attend the funeral. Kushwaha was driving the four-wheeler in which I went, though we did not talk. Only after seeing his photograph in the media post his arrest, I recollected this episode," said eye-witness Lakshman Singh Rathore.