New Revelation in Raja Raghuvanshi Murder Case: Gun and Mobile Found in Drain, Rs 50,000 Recovered from Silom James's Car

A new revelation has emerged in the Raja Raghuvanshi murder case. On Wednesday, Shillong Police took Silom James to the drain where he had thrown a bag. According to police, a gun and a mobile phone were recovered from the bag. The drain is located in the area behind Industry House in Indore. Apart from this, the police also took Silom James near his flat, where his car was parked. Vivek Syiem, Superintendent of Police of East Khasi Hills, informed that on Wednesday afternoon, based on Silom James’s statement, the SIT recovered a country-made pistol, two magazines, and two 0.32 bore cartridges from the drain. Additionally, Rs 50,000 in cash was found in his Hyundai i10 car  - money he had allegedly taken from Raja's laptop bag. The bag was found burnt, and the laptop was reportedly thrown by the roadside and is still missing.

Following the arrest of five accused earlier in the Raja Raghuvanshi murder case, three more people have been arrested: Indore-based property dealer Silom James, security guard Balbir Singh, and Lokendra Singh Tomar. Silom James was the first person who had possession of Sonam Raghuvanshi’s bag after the murder. Sonam had stayed at his flat after the murder. Balbir Singh was the guard at that same flat. The sequence of arrests is as follows: Silom on June 22, Balbir shortly after, and Lokendra on June 23. Police stated that the pistol, the bag containing cash, and a mobile phone hidden by Sonam Raghuvanshi and her lover Raj Kushwaha were with Silom James. CCTV footage also showed Silom taking items out of the flat. After Sonam and Raj were arrested, he had taken possession of the bag. Lokendra Singh, a contractor from Gwalior, also had one of Sonam’s bags, which contained money. However, he burned one bag, which has now been recovered by police.

Sonam had gone to Meghalaya on her honeymoon with husband Raja Raghuvanshi after their wedding on May 11. On May 22, they reached Shillong, and the next day, May 23, they went sightseeing on a scooter. During this time, Sonam called three accused, who arrived separately on scooters. On Sonam’s signal, the trio attacked Raja in a secluded area with a sharp weapon (dao) and murdered him.

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After the murder, Sonam fled. When Raja could not be contacted, his family filed a police complaint. After investigation and search operations, Raja’s body was found on June 2. A manhunt was launched for Sonam, who was eventually found on the night of June 8–9 near a roadside eatery (dhaba) in Ghazipur district of Uttar Pradesh.

Initially, it was believed that someone else might have murdered Raja. However, as Shillong Police dug deeper, the whole conspiracy unraveled.

Sonam had planned the murder with her 21-year-old lover, Raj Kushwaha. As per the plan, she took Raja to Meghalaya under the pretense of a honeymoon. Raj, meanwhile, sent three of his friends - Anand Singh Kurmi (23), Akash Rajput (19), and Vishal Singh Chauhan (22) - to execute the murder. Sonam was in continuous touch with them. Eventually, all the accused were arrested, and the entire murder plot came to light.