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‘Never talked about Sonam, wasn’t planning to marry’: Raj Kushwaha’s sister on his future plans
Raj Kushwaha's sister said that her brother “was not planning to get married, he always said that all of his sisters were to marry first.”
The family of Raj Singh Kushwaha, one of the accused in the murder of Raja Raghuvanshi, has spoken out, claiming Raj is innocent and demanding justice. His sister said he is falsely implicated and added that her brother “never talked about Sonam Raghuvanshi.”
Raj's sister claimed they had gone to meet him at the Crime Branch office but were not allowed in. “My brother has not done anything. He should get justice,” she told the news agency ANI.
“My brother never talked about Sonam Raghuvanshi. My brother used to take care of all of us after our father's death. My brother passed Class 10th and had to stop studies after my father's death,” she said.
She then said that her brother “was not planning to get married, he always said that all his sisters were to marry first.”
“We will not be able to visit Meghalaya to see my brother... My only demand is that they should get justice,” she added.
Raj's mother pleads for her son's innocence
Raj’s mother claimed her son is innocent, saying, “My son is not like that; he can never do something like this. He is very young and was taking care of his three sisters after his father passed away."
“He started working at Govind's (brother of Sonam Raghuvanshi) office. My husband passed away in 2020. After that, Raj has taken care of our family. Please save my son, this is my only request. I have no idea about any relationship between Sonam and my son. My son is being trapped. I don't know who is behind this. I can't even visit Meghalaya; I have no one to take me there,” Raj Kushwaha's mother added.
What the police said
A senior police officer told HT that Raj Singh Kushwaha had allegedly backed out of the trip to Meghalaya at the last moment and tried to convince the others to do the same.
“Raj Kushwaha claims he didn’t want to support Sonam, and at the last moment, cancelled his plan to go to Meghalaya. He also allegedly asked the three others not to go, but they went to see Meghalaya after Sonam booked the tickets,” the officer said.
"Even at the last moment, the three refused to kill, but Sonam insisted and said she would give ₹15 lakh for that. Police are verifying these claims,” the cop added.
For the unversed, the Meghalaya Police brought all four accused—Sonam Raghuvanshi, Akash Rajput, Vishal Singh Chauhan, Raj Singh Kushwaha, and Anand—to Shillong for further investigation. The police took them to Shillong Sadar Police Station after getting a seven-day transit remand.
All the accused are scheduled for medical examinations and will be produced in court. Earlier in the day, Sonam Raghuvanshi was taken to Ganesh Das Hospital for a medical check-up. She is currently on a three-day transit remand with Meghalaya Police.
The case pertains to the murder of Raja Raghuvanshi, a resident of Indore, who had gone to Meghalaya with his wife Sonam for their honeymoon. His body was found on June 2 in a gorge near Sohra (Cherrapunji). Sonam was later found near a roadside eatery on the Varanasi-Ghazipur highway.
