Two persons who were earlier arrested on suspicion of tampering with evidence in the murder of Indore-based businessman Raja Raghuvanshi in Meghalaya have been dropped from the latest chargesheet after police found no proof against them during a detailed investigation. East Khasi Hills Superintendent of Police Vivek Syiem said that Balbir Ahirbar and Lokendra Singh Tomar were initially taken into custody based on suspicion that they had tried to destroy evidence linked to the murder. However, the investigation later revealed that there was no material to support the allegations against them.
“The arrests were made on suspicion, but the investigation did not support the allegations. The final report found that they had no role whatsoever, which led to their dismissal from the case, and hence their names were not included in the chargesheet,” the SP said.Both Balbir Ahirbar and Lokendra Singh Tomar are currently out on bail. Police have now filed a second chargesheet in the case, naming only one of the three persons who were earlier arrested for alleged tampering with evidence. The case is expected to be taken up by the court soon.Meanwhile, the prime accused in the case, Raja Raghuvanshi’s wife Sonam Raghuvanshi, continues to remain in judicial custody. Police said that a court has recently rejected her bail plea.
Raja Raghuvanshi, a resident of Madhya Pradesh, was murdered in May last year in a secluded area near the popular Wei Sawdong Falls in Sohra. His decomposed body was recovered from a deep gorge on June 2 after an extensive search operation by rescue teams and police. Police had earlier said that Raja and Sonam, who were newly married at the time, had travelled to Meghalaya on a honeymoon-cum-holiday trip. Sonam was later accused of planning and carrying out the murder before fleeing the state.