In a spine-chilling case that has shocked the nation, 29-year-old Raja Raghuvanshi from Indore was brutally murdered during his honeymoon in Meghalaya — allegedly at the behest of his wife, Sonam, just days after their wedding. His body, discovered on June 2 beneath the Wei Sawdong waterfalls, bore deep machete wounds, signaling a violent end to what was meant to be the start of a new life.

Police claim that Sonam, in collusion with her lover Raj Kushwaha, hired three contract killers to eliminate Raja. The plot, reportedly hatched before the wedding, was executed in the remote hills of Meghalaya, using the honeymoon as a deadly cover. All accused — Sonam, Raj, and the three hitmen — are now in police custody.

Social Media Irony – Lover Consoles the Bride’s Father

In a grim twist that stunned social media users, Raj Kushwaha was captured on camera consoling Sonam’s grieving father at Raja’s funeral — unaware that he too was under suspicion. The video has since gone viral, amplifying public outrage. Raja’s sister, Shrasti, has demanded justice:

“If she loved someone else, why didn’t she just walk away? Why murder my brother?”

Not an Isolated Case – A Disturbing Pattern Emerges

This is not an isolated incident. Over the past year, India has seen a disturbing rise in cases where wives, allegedly with lovers’ help, plotted and executed their husbands’ murders:

• Meerut (March 2025): Muskan and her lover dismembered husband Saurabh Rajput, hiding his body in a cement-filled drum.
  
• Auraiya, UP: Pragati, just two weeks into her marriage, allegedly conspired with her lover Anurag to have her husband killed.
  
• Bijnor (April): Shivani confessed to sedating and strangling her husband Deepak Kumar, later claiming he died of a heart attack.
  
• Vaishali, Bihar: A husband was killed during Holi in a suspected lover-driven rage.
  
• Begusarai (Jan 2024): Rani reportedly strangled her husband for objecting to her Instagram reel habits.

Experts Weigh In – Love, Obsession, and Psychological Trauma

Experts point to a cocktail of emotional repression, forbidden affairs, obsessive love, and psychological imbalance. A police officer involved in Sonam’s arrest remarked:

“This was not a crime of passion. It was a cold, calculated plot—chilling in its planning and emotionless in its execution.”

Psychologists suggest personality disorders, narcissism, and a loss of empathy may underpin such calculated betrayal. In many cases, divorce — still stigmatized in Indian society — is avoided in favor of a final, irreversible solution.

The Symbolism and Shift in Marital Violence

Historically, Indian women have largely been seen as victims in domestic crimes. However, this recent spate of “bride-led murders” inverts that narrative. In a society where divorce is taboo and autonomy limited, some women may see murder as the “only escape,” though such logic is grotesquely warped.

• Weddings, often celebrated with grandeur, now mask suppressed resentments.
  
• Honeymoons, once romantic retreats, are becoming settings for betrayal and brutality.
  
• Marriage, a supposed safe haven, is increasingly turning into a stage for premeditated violence.

Final Word

These cases force Indian society to confront a darker side of marriage, where unfulfilled love, societal pressure, and emotional instability can morph into violence. When the sindoor becomes a symbol not of commitment but of betrayal, and when love becomes a weapon, we must ask: what lies beneath the surface of our most sacred institution? As more such cases come to light, one thing is clear — societal reckoning is overdue. Marriage should not be a cage, nor should its failure justify murder. The real tragedy isn’t just the bloodshed—it’s the silence, suppression, and lost humanity that allow it to fester.

By – Nikita