Family of Indore man found dead in Meghalaya demands CBI probe into his 'murder'

The family of an Indore resident, whose body was found 11 days after he and his wife went missing during their trip to Meghalaya, on Tuesday alleged he was murdered and demanded a CBI probe into the matter.

Transport businessman Raja Raghuvanshi (29) and his wife Sonam went missing on May 23 at Sohra (also known as Cherrapunji) in Meghalaya's East Khasi Hills district after going there for their honeymoon. The man's body was found in the north-eastern state on Monday, while search for his wife continues.

The couple went missing on May 23, just hours after leaving a guest house in Nongriat village, according to Meghalaya officials.

Raghuvanshi's body was found on Monday in a deep gorge near a waterfall in Sohra area of East Khasi Hills district, they said.

According to officials, Nongriat village is located 20 km away from the place where the body was found and the Meghalaya police have registered an FIR on charges of murder and formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) in the case.

Raja Raghuvanshi's elder brother Sachin Raghuvanshi told reporters in Indore, ''This is a case of murder of my brother. I have only one demand from the government that the mystery should be unraveled by getting it investigated by the CBI.'' ''I have lost my brother, but I do not want to lose my sister-in-law Sonam. The government should find my sister-in-law at any cost. I have been demanding from the beginning that the Army's help should be taken in the search operation,'' he said. Sachin said his brother's body had decomposed so much that it was difficult to identify it from the face.

''My brother had his name Raja tattooed on his hand. Since it rains a lot in Meghalaya, he went there wearing my waterproof smartwatch. When he was found dead, the watch was on his wrist. This also helped in identifying him,'' he said. Sachin said he has suspicion on the local hotel-restaurant staff, guides and people who rent two-wheelers in Meghalaya in connection with the alleged murder of his brother and the disappearance of the latter's wife and the police should strictly question them.

Raja Raghuvanshi's family is into transport business in Madhya Pradesh's Indore. He got married to Sonam on May 11 here and they went to Meghalaya for 'honeymoon' on May 20.

According to Meghalaya officials, the newlyweds reached Mawlakhiyat village on a rented scooter on May 22. They parked their scooter and went to see the famous 'Living Root Bridge' in Nongriat village, where they stayed overnight and left the next morning.

The couple's scooter was found abandoned at a cafe on the road from Shillong to Sohra on May 24, following which police were informed and an initial search operation was planned with the help of local villagers, as per the Meghalaya police.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)