Meghalaya murder: Demonised, called ‘killers’, ‘traffickers’, residents seek apology

The murder of a newly-married businessman from Indore and the initial disappearance of his wife during their honeymoon in Meghalaya had led to unnecessary and unfounded allegations against the people of the state on social media by a section of netizens who hurled abuses at not only the people of Meghalaya but also the entire tribal community in the northeastern states even when the investigation was going on.

Now that the Meghalaya police have unearthed that the murder of Raja Raghuvanshi has nothing to do with the people of the state and was instead allegedly committed by his wife, Sonam along with the three of her accomplices – Akash Rajput (19), Vishal Singh Chauhan (22) and Raj Singh Kushwaha (21) – a large section of the people of Meghalaya including Chief Minister Conrad Sangma have demanded apology from those who resorted to online mudslinging against the northeastern state.

Also Read: Meghalaya murder: Sonam claims she was drugged, kidnapped; police reject her claims

Online abuse

After Raja's body was discovered in a gorge in the Cherrapunji area of Meghalaya and after Sonam’s initial disappearance, a large number of social media users not only dubbed Meghalaya as being “unsafe” for tourists but also accused those belonging to the tribal communities of northeastern states as being part of gangs that "kill" people for money. They also hurled racial abuses against the people of these states.

CM reacts

Lashing out at the detractors, Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma vowed to pursue the case to its logical conclusion as the people of his state have been defamed.

"We will do whatever it takes. Our government and state have been defamed (even though) none of the accused are from Meghalaya," the Chief Minister said as quoted by NDTV.

Also Read: Indore man's murder in Meghalaya: Wife, 3 others arrested

Civil society slams Sonam’s family

Civil society groups in Meghalaya also slammed the online hate mongering against the state. The Confederation of Meghalaya Social Organisations (CoMSO), a civil society group based in Shillong, has demanded a public apology from Sonam’s family, accusing them of defaming the state.

The chairman of CoMSO, Roy Kupar Synrem, slammed her family for making baseless allegations against the Meghalaya government and police and unfairly targeting local communities, said a report by India Today.

"Their statements went beyond grief and bordered on deliberate misinformation. Now that the truth is emerging, they must apologise — not just to the government and police, but to every citizen of Meghalaya who was unfairly maligned," Synrem said as quoted in the report.

Also Read: Sonam Raghuvanshi's aide took people to her husband's funeral in Indore

Meghalaya netizens hit back

The X users from the state also lashed out against the detractors. They pointed out that those who accused the people of Meghalaya of practising “tantric magic”, and of locals being “dangerous” have not only defamed the state but also hurt tourism as a whole. “All such commentators today must apologise,” one user reportedly stated on X.

Another user pointed out that it was not just Meghalaya, the “entire NE tribals” were unnecessarily dragged into the case and even dubbed as” human traffickers.”

“Let's not vilify an entire region before knowing the truth,” stated another user.