Meghalaya: Guide says he saw Indore couple with 3 men before they vanished: Reports

A local tourist guide in Meghalaya has reportedly revealed that he saw the newly married couple from Indore — Raja Raghuvanshi, whose body has been found, and his wife Sonam, who is still missing — with a group of three men while they were on their way to the Mawlakhiat parking lot on the very day they went missing.

'Three male tourists'

According to a Shillong Times report, Albert Pde, a tourist guide from Mawlakhiat, the village from where the couple trekked to the Double Decker Root Bridge in Nongriat, made the revelation while speaking to two journalists, including one from the newspaper.

Pde reportedly said that he first spoke to the couple on the evening of May 22, asking them whether they needed a guide. However, the duo declined the offer.

He also reportedly claimed that he saw the couple again on May 23, around 10 am, when they were on their way to the Double Decker Root Bridge along with the three tourists.

Sonam (25) and Raghuvanshi (29) went missing on May 23, hours after they checked out of a homestay at Nongriat village in Meghalaya's East Khasi Hills district during their honeymoon.

Also Read: Kin of Indore woman who went missing in Meghalaya seek CBI probe

‘They spoke in Hindi’

The tourist guide reportedly said he noticed that Sonam was trailing behind as Raghuvanshi was chatting with the three men. As for the subject of their conversation, Pde said he was unable to understand most of it as they were speaking in Hindi, says the report.

Asked whether he noticed anything suspicious, Pde reportedly said he would not be able to pinpoint anything as he did not understand Hindi much. “I would have understood if they were speaking in English. I did not speak to the couple when they were returning, as they did not require a guide,” he told Shillong Times.

'Couple said they knew trail'

He also said that he was saddened to see that such an incident had taken place in Meghalaya as he had never seen such crimes in the state since his childhood.

Bha Wansai, another tourist guide hired by the couple only to drop them off from Mawlakhiat, who took them to Shipara Homestay in Nongriat, where they spent the night on May 22, said since Raja was not fluent in English, he did not speak much and Sonam spoke most of the time. He also said that the duo declined his services as they said that they knew the trail.

While the local police have not officially commented on any of these claims, news agency PTI reported that it had confirmation from an official in the know that the guide had provided this information to the police.

No records at parking lot

At the Mawlakhiat parking lot, there are no CCTVs and no registers to record the vehicles being parked.

"The village itself has very poor infrastructure and inconsistent power supply," an elder at the village told news agency PTI.

Asked if the couple and the three other men left Mawlakhiat together, he said he could not remember any specific individual since there are many visitors in a day.

The locals have decided to start recording the vehicle numbers and visitors’ phone numbers.

Also Read: Those behind Indore tourist's murder will be brought to book: Meghalaya CM Sangma

Trafficked to Bangladesh: Kin

Meanwhile, Sonam’s family members are apprehensive that she might have been trafficked to Bangladesh. Her brother Govind told the Times of India that several of Sonam’s belongings, including her bag and phone, are missing.

Contrary to the police’s claim that the last known location of the couple’s phone was near the Double Decker Bridge in Nongriat, Govind claimed that Raghuvanshi had made a social media post shortly before his death. He claimed that the last signal from his phone was traced to the spot where his body was eventually found — in a gorge at Sohrarim near Cherrapunji.

MP CM seeks CBI probe

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav has urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to order a CBI probe into Sonam's disappearance.

Earlier, a new footage, recorded by a CCTV camera at a homestay in Shillong, showed the couple dropping their luggage at the homestay before riding off again. The couple, wearing black jackets, are seen normally speaking to each other.

Sonam is also seen wearing a white shirt under the jacket which was reportedly found close to the spot where her husband's decomposed body was found — in a gorge near Weisawdong falls — on June 2.

A gold ring and a neck chain were found missing from his body. A day later, a bloodstained machete was discovered nearby, and two days later, a raincoat that was similar to the one used by the couple was found in Mawkma village, halfway between Sohrarim and the gorge where the body was found.

Terrain, rain, fog hit search

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma has assured that the government was leaving "no stone unturned" to find Sonam.

However, the terrain, extremely heavy rainfall, and foggy weather conditions that reduce visibility to only a few feet were affecting the search operation.

"We are trying our best... our boys are doing what they can without rest using gadgets and trained dogs. The search will continue," East Khasi Hills district Superintendent of Police Vivek Syiem told the media.

A special investigation team headed by an SP and assisted by four DSPs is probing the matter. The search for Sonam is continuing with the participation of NDRF, SDRF, mountaineers, sniffer dogs and drones.

(With agency inputs)