The Supreme Court on Thursday set aside the bail granted to Sonam Raghuvanshi, the prime accused in the alleged murder of her husband, Raja Raghuvanshi, during their honeymoon in Meghalaya, holding that she was not entitled to relief despite alleged procedural lapses in her arrest.
A Bench of Justice MM Sundresh and Justice PB Varale allowed the Meghalaya government’s appeal against the High Court order upholding the trial court’s decision granting bail.
The Court observed that while the trial court had granted bail over alleged non-compliance with the requirement to communicate the grounds of arrest, there was a distinction between complete non-service and inadequate communication of those grounds.
The Bench noted that the accused was given the grounds for arrest, emphasizing that failing to provide them at all is quite different from simply lacking detailed reasons
The Court noted that Sonam had already been denied bail on three earlier occasions and that those orders had attained finality. Since the trial had commenced, her continued release could hinder the proceedings. It therefore directed her to surrender within three weeks, while granting her liberty to seek fresh bail if the trial is not concluded within six months.
The Bench also clarified that non-compliance with the requirement to serve grounds of arrest does not prevent the police from re-arresting an accused for the purpose of investigation.
The Court noted that while today’s youth have access to vast information, they struggle more with pressure. Responding to Solicitor General Tushar Mehta’s observation that young people have “more information but less knowledge,” Justice PB Varale noted that content shared on WhatsApp is frequently mistaken for actual knowledge.
For the State, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta argued that Sonam had surrendered before the police and that the law on communication of grounds of arrest did not apply in such circumstances. Advocate Ardhendumauli Prasad, appearing for Sonam, disputed this, relying on the arrest memo and contending that the grounds of arrest supplied were defective and failed to properly inform her of the reasons for arrest.
The Bench, however, questioned whether such a plea could be raised after three bail applications had already been rejected on merits and ultimately found no reason to sustain the bail.
Sonam Raghuvanshi is accused of conspiring to murder her husband during their honeymoon in East Khasi Hills in May 2025. She was arrested in June 2025 and later charge-sheeted for murder. In April 2026, the trial court granted her bail over defects in the communication of the grounds of arrest, and the Meghalaya High Court upheld that decision. The Supreme Court has now cancelled the bail while allowing her to apply afresh if the trial is not completed within six months.
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