Shillong, June 2 (IANS) A rescue team in Meghalaya recovered the body of the husband while the search is on for the wife on Monday, 11 days after the tourist couple from Madhya Pradesh went missing since May 23 while visiting the northeastern state’s Sohra-Cherrapunji areas.

A Meghalaya police official said that since the couple Sonam (27) and her husband Raja Raghuvanshi (29) from Indore (Madhya Pradesh) went missing on May 23, the search team recovered the body of Raja Raghuvanshi on Monday, after a police drone spotted the dead body in the deep gorge below the Weisawdong Parking Lot at Riat Arliang. The inquest was carried out in the presence of independent witnesses from the area. The relatives of the deceased identified the body as that of Raja Raghuvanshi through a distinctive tattoo on the deceased’s right hand reading ‘Raja’.

A lady’s white shirt, a strip of Pentra 40, a part of the LCD screen of a Vivo mobile phone and a smartwatch from the wrist of the deceased were recovered from the spot.

The body has been sent to NEIGRIHMS, Shillong, for further post-mortem examination to determine the cause of death. The police are actively investigating the case, and no possibilities, including foul play, have been ruled out at this stage, the official said.

He said that the whereabouts of the deceased’s wife, Sonam Raghuvanshi, remain unknown. The discovery of the body was made possible through the dedicated efforts of the police, who conducted an extensive search operation despite challenging weather conditions over the past few days.

A case of murder is being registered. A Special Investigation Team( SIT) is being formed to conduct the investigation. The search team comprises the Police, State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and the West Jaintia Hills District Adventure Mountaineering Club members.

According to a police official, the newlywed couple, residents of Indore, who were touring Meghalaya, went missing on May 23 from the Sohra-Cherrapunji area in the East Khasi Hills district, a tourist hotspot in the northeast region. They reportedly arrived from Indore in the mountainous state on May 20 for their honeymoon and visited some areas before going to Sohra-Cherrapunji. The couple hired a two-wheeler and visited the picturesque area before their disappearance, the official said. Their hired two-wheeler was found abandoned near Sohra Rim, 15 km away from Sohra town. The couple’s mobile phones have been switched off since May 24 night.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) last week spoke to Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma and inquired about the progress of the search operation.

Sangma had said, “We treat the tourists as our family members. People of the Sohra-Cherrapunji areas also treated the tourists as their family members. A large number of villagers are now involved in the search operation.”

“I am personally monitoring the search and rescue efforts constantly,” the Chief Minister had said. Madhya Pradesh MPs Shankar Lalwani and Sumer Singh Solanki also came to Meghalaya and held meetings with the Director General of Police I. Nongrang, and Chief Secretary D.P. Wahlang to discuss the search operations.

–IANS

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